This text file contains detailed information about an audio recording on PrideNZ.com. It includes the following sections: DESCRIPTION, SPEAKERS, SUMMARY, KEY CONTENT TIMESTAMPS [HH:MM:SS], TRANSCRIPT WITH TIMESTAMPS [HH:MM:SS], HUMAN VERIFIED TRANSCRIPT, KEYWORDS, REFERENCES, RELATED CONTENT AND FOOTNOTE. 

## START DESCRIPTION
The title of this recording is "Second World AIDS Day Parliamentary Breakfast (2025)". It is described as: Audio from the second World AIDS Day Parliamentary Breakfast, held on 1 December 2025 in Wellington. It was recorded in Banquet Hall, Parliament buildings on the 1st December 2025. The duration of the recording is 1 hour and 18 minutes, but this may not reflect the actual length of the event. The content in the recording covers the decades 1980s through to the 2020s.
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## START SPEAKERS
This is a recording of an event and features the voices of Heta Timu, Judith Mukakayange, Liz Gibbs, Mark Fisher, Matt Doocey, Michael Stevens, Milly Stewart, Nate Rowe, Rodrigo Olin German and Tāwhanga Nopera. These names are spelt correctly, but may appear incorrectly spelt later in the document.
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## START SUMMARY
The second World AIDS Day Parliamentary Breakfast 2025, held in the Banquet Hall at Parliament in Wellington on 1 December 2025, brings together politicians, health leaders, community organisations and people living with HIV to reflect on the past four decades of the HIV / AIDS epidemic and to recommit to ending HIV transmission in Aotearoa New Zealand by 2030. The event opens with a powerful mihi whakatau from Nate Rowe. This is followed by MC Mark Fisher, Executive Director of Body Positive, who sets out the kaupapa for World AIDS Day 2025 in Aotearoa: achieving the 2030 goals that all people living with HIV enjoy healthy lives free from stigma and discrimination, and that HIV transmission is eliminated. He notes the strong cross-sector turnout – MPs, health sector workers, community advocates and people living with HIV – and highlights the presence of a New Zealand AIDS Memorial Quilt block on loan from Te Papa, selected because it reflects the diversity of communities affected by HIV, including women, Māori leaders like Eddie Thompson Shore, and medical professionals such as Dr Buddy Brandt. Hon. Matt Doocey, Minister for Mental Health and Associate Minister of Health, acknowledges mana whenua, parliamentary colleagues and community organisations including Burnett Foundation Aotearoa, Body Positive, Positive Women, Toitū te Ao, NZPC: Aotearoa New Zealand Sex Workers' Collective and Needle Exchange Services. He outlines how advances in treatment mean that, when people are linked to care, many now live long and healthy lives with HIV. He cites a sustained decline in locally acquired infections among gay and bisexual men since 2016, alongside concerning increases among Māori and people diagnosed overseas, which underscore the need for culturally tailored, Māori-led services, expanded testing and better outreach. Doocey details the HIV Action Plan’s goals to eliminate local transmission by 2030 and ensure people living with HIV can live free from stigma, describing funding commitments, additional contact tracers, updated clinical guidelines, innovative HIV and STI testing services, a national anti-stigma campaign, and a new monitoring report tracking 32 indicators across five strategic goals. He also references New Zealand’s $4 million contribution to Fiji’s HIV outbreak response and the Innovation Fund grants that support community-led projects, including new whānau counselling services at Burnett Foundation Aotearoa. The keynote address from long-time HIV activist and founding director of Rainbow Tick, Michael Stevens, provides the emotional core of the recording and is rich in HIV stigma and resilience history. Speaking as a middle-class gay man living with HIV, Stevens recalls the intense fear and dehumanising stigma of the early epidemic: bodies wrapped in plastic and buried in quicklime, children like Eve van Grafhorst ostracised at preschool, and gay men depicted as deserving of disease and death. He shares deeply personal memories of living in New York and Istanbul in the 1980s, of friends dying, of being told by a London doctor in 1988 to “go back to New Zealand and get ready to die”, and of TB isolation in hospital. His story traces how community-led responses – safer sex campaigns, the creation of the New Zealand AIDS Foundation (now Burnett Foundation Aotearoa) and networks of care – emerged in the absence of state leadership, and how homosexual law reform was intertwined with the HIV response. Stevens argues that HIV stigma persists because the virus is tangled up with sex, death and moral judgement, especially around same-sex behaviour, and insists that HIV is a virus, not divine punishment. He calls on listeners to challenge stigma wherever they encounter it, reminding them that thanks to treatment, people with suppressed viral loads are healthy and should not be morally judged. The panel discussion on U=U (Undetectable = Untransmittable), facilitated by Rodrigo Olin German from Burnett Foundation Aotearoa, brings together lived experience and indigenous perspectives from Judith Mukakayange (Positive Women), Milly Stewart (Toitū te Ao) and Dr Tāwhanga Nopera (Body Positive). Rodrigo explains the science behind U=U, referencing decades of research and studies that found zero sexual transmissions where viral load was undetectable, and frames U=U as a global movement that has transformed HIV prevention and reduced stigma. Judith describes U=U as restoring her humanity, freeing her from the fear of infecting loved ones and equipping her to challenge blatant prejudice – such as calls to “lock up” people living with HIV – and to advocate for rights in housing, employment and health care. She points out that stigma still drives mental distress, job loss, housing discrimination and reluctance to access services, and calls for legal frameworks and Ministry of Health guidance to fully reflect U=U so that health professionals, rest-home staff and the wider public stop treating people living with HIV as dangerous. Milly Stewart speaks directly to the Minister. She urges