GROUPS TO RALLY ON PARLIAMENT HILL FOR ACCESS TO MEDICINES REFORM

23/09/2010 - "Pass Bill C-393 and save lives in the developing world!" will be the rallying cry of the Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign (www.grandmotherscampaign.org), the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network (www.aidslaw.ca), RESULTS Canada (www.results-resultats.ca), and Universities Allied for Essential Medicines (UAEM) (www.essentialmedicine.org) when the four groups gather on Parliament Hill on September 29 to call for reforms to Canada's Access to Medicines Regime (CAMR). Supporters from several cities will converge to demand action to help developing countries confront the AIDS pandemic and other public health challenges.

Event: Rally for CAMR Reform

When: Wednesday, September 29, 2010

11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Where: Next to the Centennial Flame,Parliament Hill , Ottawa

Speakers:

• Richard Elliott , Executive Director, Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network

• Peggy Edwards , National Advocacy Committee, Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign

• Chris Dendys , Executive Director, Results Canada

• Rachel Kiddell-Monroe , President, UAEM

With performances by:

• The Mighty Popo ( www.mightypopo.ca ), Ottawa musician originally from Rwanda

• The Ottawa Raging Grannies ( www.ottawagrans.net ), performance activists

Since being unanimously passed by Parliament in 2004, CAMR has only been used once for a single shipment to a single country. The cumbersome administrative process that it currently requires is a significant barrier to using CAMR. Bill C-393 proposes reforms to CAMR - including streamlining it with the simplified "one-licence solution." The bill passed second reading in the House of Commons last December and is before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology, where it faces opposition by the brand-name pharmaceutical lobby.

Background information available at www.aidslaw.ca/camr

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Contacts:

Vajdon Sohaili

Communications Specialist

Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network

Telephone: +1 416 595-1666 ext. 227

Gilleen Witkowski

Communications Assistant

Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network

Telephone: +1 416 595-1666 ext. 240

E-mail: gwitkowski@aidslaw.ca