Brazil has become the first country to turn down grants totalling $40 million from the USA, in a protest against Bush government policies refusing money to organisations that support sex workers and gay men or needle exchanges for drug users.
The $40m was the bulk of a $48m grant which was due to run till 2008.
...[T]he deal fell apart when they refused to include a written clause condemning prostitution.
Brazil’s anti-HIV programme is seen as a model for the developing world.
It has kept its HIV rate down to about 0.6%, when it was widely expected to be at least double that by 2005, due to a combination of free anti-HIV drugs for everyone who needs them, widespread condom distribution and dealing in an open and accepting way with prostitutes, gay men and drug users.
Prostitution is legal in Brazil and the age of consent for everyone regardless of sexuality is 14.
“We can’t control HIV with principles that are…theological and fundamentalist,” said Pedro Chequer, Director of Brazil’s AIDS programme.
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