OAS committed to fight HIV/AIDS.

• Position: OAS - Organization of American States

AT THE CARIBBEAN Summit on HIV/AIDS, held in January, OAS Assistant Secretary General Albert R. Ramdin said the pandemic poses "a threat to the development, social stability, and human security of the Caribbean." He reaffirmed the OAS commitment to keep this issue high on its political agenda.

"The Organization of American States has a stake in seeing progress in the fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS in the region, in continuing to support human security, development and democracy in the Caribbean," Ramdin said at the conference held in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. The event, hosted by the Inter-American Economic Council, brought together Caribbean health ministers, members of the U.S. Congressional Black Caucus, and representatives of international organizations, among others, to examine the economic impact of AIDS on the Caribbean.

Ambassador Ramdin talked about AIDS in the context of human security. The 2003 Declaration on Security in the Americas, he said, takes into account the need to protect individuals and society against all types of threats that would keep them from reaching their full potential in a democratic society.

"Today, when we speak of rights, freedoms, and democracy as...