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Following the disaster at the BP-operated Deepwater Horizon oil well in the Gulf of Mexico the ICEM-affiliated trade union in Norway, Industri Energi (IE), appointed a reference task force to: 
<ul>
 <li>
 <div align="justify">Review reports and data on the accident </div>
 </li>
 <li>
 <div align="justify">Draw lessons and how to implement these lessons in their Health and Safety work both nationally and internationally </div>
 </li>
 <li>
 <div align="justify">Evaluate the consequences of the accident for the offshore business in Norway and elsewhere around the world </div>
 </li>
 <li>
 <div align="justify">Advise the trade union&rsquo;s decision-making body concerning the accident and the consequences of it. </div>
 </li>
</ul>
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The taskforce had its first meeting on 16 February 2011 to discuss the mandate and working methods as well to review the material at hand. Since then they have conducted 6 meetings and submitted their report at the beginning of September 2011. 
 
The <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/1110.IE%20deepwater%20Eng_Rapport_Deepwater_s.pdf">report</a>, dedicated to the &ldquo;11 offshore workers who lost their lives on the altar of greed&rdquo; is now available in English here.&nbsp; 
 
It has been produced by a team from the union who have examined in detail the relevant official reports available on the disaster and made comparisons with the legislative and industrial situation on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. As can be seen from the report the authors have a depth of knowledge and experience of the offshore oil industry which makes their conclusions particularly important. The report also highlights the lack of trade union membership and representation as a significant factor in the series of events which led to the disaster. 
 
If you have any questions on the report please contact <a href="mailto:lars.a.myhre@industrienergi.no">Lars Myhre</a>, ICEM Energy Industries Section Chairperson.&nbsp;

Industri Energi Publishes Report into Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Disaster

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Under strong intimidation and threats, 6,500 workers at the government-owned Mahshahr Bandar Imam Petrochemical complex, in the South-West of Iran, took strike action on 28 September, demanding an end to management&rsquo;s use of subcontracting firms at the plant. Workers&rsquo; rights are continuously undermined by intermediary companies, in a familiar pattern seen around the world. Workers are not directly employed by the factory where they work, and so are unable to bargain collectively with management, forced to work in substandard conditions with low wages and allowances, all based on precariously temporary contracts. 
 
Workers at the Tabriz petrochemical company at the plant conducted an 11-day strike in March this year on the same demands. That strike was suspended after an empty government promise to respond to workers&rsquo; demands within three months. While CAL workers do not receive their production and efficiency bonuses, their contract agency collects those benefits. Despite of management threats and arrests of union activists, the union is committed to continuing the action until their demand is met. 
 
On paper, the management has supposedly committed itself to eliminating the subcontracting firms for some time but its actual implementation in most facilities is yet to happen. 
 
The Free Union of Iranian Workers reports that on the seventh day of the strike, three oil workers were summoned to the security office and immediately put under arrest. These were Mansour Abbasi, a worker with the Khawrazmi subcontracting company and a workers&rsquo; representative; Mohammad Bagher Bagheri, worker at Fars Industries contracting company and a workers&rsquo; representative; and Jasem Bandarani, another worker at the Khawrazmi subcontracting company. The arrests followed protest rallies near the main offices of the petrochemical complex which included marches and chants. The three arrested workers have since been released. 
 
Reports suggest over 70% of Iranian workers are employed on temporary contracts, with no job security. Many other shocking abuses are reported, from poverty wages often beneath the low minimum wage, non-payment of salaries for up to 18 months, extremely dangerous working conditions, and little to no legislative protections.

Iranian Petrochemical Workers Strike, Demanding Elimination of Subcontractors

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We have been informed by the Federation of Workers Councils Unions of Iraq (FWCUI) of two particularly difficult disputes in the country. 
 
Firstly we understand that in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region 174 workers in the Taq Taq Oil Operation Company, jointly owned by Genel Enerji and Addax Petroleum International have submitted a complaint against the company expressing their concern over working conditions and a complete lack of equality for Kurdish workers. 
 
Workers are concerned at the complete absence of hazard protection in the workplace where the constant danger of hydrogen sulphide gas is said to threaten the workers lives. There is also said to be significant discrimination in treatment between the Kurdish and expatriate workers in terms of safety equipment and clothing provided as well as in both food and rest facilities. Indeed we are informed that in scenes reminiscent of the apartheid era in South Africa expatriate workers have access to training and sports halls in their free time that local workers are refused access to and their living accommodation and restrooms are far inferior to those enjoyed by the expatriates. Expatriate worker wages are also considerably higher than those paid to Kurdish workers, many of whom are university and institute graduates. 
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The union is calling upon the company and the Kurdistan Regional Government to guarantee equal treatment at work. 
 