those in power to sit with those living with HIV, to listen to their experiences of stigma and exclusion, and to co-design solutions that honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi and tino rangatiratanga. Dr Tāwhanga Nopera links U=U to indigenous knowledge and wellbeing, arguing for a shift from top-down “health over there” models to approaches that recognise people’s own mana, whakapapa and internal knowledge. Tāwhanga stresses that funding must reach community organisations that hold lived experience, rather than being captured by larger institutions that then repackage their solutions. Judith also highlights gaps for women living with HIV – particularly around breastfeeding and childbirth – where outdated or hard-to-find guidance leads to fear and inconsistent care. Returning to the stage, Mark Fisher reinforces that “HIV is the virus, stigma is the disease” and reiterates the call for a clear, high-level government statement endorsing U=U and the reality of zero transmission risk for people on effective treatment. Such a statement is framed as essential to reforming criminal law on non-disclosure, reducing discrimination in housing and employment, and embedding modern HIV science across the system. In the closing segment, newly appointed Executive Director of Burnett Foundation Aotearoa, Liz Gibbs, situates the breakfast within a broader movement of HIV community organisations that have carried this kaupapa for decades. She celebrates historic lows in new HIV diagnoses in Aotearoa while warning that “business as usual” will not get the country to zero by 2030, especially when reaching people beyond traditional urban and gay male hubs. Gibbs calls for full and formal government adoption of U=U, proper resourcing of community-based HIV prevention and support, and the meaningful involvement of people living with HIV in all decision-making. She announces the Burnett Foundation Innovation Challenge, funded with philanthropic partners, to harness AI and digital technologies for HIV prevention, stigma reduction and equitable access to services. The recording ends with a reaffirmation that zero locally acquired HIV transmission by 2030 is achievable, and that Aotearoa can once again be a country of firsts – this time in delivering a future free from HIV stigma, grounded in dignity, inclusion and community-led innovation.
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## START KEY CONTENT TIMESTAMPS [HH:MM:SS]
The following timestamps note when speakers or events begin in the full transcript: :[00:00:06] Mihi whakatau, Nate Rowe starts. [00:07:01] Waiata Te Aroha starts. [00:08:00] MC Mark Fisher, Body Positive starts. [00:11:40] Hon. Matt Doocey, Minister for Mental Health and Assoicate Minister of Health starts. [00:22:44] MC Mark Fisher starts. [00:23:20] Michael Stevens, keynote speech on stigma starts. [00:42:14] MC Mark Fisher starts. [00:43:10] Panel discussion on U=U, facilitated by Rodrigo Olin German starts. [00:45:48] Panelist Judith Mukakayange, Positive Women starts. [00:48:42] Panelist Milly Stewart, Toitū te Ao starts. [00:49:48] Panelist Dr Tāwhanga Nopera (PhD) starts. [00:51:35] Panel discussion continues starts. [01:05:14] Waiata starts. [01:06:48] MC Mark Fisher starts. [01:08:45] Liz Gibbs, Burnett Foundation Aotearoa starts. [01:17:20] MC Mark Fisher starts. [01:17:40] Closing, Heta Timu starts. [01:17:58] MC Mark Fisher starts.
## END KEY CONTENT TIMESTAMPS [HH:MM:SS]

## START TRANSCRIPT WITH TIMESTAMPS [HH:MM:SS]
He ngā iwi o te motu nei He raukura rā tēnei E te tia nei e te ati awa I te iti i te rahi te katoa E ngā iwi o [00:00:30] te motu nei Noho ia rā te whenua nei Manaakitia rā ngā iwi I te iti, i te rahi, te katoa Kua tū, kua tū, a te whiti Nō runga i a nā mahi pai Nō runga i a nā [00:01:00] mahi tika I tō nā ngā kau pai Anei ko te reo te aroha, anei ko te reo te manaakitanga Anei ko te reo te hau o te Tonga, anei ko te reo o te upoko o te Ika a Maui Ka karangatura ki ngā kohinga mana e tau nei E tau nei i runga i te whakarotai, E tau nei i runga i te arawanaungatanga i [00:01:30] wāinganui a tātou i tēnei wā whakahirahira. He rā maumahara tēnei. No reira, e te iti, e te rahi, Mai tērā rohe, mai tērā rohe, Mai tērā awaiki, mai tērā awaiki, Hara mai, hara mai, Hoki mai anō ki tō tātou wharepiringa, Te whare miere rā nei, Hoi anō, raumai hoki mai anō ki te tātou. Te wahine o Waiteti, koenei te ingoa tūturu o tēnei wahe. Hoi anō, hara mai ki Pāremata hoki.[00:02:00] E tikāne te mihi ki a rātou. Ngā rātou kua hinga. Ngā rātou e haere ana ki te Papa Tangaroa a Hinemoana ki tērā ware tūpuna o te kainga tūturu o tātou te tangata. Ngā rātou e noho ana i enei wā i te Akohatu Nā rātou e piatata i runga i te uma ōrangi nui, e maumaharangatia ki a rātou mō ake tonu rā, i roto o tātou pūna mahara o tātou moana hinengaro.[00:02:30] Hoi anō, e ngā tini mate kai wāinganui a koutou tātou, i tēnei wā, kā mihia, kā tangihia, kā poroporo akitia. Nō reira, e ngā tini mate, haere, hoki mai anō, ki tērā kāinga tūturu o tātou te tangata. Rātau ki a rātau, tātau anō ki a tātau. Pērā i tāua ingo o tō tātau hare tūpuna o Waihetu, arā ko arohanui ki te [00:03:00] tangata, ka toa toa atu enei mōmou āhuatanga ki koutou i tēnei wā, i ngā kaitoa i ngā toa i konei i tēnei wā. Nō reira, haramai, kuhumai i runga i ērā whakārō pai. Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Um, welcome, welcome to Parliament. Uh, welcome to Waititi, the original name if you didn't know. The waters of the te kouka tree, that's why there's te kouka tree out the front. Probably wondering why aren't there beautiful [00:03:30] roses, why the humble cabbage tree? Well now you know, whanau, so welcome to Waititi. My name is Nathan, I'm very humbled to come here on behalf of Te Atiawa, the Mana Whenua, Ahikaroa, but also Parliamentary Service and Office of the Clerk as well. Today I share a waiata with you from home. And this song is a response to a moment in our history that was a tragedy, born from peace and non -violence that inspired leaders like Gandhi [00:04:00] and there's my alarm telling me to wake up, I'm already awake. Inspired Gandhi and it comes from a place called Parihaka. It is a song though, although it comes from suffering, it speaks of hope. It speaks of holding on to what is important. The lines te iti me te rahi mean come the large and the small. It's metaphorical for no matter what size you are, who you are, where you're from, and where you're going, you are welcome here, [00:04:30] you are welcome here, we welcome you. It also references manaakitanga, to the multitudes. And also aligns to the whakatauki, nō tō raurau, nō ku tō raurau, nō ku te raurau hoki, ka ora ai te iwi. With your something that you bring here today, and the some things that I bring together, we will do well. And so today, we each bring our own basket of knowledge and experience here in the room.