August 22, 2003 - Kansas City Star: Senator Norm Coleman stunned by South African trade minister's comments on AIDS

Peace Corps Online: Peace Corps News: Headlines: Peace Corps Headlines - 2003: August 2003 Peace Corps Headlines: August 22, 2003 - Kansas City Star: Senator Norm Coleman stunned by South African trade minister's comments on AIDS

By Admin1 (admin) on Monday, August 25, 2003 - 3:56 pm: Edit Post

Senator Norm Coleman stunned by South African trade minister's comments on AIDS





Getting to grips: Senators Norm Coleman, Bill Frist and John Warner talk to an HIV-positive patient at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital on the outskirts of Soweto. Photo: Liz Clarke, Sunday Argus


Read and comment on this story from the Kansas City Star about Norm Coleman and other Senators on their nine day trip to Africa where he is visiting South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana and Namibia to get a first-hand look at effects of AIDS before returning to the United States on August 27.

Senator Coleman, visiting Africa as part of a fact-finding Senate delegation, said he was stunned by the comments of South Africa's trade minister, who told the senators the AIDS crisis there was manageable. "I thought his words were rather shocking," Coleman, R-Minn., said in a conference call with reporters from Cape Town, South Africa. Trade Minister Alec Erwin told the delegation that AIDS was not hurting the country's economy or lowering life expectancy, according to Coleman and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican who organized the trip.

While on the trip, Senator Coleman plans to meet with Peace Corps volunteers in the region. In addition to over 2,100 Peace Corps volunteers currently working on HIV/AIDS projects, the Peace Corps has committed to an additional 1,000 volunteers to fight HIV/AIDS as part of legislation signed into law on May 27 by President Bush. "In the end, the goal is to make a difference," said Senator Coleman. Read the story at:


Coleman stunned by South African trade minister's comments*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Coleman stunned by South African trade minister's comments

FREDERIC J. FROMMER
Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Sen. Norm Coleman, visiting Africa as part of a fact-finding Senate delegation, said he was stunned by the comments of South Africa's trade minister, who told the senators the AIDS crisis there was manageable.

"I thought his words were rather shocking," Coleman, R-Minn., said in a conference call with reporters from Cape Town, South Africa.

Trade Minister Alec Erwin told the delegation that AIDS was not hurting the country's economy or lowering life expectancy, according to Coleman and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican who organized the trip.

Frist, a doctor, said to journalists in Soweto: "I told him I find that hard to believe based on world literature."

"We all challenged (Erwin)," said Coleman. "To us, the impact is so overwhelming. You've got 5 million people with HIV."

About 4.7 million people in South Africa are infected with HIV, and an estimated 600 to a 1,000 South Africans die everyday from AIDS-related complications.

Coleman said that Erwin also said the $15 billion that President Bush has committed to combat AIDS in Africa and the Caribbean would be better used in countries that don't have the problem under control.

The South African government, under pressure to take stronger action against AIDS, instructed the health ministry earlier this month to develop a plan for distributing AIDS drugs.

In the past, the government had refused to provide AIDS medicine to its people through the public health system, making it the target of intense criticism at home and abroad.

"The government only recently admitted that AIDS is a problem," said Coleman. "The government is finally getting it. But still, as referenced by the conversation with the trade minister, you question whether there is some denial."

The South African embassy in Washington did not return phone messages left Friday.

Coleman said the group also visited a Salvation Army orphanage where half the children are HIV-positive.

"You're looking at kids who are going to die," said Coleman, whose sister died of AIDS. "I got a chance to play with some of the kids, and high-five 'em.

"My wife's (Laurie's) comment was, 'You know, they're just kids. Kids around the world are the same - they're just kids. They want to celebrate birthdays and they want to play with their friends and they want to have fun.' ... It brings home the great tragedy."

The delegation leaves Saturday for Mozambique, then heads to Namibia and Botswana, which has the world's highest AIDS infection rate.

Coleman, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is one of a half-dozen senators going on the taxpayer-funded trip. In addition to Frist and Coleman, the group includes John Warner, R-Va., who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee; Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.; Mike DeWine, R-Ohio; and Mike Enzi, R-Wyo.






August 19, 2003 - Senator Coleman to get a first-hand look at effects of AIDS, meet with Peace Corps Volunteers in Africa





Read and comment on this story from the Star Tribune on August 19, 2003 on Senator Norm Coleman, the new chair of the Senate subcommittee that oversees the Peace Corps, and his nine day trip to Africa where he will visit South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana and Namibia to get a first-hand look at effects of AIDS before returning to the United States on August 27. In January, on his first day in office, Coleman said he would make the international AIDS crisis a priority:
"You kind of pick your places where you think you can make a difference in the Senate," Coleman said Monday. "And this is one area where, for a range of reasons, I'd like to make a difference in the world. So this trip, from the very beginning, was very important to me."
While on the trip, Senator Coleman plans to meet with Peace Corps volunteers in the region. In addition to over 2,100 Peace Corps volunteers currently working on HIV/AIDS projects, the Peace Corps has committed to an additional 1,000 volunteers to fight HIV/AIDS as part of legislation signed into law on May 27 by President Bush. "In the end, the goal is to make a difference," said Senator Coleman. That's why the Peace Corps is there too - "to make a difference." Read the story at:

Coleman leaves today for Africa on AIDS fact-finding trip*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Coleman leaves today for Africa on AIDS fact-finding trip

Rob Hotakainen, Star Tribune Washington Bureau Correspondent

Published August 19, 2003

COLE19

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Sen. Norm Coleman is scheduled to leave today for a nine-day trip to Africa, accompanied by his wife, Laurie, and five other senators and their wives.