FWCUI has also informed us of severe difficulties at the facilities of the Northern Fertilizer Company, around 220km north of Baghdad. This company employs approximately 2400 workers and has recently been privatized. The company produces chemical fertilizers. Since privatisation, according to FWCUI and their Salah ad-Din branch structures, workers have faced massive deterioration of their working conditions. They are forced to work additional hours, numerous worker benefits have been unilaterally cancelled and the employer denies their rights to join a trade union. 
 
Despite these attacks workers there have organized a committee, affiliated to FWCUI, and are now finding it impossible to hold union elections inside the company, they will be holding their elections in FWCUI's office. 
 
We salute the bravery of Iraqi workers, continuing to organise despite being faced with widespread employer attacks against a background of viciously anti-trade union legislation from the Saddam-era. We will keep you informed of these particular disputes as we receive further information.

Oil Workers in Iraq Bravely Fight to Organise

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Contract workers in the oilfields of Colombia are fighting for fair conditions and union rights with multinational sub-contractors and state-run Ecopetrol in eastern departments of the country. ICEM&rsquo;s militant affiliate Uni&oacute;n Sindical Obrera (USO) is leading the fight on behalf of exploited contract workers and has recruited over 4,000 workers since July. 
 
A solidarity caravan sets off today from capital Bogot&aacute; to a major rally at the Campo Rubiales oil sites. Tomorrow the caravan will hold a forum in Puerto Gait&aacute;n with discussions to cover trade union rights across the sector in Colombia and the history of the current struggle. The caravan will then spend 12 October visiting various oil fields of Puerto Gait&aacute;n. On 14 October, the alliance of national and international trade union groups will return to Bogot&aacute; and hold a large action in the capital, bringing attention to the campaign. 
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Contract workers cut oil production by 25% by blockading major roads in Puerto Gait&aacute;n 18-21 September and forced Colombia&rsquo;s Interior Minister to the table. 
 
The grievances aired by staff of oil service subcontractors include poverty wages, sub-standard housing, poor sanitation, poor transport, degrading treatment, all imposed on a workforce precariously employed on fixed-term contracts for two-to-three years. Conditions in workstations in the oilfields around Puerto Gait&aacute;n are described as similar to concentration camps. 
 
The campaign has achieved recent improvement from Pacific Rubiales, the company agreed to fill 100% unskilled positions with local people, to build 3,000 housing units, and donate US$1million to a local hospital. 
 
Significantly workers and local communities have been united in protest to great effect, targeting specifically the environmental degradation taking place, high local unemployment with many jobs not filled by area residents, and a lack of social investment in local health and education. 
 
Guilty companies include Canadian-based Pacific Rubiales and Petrominerales, Cepcolsa, a subsidiary of Spanish-based CEPSA, and 90% state-owned Ecopetrol itself. Pacific Rubiales is funding a large disinformation campaign labeling USO trade unionists as &quot;armed criminals, forcing work stoppages.&quot; 
 
Canada&rsquo;s Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union and USO have formed a united front, adding leverage against the Canadian-based multinationals.

Colombian Oil Workers Continue Battle for Rights, Solidarity Caravan 10-14 October

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The Norwegian trade union Fellesforbundet has announced that Norway, in cooperation with the European Union, has created a &ldquo;Fund for Decent Work and Tripartite Dialogue&rdquo; targeted for 12 Eastern Europe and Mediterranean countries. The Norwegian Financial Mechanism is calling for applicants by social partners in the European Economic Area, with a deadline for applying of 31 March 2012. 
 
Fellesforbundet put the call out through the European Mine, Chemical, Energy Workers&rsquo; Federation (EMCEF) and <a href="http://emcef.org/database/uload/pdf/PA22call-20111020.pdf">details of the project</a> can be found here.&nbsp; 
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Innovation Norway, the sponsoring agent, said the total available for the 12 states is &euro;8 million, and a grant will cover 90% of approved project costs, and range from &euro;20,000-40,000 per project. The sponsor is seeking project proposals that promote decent work and/or tripartite dialogue; bilateral activities based but not mandated on the Norwegian model; partnership building between social partners; and other suggested proposals. 
 