[00:05:00] And remember those heroes of yesterday. Those heroes that we have lost. Those who fought the good fight so that the future generations to come can thrive and have something better than they did in their time. So today, we remember those who have suffered, who have showed compassion, but also who fought the good fight. And now I come back to you, the heroes in the room today of the living, those who continue to the vision, hold the vision [00:05:30] of those heroes and champions of the past. A lot of what you bring today. Here is Aroha, but I was having a korero with our paururu here, our watcher of you, uh, Aunty Millie, uh, if you know, you know. Um, and she goes, you know, Aroha only goes so far, so if there's any ministers in the room right now, you know, money also helps with Aroha. So, you know, hara mai te putia, open your purse strings. Kia ora, Minister Ducey, good to see you [00:06:00] again. Kia ora. And so, um, and the last thing I said in my kōrero today is that I shared the name of one of our marae here in Waiwhetu, in the Grove, another if you know, you know. It's called Arohanui ki te tangata, which means goodwill to all humankind, again, ahakoa nohia koe, no matter where you're from. So on those good thoughts, e te iwi, e te iti, e te rahi, haramai, [00:06:30] kuhumai, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora tātou katoa. Um, whānau, I've already sung the waiata, but I've taken your opportunity to sing. So I'm going to sing another waiata with you all by Papa Morvan Simon, Te Aroha. Oh, te aroha again but do you know the second verse though? We'll learn that in another year eh whanau, next year as well. Tu tātou, we'll have a bit of - Anyone want to start us off? I'll start, I'll go then. I won't start in the [00:07:00] rafters though. Te aroha Te whakapono me te rangimāri e tātou, tātou e. I don't know, one more time. Te aroha, te [00:07:30] makapono, me te rangimarie, tātou, tātou e. Tēnā koutou e hoama. So I'm now going to pass it to your MC. Have a great rest of the day. Tēnā koutou katoa. You can give me a clap if you want, if it's not tapu, you know.[00:08:00] Thank you, Nate. That was a great mihi whakatau. Um, welcome. Uh, my name's Mark Fisher, I'm the Executive Director at Body Positive. Um, I need to quickly run through some housekeeping just initially, just so we're all on board. Um, so welcome to the Banquet Hall for the World AIDS Day 2025. This is our second event, um, and it's very exciting to be here. Thank you for hosting. Um, before we continue with the breakfast, Please switch off your mobile phones to silent. Photos [00:08:30] are permitted inside this room, but not outside the room. Um, your visitor stickers, we need to keep those visible at all times, otherwise security gets upset. Um, no smoking in the building or the grounds. Go out to Molesworth Street. Uh, the toilets are located over in the corner over here. In the case of emergency, you don't call triple one or triple zero if you're American. Um, uh, what we do is we, uh, contact security staff and they'll help out. If there's a fire, uh, please evacuate via the route you came in [00:09:00] and follow security staff. Earthquake, uh, stop, drop and cover until it drops. So, now that we're all safe and settled, it's fantastic to see everybody here. We have 118 people registered this year, a really good cross -sector representation of people, uh, including, uh, MPs, uh, health sector people, uh, community, uh, and as well as people living with HIV. And I think it's important to have that voice in the room, as, as Nate was mentioning, the champions, [00:09:30] and reflecting on the people that have gone before us. It's an important part of World AIDS Day, which is why we're here. Um, while World AIDS Day varies globally in terms of themes, depending where you are in the world, um, our focus in Aotearoa is clear, achieving the 2030 targets, which is, means that all people living with HIV have healthy lives free from stigma and discrimination, and it means the total elimination of HIV transmission in Aotearoa, which we can achieve. It's 2025, we [00:10:00] can do this if we continue to push forward. Um, this year, that's particularly significant. This is the, for this event, this year we've managed to have one of the AIDS Quilt blocks released from Te Papa to be viewed here. They're kept in archive because they're Te Onga, so we don't get to see them very often. So we're very privileged to have one in the room with us today. Um, the Quilt, the AIDS Quilt was originated in 1987 The Quilt, the AIDS Quilt was originated in 1987 As a form of social activism and resistance against [00:10:30] forgetting. There was a time when Reagan would refuse to say the word AIDS. So we've moved a long way from that. The quilts are still a memory of that piece of history. The four organisations hosting today, Burnett Foundation Positive Women, Buddy Positive and Toitū to Ao, selected this specific block because it represents the true diversity of our communities. It's the only block that includes a quilt for women, Lin, and Toitū to Ao. It honors Dr. Buddy Brandt, reminding us that HIV affects everyone, including medical professionals. [00:11:00] It honors Eddie Thompson Shore, a key figure in the growth of Maori action on AIDS in Dunedin. Eddie bravely went public with his illness to break down the barriers of ignorance and prejudice and make it visible. So please take a moment this morning to view the panel. These are moving testaments of love and community support. So it's over in the corner over here. [00:12:00] If I hadn't met you before, I would have thought that's one hell of a Movember growth. Is