ABC The 20th International AIDS Conference gets underway in MelbourneOrganisers of the 20th International AIDS Conference hope the loss of six HIV/AIDS experts in the MH17 tragedy will galvanise the HIV community to step up the global fight against the disease.
Conference spokeswoman Lucy Stackpool-Moore says the deaths of the six "activists, colleagues and friends" - and of all 298 people on board - will be deeply felt as the conference gets underway on Sunday evening.
"But this community is one that is not unfamiliar with loss," she has told Radio Australia's Pacific Beat.
"It's re-galvanised some energy and some focus. The theme of the conference is "Stepping up the Pace".
"We're really thinking about how to honour their history, their legacy and their contribution to the global response to HIV. How can we continue forward with them in our hearts?"
Ms Stackpool-Moore says organisers are expecting around 12,000 conference participants from more than 150 countries around the world.
"It's really about linking the scientists, the politicians and the different communities and activists from Australia, the region and the world to talk about the latest issues around HIV," she said.
Participants will endorse the '2014 Melbourne Declaration' which calls for an end to the stigma and discrimination affecting those living with HIV.
"If you're in the deepest, darkest, most rural part of your country, or if you're in the margins of a city because of your sexual behaviours or you take drugs or other things that marginalise you from mainstream society, this conference has a really strong message: there is no place for discrimination in the response to HIV," said Ms Stackpool-Moore.
"I think that's going to have a really lasting legacy in Australia as well as resonating around the world."
http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/latest/24505504/continue-forward-with-them-in-our-hearts-aids-conference-organisers-vow-to-honour-mh17-victims/
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