Trade unions and employer organisations are encouraged to apply, as are public authorities and entities or social partnerships at the national, regional, or local level. Further details from <a href="http://emcef.org/database/uload/pdf/NorwegianFund20111020.ppt ">Innovation Norway</a> can be found here. 
 
The 12 countries covered under the call include: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia. Funding is available for each.

Norway Seeks East Europe Proposals for ‘Decent Wage, Tripartite Dialogue’ Fund

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A 23-month rubber strike by United Steelworkers (USW) Local 526 is getting renewed attention in Canada with the union broadening the dispute from picket lines to customers and creditors of the company. That company is Infinity Rubber, a producer of tubes and hoses for the US and Canadian auto and mining industries that tried to force extreme wage and benefit concessions after buying the enterprise from bankruptcy protection. 
 
Forty-eight union members went on strike on 1 December 2009 at a factory near Toronto, refusing to accept a 25% cut in wages and a 50% cut in benefits. A year earlier, workers did take a 10% wage decrease &ndash; from over C$20-an-hour to C$18 &ndash; to assist a predecessor company wracked by a financial crisis that deeply affected US industrial production. 
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The USW is now taking the fight to the doorsteps of customers, suppliers, and most significantly, a financial institution. On 27 October, some 900 union and community protestors, buoyed by the Occupy Toronto movement and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), loudly demonstrated in front of offices of the Bank of Montreal that is financing an equity agent that backs managers which bought the factory. 
 
Last month the USW began handbilling branches of the Bank of Montreal across the province of Ontario and earlier had sent letters to suppliers and customers telling them of the risks they face in doing business with Infinity. The union also is pressuring Bank of Montreal by asking trade unions to withdraw funds and divest pension assets held in the bank. (The <a href="http://www.usw.ca/workplace/campaigns/campaigns/infinity ">USW campaign</a> can be viewed here.) The company has continued to operate with the use of scab replacement workers hired through an employment agency. Strikers, mostly long-term Hispanic workers with loyal service to the previous owner, Biltrite Industries, are victimised by the fact that Ontario&rsquo;s government does not ban the use of replacement workers during strikes. 
 
At the 27 October manifestation, striking worker Fernando Silva said, &ldquo;We are still on strike because the government is allowing the company to hire agency workers, taking our jobs. We are entering our third winter in this fight. But with your support, we&rsquo;ll get though it.&rdquo;

Steelworkers Escalate Infinity Rubber Campaign in Canada

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A historical achievement happened in Indonesia on 28 October when the country&rsquo;s Parliament passed the Social Security Providers Bill (BPJS), thus clearing the way for long-awaited pension, medical, job-related accident, unemployment and other benefits to millions of ordinary Indonesians. 
 
The House of Representatives gave approval to the new law a plenary session when the six-party ruling coalition, which had worked to delay the legislation, was pressured by a mass rally outside Parliament to reach terms with the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). 
<img alt="" src="" width="285" height="160" />
25,000 Manifested 28 October at Indonesia&rsquo;s Parliament
That rally, organized by the trade union/civil society coalition, Action Committee for National Social Security (KAJS), saw 25,000 Indonesians engage in a boisterous sit-in, demanding once and for all passage of the populist bill. BPJS means that the government must now implement compulsory social services mandated by the National Security System Law of 2004. 
 
Labour leaders, however, realize that the BPJS time frame for full implementation of the different social components leaves much room for politicians to maneuver, especially with federal elections coming in 2014. BPBJS I, or the scheme for heath care for all citizens, must come into effect by January 2014, while BPJS II &ndash; social benefits related to occupational accidents, pensions, old-age benefits, and death benefit schemes &ndash; must be implemented by July 2015. 
<img src="" width="106" height="110" alt="" />
D. Patombong Sjaiful
&ldquo;Yes, it was a momentous day,&rdquo; said ICEM Indonesian Affiliates&rsquo; Union Chairman D. Patombong Sjaiful, the leader of FSP-KEP, the Chemical, Energy, Mines, Oil &amp; Gas General Workers&rsquo; Union of confederation KSPI. 
 