there anyone in Parliament for the first time? There is a few. I always get a buzz for someone who's been coming here for almost 12 years now, to meet people who are coming for the first time. Welcome. This is your place. And please, um, feel at home. Just to acknowledge, uh, mana [00:12:30] whenua and, uh, Nate, uh, thank you for that warm welcome and laying down the challenge of the pūtea. Uh, I always enjoy, uh, listening to your welcome and wondering where you're going to go next. It's very important to set down the challenge early on. Uh, just to acknowledge, uh, Liz from the Burnett Foundation and others in the room. I notice we have, uh, Audrey Sonnison, the Director [00:13:00] General from the Ministry of Health is here. As well as my parliamentary colleagues, uh, Opposition Health Spokesperson, Dr. Aisha Virao. Also from the Green Party, I've seen, uh, Dr Lawrence Zunan, Ingrid's here, Tangi, Glen and Grant. Hopefully I've got everyone that I can see at the moment. Thank you [00:13:30] for inviting me to join you this morning to mark World AIDS Day. I mean it is, uh, astonishing actually. It's been a year already. Uh, since the first one. It's a real pleasure to be part of the second parliamentary breakfast to commemorate This important day and of course to remember those that we have sadly lost I want to begin by acknowledging the incredible work of the Burnett foundation Positive woman body positive And all of you here today who are [00:14:00] an important part of this mahi. Your work, whether through counselling, testing, treating, supporting, advocacy, education, or connecting, is making a real difference in the lives of people living with HIV and AIDS across Aotearoa and New Zealand. Thanks to advances in treatment, people living with HIV now live longer and healthier lives. When they are linked into care. Since 2016, we've seen a significant decline [00:14:30] in locally acquired HIV infections, particularly among gay and bisexual men. Conversely, we're seeing an increase in the number of locally acquired HIV infections in Māori. This highlights a need for strengthened prevention strategies and culturally tailored outreach. Opportunities include expanding access to testing. Treatment and education through Māori -led services that are available to all. We're also seeing an increase [00:15:00] in new notifications for people diagnosed overseas. Almost 90 percent of these individuals arrive on treatment with suppressed viral loads, meaning they remain well and cannot sexually transmit HIV. I'd also like to pass on my thanks to those who have been involved in providing assistance in responding to the HIV outbreak in Fiji. The New Zealand Government has also contributed $4 million to support Fiji's HIV [00:15:30] outbreak response. Funding that has been managed by the Government of Fiji in line with their National HIV Task Force plans. Budget 2022 allocated $18 million for the first four years of implementation of the HIV Action Plan. And I just spoke to Aisha this morning, and she was the Minister at that time of the announcement, so I do want to acknowledge her again. The core goals of the National HIV [00:16:00] Action Plan for Aotearoa New Zealand are to eliminate HIV transmission within New Zealand by 2030, ensure all people living with HIV live healthy lives, free from stigma and discrimination. At the inaugural World AIDS Day breakfast last year, I confirm that any HIV Action Plan underspend in the 24 -25 financial year will be carried forward to 25 -26. I'm pleased this happened and accordingly significant progress has [00:16:30] been made this year and lots more in the immediate pipeline. I do like the ability of this breakfast to, um, check in every year and provide an update and ultimately, uh, yourselves in the room, uh, holding the government of the day to account. Some notable initiatives and highlights since publication of the HIV Action Plan in 2022 include boosting community services by funding HIV service [00:17:00] providers, including a new kaupapa Māori service. To scale up a peer -led programme, and those of you in the room who've heard me speak before, I'm a big believer in peer -led, lived experience programmes that will connect and empower people living with HIV and expand prevention across communities. Strengthening clinical practice with the publication of updated clinical guidelines. Uh, driving evidence -based action [00:17:30] by commissioning a rerun of sex and prevention of transmission study to track, uh, progress. And expanding innovative HIV and STI testing services, with seven new services launched this year, including increased community -based and peer -led testing. Building workforce capacity across the country to support national HIV goals around prevention and elimination. Including [00:18:00] six new contract tracers recruited in 2025 and seven more positions underway. A sexual health specialist training position established in Wellington and another being progressed in Christchurch. In addressing stigma and discrimination. .. contracted a creative agency working with sector representatives to deliver a national HIV campaign to challenge stigma and discrimination experienced by [00:18:30] people living with HIV by April twenty -twenty -six. Today we celebrate the publication of the first HIV monitoring report. And I think it's always important when in government that you can announce things Rapaera Tawhai, Te Karere. Uh, but actually, uh, the real test is in the implementation. In some ways, the announcement's the easy part. And that's why I welcome this first HIV monitoring report. Uh, [00:19:00] reports a range of data to monitor the effectiveness of the implementation of the plan and how well we are progressing. The report tracks 32 indicators aligned with the five strategic goals. Thank you very much. It helps us measure our progress. Overall, the report found progress has been made and against the action plan in some areas such as reducing local acquired HIV infections and [00:19:30] increased uptake of combination prevention measures such as PrEP. The Ministry of Health will continue to monitor HIV outcomes against the plan. The monitoring report will be produced by the Public Health Agency. In collaboration with the HIV epidemiology group