Day two

Last night's emotional opening ceremony for the AIDS Convention was long and exhausting, leaving many tearful but everyone wanting to get home. So much so that I had to cut Dan Sultan's  obviously heartfelt performance singing at the tail end of the evening.

Three standout speeches remain with me, all very different but with resounding impact on all who listened. The young Indonesian girl of about twenty who had HIV for five years spoke of the impossiblility to get health education in her  enormous Muslim country. She stood on stage in her national dress along with twently or so others in their respective costumes, representing the sample of how AIDS affects every nation on earth. The next speech by Mr Sidibe from UNAIDS was long but filled with essential rhetoric about the state of AIDS today and where we must go by 2030, to zero infection rate. Then Michael Kirby gave the keynote Jonathan Mann Memorial Speech, citing the grim irony of this plane crash and the fact that Mann himself perished 14 years ago along with his wife in a plane crash in Canada on his way to an AIDS conference. But this time it was a premeditated attack.The audience received all speeches with emotion and much applause when vows were made to eliminate the virus by 2030.  It was a long, three hours experience, but necessary given the extraordinary circumstances  surrounding the event.

Now on to today's talks and workshops, sessions and films. My neighbour at the  opening  ceremony was  a Dutch filmmaker who has his documentary showing on Thursday, one which I had already marked down to see. I will certainly not miss that one. Perhaps I will meet up with him again one day in Amsterdam.

Coffee at Kew Post office Cafe, for old times sake..

Terrible news gracing the daily rag.

One concerned delegate from Africa...

P.N.G is well represented...

....even with Condoms!

Home after another full day and luckily I was able to meet up with  Michael Kirby to deliver the invitation to come to NZ next year. Let's hope he may find it possible to come. His speech again was excellent in the panel on the criminalisation of HIV. Tonight also he was the major speaker in theABC's Q and A with Tony Jones, held at the Melbourne Town Hall. All the questions were again addressed but this time to an appreciative national audience. An excellent program and well received by a big crowd in attendance.

 More tomorrow after a good sleep I hope.