&ldquo;But now it becomes a process to guard the intent of this new law and not let it get sidetracked by the political system.&rdquo; 
 
Said Iqbal, the KAJS General Secretary and President of the Federation of Indonesian Metal Workers&rsquo; Unions (FSPMI), agreed, stating that the process must be closely monitored in formulating and calculating sufficient costs for the different benefits. 
<img src="" width="86" height="110" alt="" />
Said Iqbal
&ldquo;This marks a fundamental change in Indonesian social security,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Now we are assured there will be a minimum level of pension benefits for all, that discrimination against the poor regarding health care will end, and that all working people will have some level of social benefits. 
 
&ldquo;We must now be vigilant that government and employers adequately fund these programmes.&rdquo; 
 
Said Iqbal led the KAJS coalition that included some 69 organisations, included 40 trade unions. The coalition, including farm organizations, fishery groups, and many more, included three of the country&rsquo;s main national labour centres, KSPI, KSBSI, and KSPSI. The coalition is expected now to be transformed into &ldquo;BPJS Watch.&rdquo; 
 
The new BPJS law re-makes the four state-owned insurance companies (PT Askes, PT Jamsostek, PT Taspen, and PT Asabari) into two non-profit public companies under the auspices of the President&rsquo;s office. PT Askes will function for the health care scheme, while PT Jamsostek will administer occupational accidents, pensions, old-age risks, and death benefits.

Vigilance Now Needed to Implement Indonesia’s Social Security Law

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If last week&rsquo;s G20 summit in Cannes, France, accomplished anything, it accomplished this: it put the urgent need for a financial transaction tax (FTT) firmly on the global economic agenda. Even though G20 world leaders and economic ministers failed to come to consensus on a FTT, the debate was there and it promises to grow. 
 
The FTT was formally made to the G20 through French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who commissioned a report by US philanthropist Bill Gates at the summit that specifies certain tax proposals on financial services that should be considered by G20 nations to aid development in poorer nations. 
 
Sarkozy has become a keen supporter of a European Commission (EC) proposal for a FTT. France was joined by Germany and Spain in supporting enactment within the Eurozone, but UK Prime Minister David Cameron and Chancellor George Osborne stand as barriers. 
 
In Cannes, Argentina, Brazil, South Africa all said the time was right that nations must consider a FTT. Russia and China are opposed. The US, where Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has long held the view that a FTT is unworkable, is still fundamentally opposed. 
<img alt="" src="" width="188" height="124" />
But either through the occupy movements or other political tailwinds, there was some indication at Cannes that President Barack Obama might be slightly drawing back from the US&rsquo;s longstanding opposition. Certainly it will take far more heat at home for Obama to endorse a FTT and reject Geither&rsquo;s Wall Street belief that a tax on bond or derivative trading, or stock or currency trades, is not practical. 
 
But the mainstream is beginning to believe various forms of FTTs have merit and provide workable solutions to the world&rsquo;s economic woes. Gates of Microsoft fame said in Cannes a financial tax levy is &ldquo;clearly technically feasible.&rdquo; He also proposed that G20 nations impose legally-binding transparency measures on oil and mining extraction companies, as well as reducing fees on remittances sent home by migrant workers. 
 
At the European level, a FTT could net some &euro;57 billion per year. Considering that in a four-year span from 2007 to August 2011, public aid and guarantees to the financial sector amounted to &euro;4.6 trillion, or 37% of total EU Gross Domestic Product, the political timing for a tiny tax on financial transactions would seem correct. And consider again that during the financial crisis, EU banks have raised as much additional capital as they have written down in lost asset values. 
 
&ldquo;It makes sense to have this kind of tax not only to ask the financial sector to give a fair contribution to the common good, but also to use part of this financial transaction tax as a way to support development,&rdquo; said EC President Jose Manuel Barroso. 
 
Besides the obvious is what a FTT could do in developed nations for investment in jobs, to prop up social programmes or to build new infrastructure, there is a reality those same nations are scaling back on foreign aid to poorer nations, either from austerity or rightward political swings. The UN Development Programme says that a currency trading tax of a mere 0.005% would raise US$40 billion per year and it suggests this would go far to help developing nations deal with the effects of climate change. 
 
Growing global momentum for a FTT also comes at the precise time that funding for global health programmes is being reduced. Funding for HIV fell for the first time in 2009 and it fell again in 2010. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria missed awarding grants due to a monetary shortfall in this period as well. 
 