and the Sex and Prevention of Transmission Study, or SPOTS, study group. A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of announcing five [00:20:00] community organisations that received the second round funding of the Innovation Fund. Our fund is helping hard -working NGOs and providers to scale up their solutions that are delivering. Today I'm delighted to announce the Burnett Foundation. Has been awarded the next round of the fund at over $100 ,000 that will be matched by philanthropic funding. This funding will support the launch of a new whanau counselling service [00:20:30] and expand their one -on -one counselling. I was talking to Liz before about the ability with this announcement today to not only scale up our capability and capacity, but also now to support families in need. So in closing, the HIV response in New Zealand has always been grounded in health promotion and community leadership. Today I think we can celebrate some milestones and significant progress, [00:21:00] but also acknowledge the areas that we need to step up, which is important. and collectively hold ourselves to account. None of this would be possible without the dedication of all of you in this room. So can I say a big thank you. I want to acknowledge those affected by HIV and AIDS since the start of the pandemic, including those who have died. We acknowledge the work done by everyone in the HIV [00:21:30] sector both now and in the past. Thank you especially to Body Positive, Burnett Foundation, Positive Woman, Toi Tū Te Ao, New Zealand Sex Workers Collective, Needle Exchange Services, and all our clinicians, peer support workers, community -based providers, and researchers for your tireless work. Your knowledge, your commitment, and your compassion are deeply appreciated. [00:22:00] Of special note is the 40th anniversary. o Foundation Burnett, a powerful symbol of progress of people living with HIV, honouring decades of advocacy, reducing stigma and promoting inclusion through the legacy of Bruce Burnett and the principle of meaningful involvement. Thank you once again for inviting me to this very important event, and thank you for everything [00:22:30] you do Thank you. And I look forward to our collective work over the coming 12 months. Nga mihi nui, thank you very much. Thank you Minister Doocy. Um, it takes a very collaborative effort to achieve the goal that we're trying to achieve. So I, it's good to have everybody in the room. It's a good cross representation of everybody here. Um, um, Moving forward, I'd like to, uh, welcome, [00:23:00] uh, to set the tone for the morning, we run, turn now to a voice of deep experience and advocacy. Our keynote speaker is the founding director of Rainbow Tick, a writer and a long time HIV activist. He is here to share a powerful reflection on stigma, resilience and lived experience in Aotearoa. Please welcome Michael Stephens. Ata Maori e tatou. [00:23:30] I'd like to acknowledge Te Aotearoa as having mana whenua on this land. I'd like to express my thanks to this house for hosting us, our house. I acknowledge the dead, all the dead, but when we think of those who have died of AIDS globally, coming up to nearly 50 million. I acknowledge the living of our generation, and I acknowledge those generations yet to come. I [00:24:00] speak as a middle class white gay man. My experience is not universal, though it has many parallels with others who live with this virus. Far and away, the majority of people affected by HIV and AIDS are living in the developing world, and transmission is via heterosexual intercourse, um, and people sharing dirty needles. This should never be forgotten. This should never be forgotten. Many people globally have been infected. [00:24:30] The shape of the epidemic in this country though, is a bit different. Today I've been asked to speak on the topic of HIV -related stigma. It's hard now to remember just how intense, how truly terrible the stigma attached to AIDS and HIV was in the early days. I lived in Istanbul through much of the 80s and early 90s. And the first AIDS [00:25:00] case I remember there, like 1985 or 86, was some B -grade film actor and his girlfriend, and they both got it through sharing, um, dirty needles. They died. To bury them, they wrapped their bodies in plastic, sealed them, and dumped them in a grave and covered them with quicklime. So that was the level of fear that was attached just to the concept of a dead body of somebody who died of AIDS. [00:25:30] Some here might remember the case of Eve Van Graffhorst, Angel Eve as she was called. A girl with New Zealand parents living in Australia who became infected with HIV by a blood transfusion before she was five. When it became known at her preschool, she was barred from attending. Other parents threatened to withdraw their children. She was irredeemably tainted. Her family moved back to Aotearoa and she became the face of the innocent [00:26:00] victim of AIDS and was given a warm and supportive world until she died at age 11. But she was still tainted. For others, for we gay men like myself and men who have sex with men, we were not seen as innocent victims. And we did not receive the same sort of support. You must remember too, that as we sickened, we looked like death. Men who had been fit and strong, with bodies carefully [00:26:30] honed by hours at the gym, became walking skeletons. Their skin covered in purple lesions, hair falling out, some going blind, some suffering from dementia, all so very suddenly. It was a nightmare. Tēnā koe. It's not an exaggeration to say that, uh, many of us look like we had come out of a concentration camp from World War II. Why did HIV and AIDS elicit such a strong reaction where many [00:27:00] other diseases don't? And why does it still do so? What fuels this stigma? I'll come back to that. So a little bit about me. I am born and bred in Auckland. Um, as a young gay man, when I was, I first met Bruce Burnett when I was about 14. And he ran a little business in Parnell called La Patisserie. And a friend of my brother's, um, worked for him. So that was my first encounter with Bruce. I met him again [00:27:30] later in my early twenties, when I moved into a flat he was moving out of, and I bought his bed and his bookcase, and he