Evidence of meeting #17 for Status of Women in the 40th Parliament, 3rd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was countries.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Coordinator, Political Issues, Regroupement Naissance-Renaissance
I think Madame Deschamps brought it up. It has to do with the defence of rights and women's rights and it has to do with that kind of thing. But I--
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Cathy McLeod
Thank you.
Our last speaker is Ms. Brown for three minutes.
Conservative
Lois Brown Conservative Newmarket—Aurora, ON
Thank you, Madam Chair.
I've done a little bit of travelling. One of my observations is that many of the issues we're dealing with are in countries where culture is different from what we perceive. What we would consider to be child brides constitute a real problem, which I'm sure poses difficulties for the midwives. I think all of that has to be taken into consideration in the discussion we're having today.
But I wonder whether I could change the focus a little bit and talk about the other diseases that children are encountering. When I was in Botswana and Zambia three months ago, the discussion centred around the issue of AIDS and the transfer of AIDS from mother to child, mother to baby, and the number of children who are being lost because they've lost parents to the terrible AIDS epidemic that exists there. When I was in Bangladesh last year, there was a terrible prevalence of tuberculosis.
These are other issues that we have said demand our attention, because through such initiatives as inoculations for malaria, providing bed nets—which, I think, Ms. Jenicek, you said the midwives provide--there is real opportunity for us to save children's lives.
Can any of you comment on the success of those kinds of initiatives as well? What are your organizations doing to address these other situations?
Director, Development and Public Affairs, Western Hemisphere Region, International Planned Parenthood Federation
I think there has been a great deal of success, especially with prevention and treatment of HIV and AIDS. One of the things we try to work on with our member associations is the provision of a comprehensive package of sexual and reproductive health services, which means working on prevention for HIV and AIDS, helping women to get treatment when they are diagnosed with HIV, which they might otherwise not be able to get, and in turn helping by basically intervening in the cases of mother-to-child transmission by providing the appropriate countermeasures.
Coordinator, Political Issues, Regroupement Naissance-Renaissance
One of the steps of the international mother-baby childbirth initiative is providing evidence-based care and avoiding harmful procedures, but it's also implementing measures that enhance wellness. That includes a lot of things. You have something here that might be worth examining, which could be a tool for consensus amongst all of you.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Cathy McLeod
That wraps up our last round. I would like to thank the witnesses so much for joining us and focusing your lens on this important issue.
We will take a two-minute break and go in camera.
[Proceedings continue in camera]