World AIDS Day - Fiona Patten - Leader of the Reason Party

Enquiry Form

Error: Contact form not found.

Fiona Patten - Leader of the Reason Party

(03) 9386 4400

  • About
    • About
    • Achievements
  • Parliament
    • Speeches
    • Questions to Government
    • Members Statements
    • Notices of motion
    • Adjournments
    • Committees
    • Reports
    • Bills
  • News
    • Media
    • Newsletter
    • Events
  • Issues
    • Policy
    • Achievements
  • Gallery
  • Get Involved
  • Contact
    • Contact US
    • Request a meeting

World AIDS Day

by Fiona Patten / Wednesday, 27 November 2019 / Published in

 

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (17:10:34): I would very much like to rise and speak to this motion that was brought to the house by the crossbench, by Mr Meddick. World AIDS Day has been commemorated in this country since 1988, and I have been commemorating it since that day.

In 1989 Darren Hook was my first friend to die of HIV and AIDS, and since then I have seen many of my friends die. At the end I was not going to funerals. In those days it was a death sentence, and you would almost rather not know. We did not promote testing because there was nothing we could do.

All that a positive result from a test gave you was discrimination, stigma and anxiety, and sometimes your family disowned you, your friends disowned you and you lost your job. Even your dentist would not see you.

But I am so encouraged in 2019, and much of the change in how we look at HIV and AIDS has been led in Australia and has been led from Victoria. Some of the best work in Australia, the best work in the world, has happened here.

One of the most important points I would note is that where Australia got it right was around harm reduction. We immediately set up AIDS councils. We immediately set up needle and syringe exchange programs, and now we have Pronto!.

Today in the paper we have a subsidy for HIV drugs, and they are talking about a day when the world eliminates HIV transmissions.

We know that undetectable equals untransmittable, and we have got there. I never thought in 1988 that I would be saying that in 2019.

To the 27,000 people who are living with AIDS and to the thousands of people who have died, on Sunday I will be thinking of you.

 

Fiona Patten MP 

Leader of Reason

Member for Northern Metropolitan Region

Mr Meddick’s Motion – 27/11/19

Share this on:

About Fiona Patten

Fiona Patten is the founder and leader of the Reason Party and a Member of the Victorian Legislative Council for the Northern Metropolitan region. She came to politics after 20 years of lobbying for the rights of organisations involved in the sexual rights movement – including small businesses, sex workers, HIV/AIDS organisations, adult media and online anti-censorship groups. Before that she was an established independent fashion designer with her own label called Body Politics.

What you can read next

Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2019
Monitoring of Places of Detention by the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (OPCAT) Bill 2022
Lowering the Probationary Driving age to 17 years

OFFICE OF FIONA PATTEN MLC

Wurundjeri Country
Shop 1, 747 Sydney Road, Brunswick,
VIC 3056, Australia

Copyright © 2020 Fiona Patten MLC. All Rights Reserved.

Menu

  • News
  • Contact
  • Community

Connect

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

Contact

© 2015. All rights reserved. Buy Kallyas Theme.
  • About
    ▲
    • About
    • Achievements
  • Parliament
    ▲
    • Speeches
    • Questions to Government
    • Members Statements
    • Notices of motion
    • Adjournments
    • Committees
    • Reports
    • Bills
  • News
    ▲
    • Media
    • Newsletter
    • Events
  • Issues
    ▲
    • Policy
    • Achievements
  • Gallery
  • Get Involved
  • Contact
    ▲
    • Contact US
    • Request a meeting