moved off to San Francisco. Um, um, In many ways, I am the classic example of a gay male case of HIV and AIDS. I was infected in the early 80s somewhere, most likely in New York, um, and I slowly watched my health decline. I spent a long time in denial, pretending I didn't [00:28:00] have it. I was, as I say, I was living in Istanbul. My flatmate got really, really sick, an English guy. I was, as I say, I was living in Istanbul. And, um, he went to London and had an AIDS test and came back and said, got it. So I thought, maybe I should find out. So my next summer break I flew to London. And, um, I couldn't access the NHS because I have no British patriality rights. And the doctor I spoke to, though, at the clinic said, this is 1988, she said to me, I [00:28:30] was 27. She said, going by your history, you should assume you have it. You've probably got about two years left to live. If I were you, I would go back to New Zealand and get ready to die. So when a doctor tells you to get ready to die, it's quite strong. It's quite a powerful message. Um, I didn't. I went back to Istanbul. I thought, I love my life in Turkey. I want to keep on doing what I want to do until, um, I absolutely have to come back to New Zealand. And I stayed there until [00:29:00] 1993. Um, I have got one image that always sits with me. In about 1984, I was living in New York for a while, and there was a gay bar there, a famous gay bar called The Anvil. And it was sort of a leathery bar, and they were having a slave auction to raise money for various HIV charities, and it was just starting in New York. And people were quite desultorily bidding on people, and then one young man got up in a sailor suit, and he [00:29:30] looked like death. There was no flesh to his bones, and he was clearly dying. And suddenly the bidding just went through the roof as people started volunteering to give more and more money. That image has always stuck with me and I always wonder about that young man because I'm sure he died. And I've watched so many of my own friends sicken and die. I've sat at bedsides and literally watched friends with AIDS take their last breath. And I thought that was going to be my trajectory as well. That, [00:30:00] um, doctor at the NHS who wouldn't, uh, listen, wouldn't treat me, she recommended the private clinic off Regent's Park, private sex, um, sexually transmitted disease clinic. And I think I paid 200 pounds. And I got the answer a few weeks later that yes, I was positive. And this brought for me a very strong sense of being unclean, unworthy. being tainted, that feeling that my body was polluted and that [00:30:30] I couldn't safely touch, be with other people. Now remember in the early, in the mid 80s or 88, we didn't know nearly as much as we do today. I came back to New Zealand in 1993. Um, I had my first hospital admission fairly shortly after that with tuberculosis. Uh, and that was horrific. So I was in hospital, I could barely breathe, I was going through full barrier [00:31:00] nursing, so in a sealed room, and I thought, this is how my life will end. I will be locked in a room with people coming and going in white masks and gowns. Does that sound familiar? Um, but luckily, they decided I wasn't contagious, and they took all the, um, prep, uh, PEP away and sent me home. My first support group that I went to, through Body Positive, Of which at one point I was even a board member, a long time ago. In my first support group, one of the facilitators of the group died within [00:31:30] the first three weeks. So we had twelve men living with HIV, two facilitators, and one died, as I say, within the first three weeks. Funeral planning was one of the set topics we always discussed. My GP at the time, a lovely man, sat down with my mother and me and explained to her the way HIV would, um, affect my body. How I would continue to be sort of normal for a number of years, and then the virus would slowly dismantle my immune system, leaving my body [00:32:00] defenseless to otherwise ordinary infections. Now I'm always wary about talking about numbers in front of people like Dr. Pete Saxton, with his expertise, but by my account, going through the AIDS epidemiology, uh, uh, data, We've currently got about three and a half thousand people living with HIV in New Zealand, is that right? Yeah? Roughly? Give or take? And from the data I can find approximately [00:32:30] 750 or so people have actually died over the years. We're so lucky compared to so many other countries. So lucky this death toll is not much higher. So lucky that the number of people infected is relatively low. This is a far cry from what was predicted in the mid -80s, when homosexual law reform was before this House. And certain MPs argued that the potential spread of AIDS to tens of thousands of Kiwis was a reason [00:33:00] not to decriminalise homosexuality. From memory, one particular MP thundered in the House that there would be over 50 ,000 deaths from AIDS in a few years, but you will need to go back and check Hansard to find out who that might have been. Te Okiwa McLean, Te Karere. The stigma and judgment was at an almost hysterical level, and it affected us, those of us with the virus, and our wider communities, that of gay men. The fight against HIV infection [00:33:30] and the fight for the care of people living with HIV and AIDS was not led by the government, neither here nor abroad. It was a community response from a small and criminalized and outlawed group of people. It was a community response from a small and criminalized group of people. And our friends. We knew that, with some notable exceptions, those in authority did not value us or care as we sickened and died. Many could barely express their satisfaction. We were criminals. To many, we were [00:34:00] sinners. To others, we were psychologically damaged. Most did not see us as deserving of a full and happy life. Many thought AIDS was a divine retribution for our wicked ways. Of course, that conveniently ignored those who were not gay, such as those infants born with HIV due to their mothers being infected, um, or to people catching it through, um, heterosexual intercourse. Safe sex as we know it now was a community -led [00:34:30] response invented by a group of concerned doctors