The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) predicts that adopting a financial transaction tax would help to reduce market volatility, curb speculative activity and provide resources to fight poverty. The ICEM believes that greed and negligence caused the financial collapse, and it is the perpetrators of that greed and neglect that received the bail-outs. Placing a tiny levy on FTTs is a small price to pay for a sustainable and manageable world. 
 
The financial transaction tax, incidentally, also called the &ldquo;Robin Hood&rdquo; or Tobin tax, was the brainchild of US Nobel prize winning economist James Tobin, who in 1972 proposed a small tax on foreign currency transactions to reduce global speculative risks. Learn more on the <a href="http://robinhoodtax.org/">FTT</a> here.

‘Robin Hood’ Tax Gains Some Traction at G20 Summit

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Canadian-based energy company Pacific Rubiales continues to hit new lows in its illegal efforts to put down ICEM affiliate Uni&oacute;n Sindical Obrera (USO) in the Meta region oil fields of Colombia. On 27 October the ICEM reported on the company signing an accord with company union UTEN on deadline day for a settlement with USO. 
 
Now as the USO activists continue to demonstrate en-masse, the company organises gatherings of its yellow union, complete with armed protection including from a company helicopter. At the same time, the company is financing propaganda campaigns exaggerating the small gatherings. 
 
Evidence is now coming to light of the sinister alliance between the company and local mayor of Puerto Gait&aacute;n, Edgar Humberto Silva. Evidence suggests that dead people were registered to have voted for the company candidate in the mayoral elections, with local indigenous communities harassed and intimidated into voting for Humberto Silva. 
<img alt="" src="" width="213" height="160" />
Unsurprisingly then, Humberto Silva has done all in his power to allow the Canadian company to continue exploiting the region&rsquo;s rich resources and poor workers. Residents of the local community have occupied the school where voting took place and are demanding a re-run of the election. Company union UTEN organised a celebratory march following the election of Humberto Silva on 2 November. 
 
State oil company Ecopetrol is allied with Pacific Rubiales and other multinationals active in the region, in establishing the yellow union and using numerous tactics to crush USO. Ecopetrol is exercising its influence and financial strength by running tens of court cases against USO leaders, while ignoring court rulings that favour the strikers. Ecopetrol is also using its wholly-owned subsidiaries Comai and Propilco to launch legal cases against union activists. 
 
The 28 October <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/PacificRubeLet.pdf">joint letter</a> from ICEM, the International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF) General Secretaries, and Canadian Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union to Pacific Rubiales Co-Chairmen and Executive Directors Serafino Iacono, and Miguel de la Campa, has not received a response. 
<img alt="" src="" width="276" height="160" />
In the letter, the three trade union organisations condemn the decision of the company to deceive USO in bargaining and then circumvent the legitimate bargaining partner in signing an accord with UTEN. USO represents over 14,000 actual oil workers in the oil fields of Rubiales and Quifa, while UTEN serves only administrative staff. 
 
The day of the false accord signing, Pacific Rubiales discharged 500 workers, and proceeded to intimidate remaining workers with threats of dismissal for remaining members of USO if they refused to switch allegiance to UTEN. 
 
It must be noted that the Colombian government has allowed Pacific Rubiales to abuse all internationally recognised minimum standards on workers&rsquo; rights with these recent tactics. And especially disappointing is the abrogation of Ministry of Labour arbitration that established a timeline for reaching settlement between USO and Pacific Rubiales. That deadline was 21 October, the same day Pacific Rubialies signed the bogus accord with the yellow union. 
 
The ICEM fully supports the campaign of USO and its permanent assembly, in place since 24 October, and the original list of demands including direct recruitment, salary increases, decent housing and adequate food, health, transport and social investment to communities. 
 
The CEP will facilitate the USO leadership to travel to Canada and meet the company management in early December.

Pacific Rubiales, Yellow Union Rig Local Elections, Indignation Rises

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In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we report on World AIDS Day 2011, occurring on 1 December, the Canadian CEP-sponsored HIV and AIDS project in Nigeria and developments at the Global Fund, as well as the HIV and AIDS situation in Argentina, host country of the ICEM World Congress. 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
World AIDS Day 2011 
 
World AIDS Day this year is about &ldquo;Getting to Zero&rdquo;: Zero New HIV Infections, Zero Discrimination, and Zero AIDS Related Deaths. 
 