The Minnesota Republican will depart from Andrews Air Force Base and make his first stop in South Africa. The group then is to travel to Mozambique, Botswana and Namibia before returning to the United States on Aug. 27.

In January, on his first day in office, Coleman said he would make the international AIDS crisis a priority.

"You kind of pick your places where you think you can make a difference in the Senate," Coleman said Monday. "And this is one area where, for a range of reasons, I'd like to make a difference in the world. So this trip, from the very beginning, was very important to me."

A member of the Foreign Relations Committee, Coleman said he wants to get a first-hand look at the effects of AIDS, which kills 8,000 people a day.

Coleman said he also plans to meet with Peace Corps volunteers in the region. He will be accompanied by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and Republicans Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Mike Enzi of Wyoming and John Warner of Virginia.

The delegation plans to meet with political leaders and to tour the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto, South Africa, the Salvation Army HIV orphanage in Soweto, the Bernard Noordkamp Catholic AIDS Action Center in Windhoek, Namibia, and the St. Mary's Hospital Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission in Windhoek.

Coleman said that Frist, a heart surgeon, who has been to Africa before, told him that the trip will "change the way you look at the world." He said he hopes to become "one of the point people in the U.S. Senate and the world on this issue."

"In the end, the goal is to make a difference," he said.

Rob Hotakainen is at rhotakainen@mcclatchydc.com.



May 27, 2003 - Peace Corps Commits 1,000 Additional Volunteers as part of Global AIDS Relief Package





Read and comment on this Peace Corps Press Release on May 27, 2003 that the Peace Corps has committed to an additional 1,000 volunteers to fight HIV/AIDS as part of legislation signed into law today by President Bush at:

Peace Corps Commits 1,000 Additional Volunteers as part of Global AIDS Relief Package*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Peace Corps Commits 1,000 Additional Volunteers as part of Global AIDS Relief Package

WASHINGTON, D.C., May 27, 2003 - In addition to over 2,100 Peace Corps volunteers currently working on HIV/AIDS projects, the Peace Corps committed to an additional 1,000 volunteers to fight HIV/AIDS as part of legislation signed into law today by President Bush. The new law, H.R. 1298, the U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Act of 2003, will direct $15 billion over the next five years to fight HIV/AIDS abroad, focusing on 14 African and Caribbean countries where HIV/AIDS is heavily concentrated.

President Bush signed the bipartisan legislation into law today during a ceremony at the Department of State and recognized Peace Corps volunteers for their work abroad. The President received multiple standing ovations as he addressed the audience and stated that he viewed fighting HIV/AIDS as a “moral duty.”

“Peace Corps volunteers are making an impact at the local level, and by committing an additional 1,000 volunteers, Peace Corps will be able to enhance a number of programs and expand HIV/AIDS projects in current Peace Corps countries. The expansion includes additional volunteers working in targeted African countries, as well as those in the Caribbean. Also, more educational material, written in local languages, will be developed for volunteers to use in their communities,” stated Peace Corps Director Gaddi H. Vasquez.

Peace Corps currently has more than 2,100 volunteers working on HIV/AIDS activities. Peace Corps programs in two countries, Botswana and Swaziland, are devoted entirely to the pandemic. In addition, Peace Corps is exploring partnerships with other Federal agencies in order to further expand its efforts as part of the President’s initiative.

The Crisis Corps program, in which former Peace Corps volunteers return to service for a limited period, will also commit volunteers to fight the disease. These volunteers will lend their expertise to non-governmental organizations and government agencies worldwide for assignments of up to six months. The Peace Corps will enhance the capability of volunteers and their communities to obtain and exchange information about the latest innovations in public health education, behavior change, and delivery of services to people living with HIV/AIDS through the use of information communication technology.

Since 1961, more than 168,000 volunteers have served in the Peace Corps, working in such diverse fields as education, health and HIV/AIDS education and awareness, information technology, business development, the environment, and agriculture. Peace Corps Volunteers must be U.S. citizens and at least 18 years of age. Peace Corps service is a two-year commitment.






July 15, 2003 - Senator Coleman pushes for Peace Corps funding increase





Read and comment on this story from the Kansas City Star on July 15, 2003 that Senator Norm Coleman, chair of the Senate Subcommittee that oversees the Peace Corps, is urging his colleagues to approve President Bush's request for $359 million request for next year. Coleman said he would make a public pitch Tuesday in a speech at the Peace Corps headquarters. RPCVs need to read the story and call their Senators and Representatives to support this appropriation. Thanks to Senator Coleman for leading the fight. Read the story at:

Coleman pushes for Peace Corps funding increase*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Coleman pushes for Peace Corps funding increase

Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Sen. Norm Coleman urged his colleagues to approve President Bush's request for increased funding for the Peace Corps.

In a recent letter to Sen. Mitch McConnell, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on foreign operations, Coleman said he supported Bush's $359 million request for next year, a 13 percent increase.

Coleman, R-Minn., said he would make a public pitch Tuesday in a speech at the Peace Corps headquarters. He chairs the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps and Narcotic Affairs.

"According to many U.S. diplomats and host country officials, the Peace Corps is the most effective and cost efficient U.S. agency working at the local, grassroots development level," Coleman wrote in the letter to McConnell, R-Ky.

Bush has said he wants to double the number of volunteers in the Peace Corps over the next five years, to 14,000.




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