Faith leaders praise goals in fighting AIDS

Religious leaders and representatives of faith-based organizations
are giving generally high marks to a United Nations AIDS meeting that
set new targets to combat the continued spread of HIV/AIDS.

The
New York meeting at the UN June 8–10 was marked by frequent references
to the past three decades in which acquired immune deficiency syndrome
has claimed more than 30 million lives. UN member states agreed on a
final document which called for strengthening measurable targets to
fight HIV/AIDS.

This goal includes universal access to treatment
by the year 2015 for the prevention of the spread of HIV (human
immunodeficiency virus), as well as support, care and treatment for
those dealing with HIV infection. Another four-year goal is to reduce by
half the rate of HIV infection among those injecting drugs.