ICEM affiliates are urged to join national campaigns to underline the role of unions and interventions at the workplace to get to Zero. 
<img src="" width="368" height="120" alt="" />
Backed by the UN, the &ldquo;Getting to Zero&rdquo; campaign runs until 2015 and builds on last year&rsquo;s successful World AIDS Day &ldquo;Light for Rights&rdquo; initiative encompassing a range of vital issues identified by key affected populations. 
 
World AIDS Day has been celebrated since 1988 and on 1 December each year around the world. It has become one of the most recognised health days and a key opportunity to raise awareness, commemorate those who have passed on. and celebrate successes such as increased access to treatment and prevention services. 
 
This year&rsquo;s slogan underlines that getting to Zero is a must. Only one third of the 15 million people living with HIV in need of life long treatment are receiving it. New infections continue to outpace the number of people starting treatment, while the previous upward trend in resources suffered a serious downturn this year. &rdquo;Zero New HIV Infections&rdquo; and &ldquo;Zero Discrimination&rdquo; are equally as likely to spark high impact events from small scale community vigils to nation wide events. In the words of the World AIDS Campaign (WAC), for 1 December 2011 right up until 2015, it is envisioned that different regions and groups will each year chose one or all of the Zeros that best addresses their situation. 
 
Material for World AIDS Day can be downloaded from the WAC website www.worldaidscampaign.org. On the ICEM website, <a href="http://www.icem.org">www.icem.org</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;a simple step-by-step guide can be found to help affiliates in planning their activities for World AIDS Day. 
 
(Source: World AIDS Campaign website) 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
Nigeria: Success of CEP-sponsored HIV and AIDS Project 
 
The second phase of the HIV and AIDS project in cooperation with ICEM affiliates NUPENG and PENGASSAN, and sponsored by the Humanity Fund of the Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union of Canada, has been a big success. 
 
Prior to the second phase, some 210 peer educators had been trained. Prevention campaigns were mounted in 40 workplaces across the country. Some 20,000 individuals were reached with awareness and prevention messages. Voluntary counselling and testing was carried out at 20 sites with close to 10,000 individuals tested. 
<img src="" width="220" height="136" alt="" />
Specifically in 2011, two training workshops were organised with a total of 33 participants (11 men and 22 women). Eleven advocacy meeting were held and six VCT campaigns were organised. 
 
With the advocacy campaigns, which target union branches and worksite where VCT campaigns are to be organised, a total of 388 (261 men and 127 women) were reached. 
 
During the six VCT campaigns in 2011, which last for three to four days each, close to 11,000 people were reached with awareness, prevention, and behaviour change messages. Out of these, a total of 2,302 people (21%) were tested and counselled (1,986 men and 316 women). Some 10,000 leaflets and 10,000 handbills were also produced. 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
News from the Global Fund 
 
The Board of the Global Fund has decided to extend the deadline for submission of Round 11 applications from 15 December 2011 to &ldquo;at least&rdquo; 1 March 2012. The decision appears to be primarily motivated by a substantial reduction in the amount of funding that the Global Fund estimates will be available for Round 11. This was initially estimated at US$1.5 billion. However, given the current global economic insecurity, the forecast of funding available for Round 11 has been lowered to &ldquo;not more than&rdquo; US$800 million and that even this amount might not be available until the fourth quarter of 2013. 
 
The Fund also appears likely to take this opportunity to implement some of the changes to the applications process recommended by the High-Level Independent Review Panel on Fiduciary Controls and Oversight Mechanisms of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (see article in the October e-bulletin). At a special meeting on 26 September, the Board formally adopted the report of the High-Level Panel and its recommendations. 
 
The Global Fund Board has formed a working group to examine options for changes to the application, renewal and approval processes for new and existing investments. For a comprehensive reaction on the observations and recommendations to the report by the Global Fund Observer and various organisations, see GFO No. 160 at the website below. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer, Issue 159 and 160 of 28 September and 13 0ctober, respectively. GFO is a free service of Aidspan <a href="http://www.aidspan.org">www.aidspan.org</a>; to receive GFO send an email to <a href="mailto:receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org">receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org</a>) 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
Ghana: Homophobia Prevents Counselling and Treatment 
 
Condemnation of homosexuality by political and religious leaders in Ghana has led to a climate of fear, preventing men who have sex with men (MSM) from accessing vital health services. 
 
