World AIDS Day

Media release

1 December 2013

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has reaffirmed Australia's commitment to eliminating AIDS and the discrimination faced by those living with HIV at an official World AIDS Day event in Melbourne.

Introducing UNAIDS Ambassador Aung San Suu Kyi, Ms Bishop has paid tribute to her efforts to remove the stigma for those infected with the virus in South East Asia.

HIV is no longer the death sentence it once was. Many millions of people around the world are living full lives thanks to antiretroviral therapy. But that success is no excuse for complacency.

Australia has a long history of supporting HIV treatment and prevention and has spent A$1 billion dollars in the past decade fighting the virus in our own region.

With this funding, Australia has demonstrated its resolve to work with governments, the business community and civil society across the region to reach the goals that the international community has set – zero new infections, zero AIDS-related deaths and zero discrimination.

Today also marks the opening of registrations for the 20th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2014) in Melbourne in July.

About 18,000 delegates from nearly 200 countries are expected to attend this biennial conference, which is the premier gathering for those working in the field of HIV, policymakers and people living with HIV.