who could see that, particularly in the States, nothing was being done to intervene into the epidemic, and they said, well, the obvious thing to do is use prophylaxis. And this is how safe sex was born. They used their medical and public health knowledge to urge gay men and bisexual men to start using condoms as a way to prevent transmission. This was an unheard of intervention in the sex lives of gay men. [00:35:00] For some context, as gay liberation had taken hold as a movement in the 70s, one of the things that we gay men had claimed and gloried in was our ability to break free of traditional patterns of sexual behavior and styles of relationship. As a young gay man at Auckland University, I remember being told at a gay liberation meeting, one of the great things about being gay was we could go out and have as much sex as we liked and nothing bad would ever happen. Nobody would get pregnant, [00:35:30] diseases like gonorrhea and syphilis were almost wiped out, and if you got one, you just took some pills and you were fine. You tell that to an 18 year old boy, see what happens. Um, so my peers and I took that message to heart. Sexual liberation was seen as a good in itself, and I believe there is still much to that position. Our society conflates shame and sex far too easily and to no good end. And then suddenly we were being told that this, this [00:36:00] physical joy and delight in our bodies was the leading cause of infection. That these acts of pleasure had somehow been hijacked by an agent causing death. Perhaps a remarkable thing was how quickly we as a global community took up safe sex. Along with this, we developed networks of care. We could see so much of the rest of the world turning their backs to us, and we knew we had to look after ourselves. And it was out of that sort of community drive, the New [00:36:30] Zealand AIDS Foundation, now the Burnett Foundation, was created. Homosexual law reform in this country was at least in part driven by the AIDS epidemic. How can you effectively reach into a population at risk when they are criminals? Decriminalization was one of the tools that helped in the fight against the virus. And there is a small group of MPs and other community leaders from that era that we should be eternally grateful for, for their care in taking up that work. [00:37:00] Given the extraordinary response... We as a community developed to the sudden appearance of a mysterious virus in our midst. I have been slightly surprised that the expertise of, for example, the foundation or other global HIV, um, groups and associated researchers and scholars wasn't tapped into when COVID appeared. The parallels just seem so obvious. A virus appears in the middle of, from the middle of nowhere and starts wiping people out. We have already been there. This is not my first epidemic. [00:37:30] To return to my question about why the stigma arose and persists, I would argue that HIV and AIDS, um, combines sex and death, especially in the popular imagination. And especially in the popular imagination, unnatural sex, to be blunt, sodomy. Sodomy and death. As a culture, we're not good at dealing with either sex or death comfortably. We don't talk about them [00:38:00] easily, we don't acknowledge them. Combining them both results in a particularly explosive mixture. Many gay men and men who have sex with men still feel deeply conflicted and guilty about their desires. This might arise from a cultural or religious perspective or a background, but that is based in fear and ignorance. A friend of mine, one of my peers, not so long ago told me that if he could have taken a pill to make himself heterosexual when he was in his twenties, he would have done it. [00:38:30] So, think of the level of dislike of yourself that you want to change something that is really so deeply embedded in you. We often have such a strong thread of guilt and shame about who we are, in spite of the changes in legal settings, in spite of the fact that our relationships can now be recognized by the state. Many of us have an underlying sense that there is something wrong with us. Because that is what society still so often mutters.[00:39:00] And today, in the current political climate globally, it is being said again and again more loudly. And this is only reinforced more for that small group who go on to become infected with HIV. The stigma that surrounds HIV arises from societal judgments about same -sex behavior, and that stigma is then passed, um, onto all who get it. No matter how they were infected, it arises from ignorance, it arises from fear, it arises from [00:39:30] bigotry. Dirty, diseased, unnatural. Too much sex. The wrong kind of sex. Drugs. These are all bundled up together in the popular imagination and understanding of HIV and AIDS, even if they are not said aloud. HIV is a virus. Like any other virus, it's just getting on with being a virus. It has no agency. It has no mind. It has no willpower. It has no [00:40:00] animosity. It's a virus that flourishes in human blood and other bodily fluids. It is not the wrath of God. It is not punishment. And today, thanks to incredible medical advances, it is a very treatable virus. Those of us who live with it are no more to be judged than people who got TB before the invention of antibiotics were to be judged. You know, even as the prospect of... As [00:40:30] death and illness proceeds, the stigma persists. The stigma that still surrounds HIV infection has a strongly negative effect on those of us living with it, or from those populations most at risk of it. It marginalises us. It paints us as wrong and bad. It also stops people seeking treatment and support when they should. Stigma creates a burden that many people can barely tolerate. Perhaps I'm preaching to the choir here today, [00:41:00] but I hope that collectively we can challenge that stigma and work to build a world where being infected with any kind of virus does not carry a moral judgment. On this World AIDS Day, we remember those who have died around the globe, over 40 million. I urge you, individually, collectively, to commit to fighting stigma whenever you encounter it. Thank you. I do not expect to die of AIDS now, although for a long time I did. I am lucky. [00:41:30] I live in a country with a reasonably good medical system, and excellent nurses and doctors. I am very well cared for compared to many around the globe. I am married. I am loved. Yet still when I tell people that I live with this virus, I see often that flinch, the recoil, the ongoing effects and stigma. Let's all work to change that.