Grandmothers of Steel Advocacy Team

Well done to our wonderful Advocacy Team for working hard to get our petition to the House of Commons. We were well represented by Mr. David Sweet (Ancaster, Dundas, Flamborough-Westdale CPC).

On Wednesday, March 11th Petitions from Grandmothers for Africa from all over Canada, approx. 32,000, made a presentation in the House of Commons.

The Petition calls upon the government to do 3 important things:

- To immediately set a timetable by 2015 to meet its obligations to the 0.7% gross national income development goal.
- To contribute a fair share to the global fund to fight for AIDS and TB,malaria,
for example,5% of the funding needed for each of the next five years.
- To make legislative changes necessary for Canada's access to medicines regimes and establish a substantial flow of retroviral drugs and lower-cost generics.

These petitions stem from the heroic efforts of African grandmothers to raise children orphaned by AIDS. It is the result of the efforts of over 200 grandmother groups across Canada assisting their fellow African grandmothers.

Tabling these two petitions during International Women's Week symbolizes the important work that women perform for the common good and also the solidarity that exists among women from all parts of the world.

This Petition is one of the most successful petition efforts in the history of this country.

There will be another presentation of our Petition in the House of Commons on Wednesday, March 11th.