Will U.S. Senate Block Lifesaving Global AIDS Bill?

May 7, 2003

Volume 5/  Number 14

Dear Colleague:

With overwhelming bipartisan support, the U.S. House of Representatives last week passed the landmark Global AIDS bill. It contains provisions which would help end prostitution and the sex trade, and provide accountability over the U.N. Global Fund. Most importantly, it would allow faith-based groups opposed to condoms to implement effective abstinence programs. Abstinence programs save lives. Unfortunately, a few powerful U.S. Senators would like to gut the abstinence amendment and start from scratch. These Senators are playing politics with human lives.

Steven W. Mosher

President

Action item: Contact Senator Richard Lugar

(senator_lugar@lugar.senate.gov) and tell him to “stop playing politics with human lives, and support HR 1298 with abstinence/conscience amendments intact.” Also contact Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (http://frist.senate.gov/contact.cfm), and graciously request the quick passage of HR 1298.

Will U.S. Senate Block Lifesaving Global AIDS Bill?

On May 1, 2003, the U.S. House of Representatives, with overwhelming bipartisan support, passed the Global AIDS bill (HR 1298), which calls for $15 billion to be spent on HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment over the next five years.  This is landmark legislation, because it breaks the stranglehold of abortion and family planning groups over HIV/AIDS programs.

Late in the floor debate over HR 1298 on May 1, Congressman Pitts offered an amendment to ensure that 20 percent of the total would be set aside to fund abstinence –only programs — the only proven method of HIV/AIDS prevention. In support of the abstinence amendment, many Members cited the successful model of HIV/AIDS prevention developed in Uganda. The Uganda ABC model prioritizes Abstinence and Being faithful, over condoms. It is simple, and it works. Uganda’s HIV/AIDS infection rate has dropped from 21% to 6% in a decade.

Mr. Pitts’ amendment, backed by the White House, passed by a sizable margin (220-197).

Abortion groups have reacted as if this is the end of the world. Gloria Feldt, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, bleated that “President Bush…needs to shutdown his cronies in Congress who are working to weaken the Global AIDS bill with anti-condom, abstinence only measures.” (1) Why do abortion groups so viscerally oppose abstinence?

Follow the money.  Abstinence means fewer abortions and less business for International Planned Parenthood Federation’s worldwide network of abortuaries. Abstinence also means many fewer cases of HIV infection in the future, but this doesn’t seem to register with the group.

Another vital amendment — a conscience protection clause — was proposed by Congressmen Smith and Hyde. This amendment was aimed at ensuring that groups opposed to condoms, such as the Catholic Church, would not be forced to distribute them as a condition of receiving grants.  The Catholic Church cares for a quarter of the people being treated for HIV/AIDS. The Smith/Hyde conscience amendment also included provisions to help end prostitution and the sex trade, and called for increased accountability from the Global Fund, a U.N. boondoggle that supports groups involved in prostitution and coercive abortion.

The Smith-Hyde Amendment passed by a voice vote.

Though passed by the House, the Global AIDS bill is now languishing in the U.S. Senate.  Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, reportedly wants to gut the abstinence and conscience protections out of the bill, a move which would serve the interests of the condom-abortion lobby.

In the meantime, people die.  Each week, an estimated 48,000 people die of AIDS, and another 78,000 are infected with the HIV virus.

Senator Lugar and the U.S. Senate must stop playing politics with human life. Senate Leadership must act quickly, and support the quick passage of HR 1298, abstinence and conscience protections intact.

The success of Uganda’s abstinence program has shown the way.  Funding for abstinence-only programs will stop this deadly pandemic in its tracks.