NGOs are alarmed at the threats of arrest and report a steady decline of participation in safe sex education and support programmes. At one site, regular peer HIV education programmes had to be stopped as nobody turned up anymore for fear of arrest. In another region, the distribution of condoms and safe sex information to MSMs was also abandoned. 
<img src="" width="200" height="92" alt="" />
An estimated 25% of Ghanaian MSMs are HIV positive. According to the WHO, since the beginning of the epidemic, MSM have been disproportionately affected by HIV. Male-to-male sexual relations are a crime in Ghana. Considered a misdemeanour, it carries a sentence of up to six months in prison. 
 
(Source: IRIN News, 1 August) 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
Zimbabwe: HIV Survey Reveals Women most Affected 
 
Women and girls account for 62% of the 1.2 million people living with HIV and AIDS in Zimbabwe, a recent survey revealed. The survey also showed that only 20% of the adult population knew their HIV status. 
 
Socio-economic, cultural and religious factors increase women&rsquo;s vulnerability to HIV. Stigma and discrimination associated with an HIV positive status and fear of violence from partners deterred women from acting on prevention and treatment. 
 
Although Zimbabwe has managed a steady decline of the HIV prevalence rate from a peak in 2003 of 32% to the current 14.2%, the relative prevalence rate of women has gone up. 
 
(Source: The Herald, Harare, 16 September) 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
HIV and AIDS in Argentina 
 
According to UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, Argentina has an HIV prevalence rate of 0.5% in the age group 15 to 49 years. While this is a relatively low rate, it has gone up steadily over the years. The number of people living with HIV is 110,000 of whom 36,000, or one-third, are women. Deaths due to AIDS stood at 2,900 in 2009, the latest available figure. 
 
The Ministry of Health leads the national AIDS response and the national strategic planning process. The response is mainly focused on the provision of antiretroviral treatment. In 2007, there was a review of the National Strategic Planning on HIV and AIDS with more broad-based participation of civil society and consideration of most-at-risk groups and a clearer gender perspective. 
 
The Global Fund had approved two HIV/AIDS grants in Round 1 for a total of US$25 million. These grants have been implemented and no further grants were extended. 
 
(Source: UNAIDS and Global Fund websites) 
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News from Global Unions 
 
The International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF &ndash; <a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>), in its latest HIV/AIDS Update 114 of 15 October, reports on the launch of its 2011 World AIDS Day campaign &ndash; Getting to Zero. As in the past, the ITF has prepared campaign material for its affiliates. The ITS documentary on HIV and AIDS in the transport sector, called &ldquo;Being Positive,&rdquo; received an award at the Delhi Development Film Festival. 
 
The September Newsletter of the Swedish Workplace HIV and AIDS Programme (SWHAP), jointly run by the International Council of Swedish Industry (NIR) and the Swedish Industrial and Metalworkers&rsquo; Union (IF Metall), reports on its annual Southern Africa Regional Conference which was attended by 87 participants representing 31 companies from eight countries. Articles on community outreach, VCT campaigns and peer education can also be found in the newsletter. 
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Five Years Ago: From the November 2006 Issue (No. 13) 
 
The first issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin was published in October 2005. In current issues, we refer to an article from the same month five years ago and reflect on developments. 
 
In the HIV/AIDS e-bulletin of November 2006, we reported on the preparations for World AIDS Day, on a meeting of the Global Union AIDS Programme in Nairobi and on the Round 6 grant approval of the Global Fund. Then, the Board approved 85 grants with a cost of US$846 million over the first two years and US$2.52 billion over the full five-year grant period. For comparison, Round 10 grants, approved in December 2010, come at a cost of US$1.73 billion for the first two years and US$ 4.72 billion over five years. For how much the situation has changed now, read the article on the Global Fund above. 
 
At that time, UNITAID also became operational as a drug purchasing facility for the treatment of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. It was established during the UN General Assembly Special Session; its secretariat is hosted by the WHO. UNITAID generates money through an airline ticket levy first introduced by France on 1 July 2006. Founding members of the initiative were Brazil, Chile, France, Great Britain, and Norway, with the Clinton Foundation facilitating bulk purchase of drugs at lowest prices. UNITAID is now supported by 29 countries and the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation. Ninety-four countries receive UNITAID funding. 
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This ICEM HIV-AIDS Newsletter &ndash; How to Subscribe 
 
To subscribe to the e-bulletin, send an email to <a href="mailto:press@icem.org">press@icem.org</a>. Please put &ldquo;subscribe ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin&rdquo; in the subject line.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 74, November 2011

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