[00:42:00] Thank you, Michael. It's good to remind us HIV is the virus, stigma is the disease. Um, moving on with that thread, uh, one of the messages we're going to talk about is U equals U, which we're proud to talk about. Um, we have a panel [00:42:30] coming up to speak to us about that, which is, I'd like to invite, uh, Rodrigo and the panel to come up to the stage. Um, so we're having a cross -sectoral career about exploring community realities and the future of HIV well -being. The focus of the discussion is U equals U, undetectable equals untransmittable. Zero risk of transmission. Um, I'll hand you over to Facilitator Rodrigo Olen -Germain, um, from the Burnett Foundation, uh, to introduce his panellists, Millie Stewart from Te Ui [00:43:00] Tu Te Ao, Judith Makianga from Positive Women, and Dr. Tafunga Nopera from Body Positive. Morena, Tato, while we wait for Millie to make it to the table, I just want to, uh, start sharing with you and setting the context of the panel. So, U -equals -U and detectable equals untransmittable affirms that people living with HIV who maintain undetectable viral load through effective [00:43:30] antiretroviral therapy cannot sexually transmit HIV. This message is backed by decades of scientific research and was mobilized into a global movement by the Prevention Action Campaign, PAC. Eto, in 2016, UXU transformed HIV advocacy, reduced stigma, and reshaped public health policy globally. There is a lot of evidence, um, scientific evidence backing up this, this, this, this fact. From the RACAI [00:44:00] study back in 2001, up to the PARTNER2 study conducted in 2018, where zero transmissions after over 77 ,000 additional acts, um, sexual acts amongst gay male couples. Proof that there was no sexual transmission. With me here today, um, I have, um, a very esteemed, um, group of colleagues, uh, which I would like to introduce. Um, we have, um, Judith [00:44:30] Mukakayange from Positive Woman. Judith is a community leader and HIV advocate with Positive Woman. She is committed to breaking stigma and supporting women living with HIV through education, empowerment and open dialogue. Millie Stewart. Millie Stewart is an advocate for indigenous health and environmental justice with Toitūteao. She works at the intersection of kaupapa Māori approaches and sustainability, centering community well -being and Tino Rangatiratanga in all she does. [00:45:00] And Dr. Tafanga Nopera. Dr. Tafanga Nopera is a scholar, artist, and health advocate affiliated with Body Positive, with a deep commitment to indigenous knowledge systems. Tafanga champions holistic and culturally grounded responses to HIV and wellbeing in Aotearoa. Thank you so much for being here with, um, with us today and for sharing, um, your lived experience and your knowledge and your opinion around the powerful concept of UxU. So I would like to start asking all [00:45:30] of you very, um, a very initial question around why do you believe that UxU is such a powerful concept and how has it impacted your life? And experience your life. Who would like to start? Judith, thank you. Morena, um, yeah, uh, honest. If I have a time, I will ask one of you first to share with us your reaction when you [00:46:00] heard about it, that you equal you, but today's my day, you have your turn. Um, how can I answer this for me? I guess. I can describe this in one word. When I heard, well, when the news of under detectable come around, when my HIV specialist broke that news to me, it's kind of, that news restored my humanity. Because you can [00:46:30] imagine for us who are living with HIV, who have been living with the fear, passing HIV to their loved ones, simply just loving them. Thank you. Or we have been, uh, wished to be eliminated in a society because they think we are infectious and being killed. I can give you an example. A couple of years ago, we were doing, um, on the same day, like first day of December or the other day, [00:47:00] we were doing a raising awareness of the HIV in the community, shaking the bucket to collect the money for the fundraising. And one guy walked through us and then he said, I wish all those people living with HIV are locked in a room and throw the key away. And all of us, we froze. We didn't know how to respond. But I didn't let it go. I followed him. I knocked on his shoulder. He was a tall guy. And then I said, Hey, sir. So, are you [00:47:30] saying I should be killed, eliminated in this society because I'm living with HIV? I am a mother, I work hard like anyone else, I contribute to the country, I pay a tax like you if you do, but you want me to be killed? Why do you hate so much the people living with HIV? He looked so guilty and then he say, he say, It's because people living with HIV, maybe not you, are spreading that infection to others. I told him, you are wrong. The people who are like [00:48:00] you, ignoring, who don't know the HIV status, are the ones who are passing the HIV to others. For us, you all know, we have that infection. We are careful because we know how we face the law. So you can imagine, if I face that person, the time I was diagnosed, before I knew about the U . E . Q . U., I would not challenge that person. Thank you. Probably I'll go in my room and lock myself in, wishing to die, like what he said. But now, [00:48:30] I know, because of the iu iko iu, it giving me the power to claim my rights and to fight for it. So, yeah. Thanks Juliette, that was really good. Millie. Kia ora nō tātou katoa. Um, iu iko iu, initially it meant nothing to me, because I'm of age. Thank you. And I've spent half of my life not living with HIV. So what does that mean? [00:49:00] It now means absolutely what my sister Judith had said. It means powerful. It means everybody needs to know. It means that government should say, you equals you and then endorse our karanga. That's what it says. So, um, Kia tātou hoki. Those of you who sit there like me, who are living a wonderful life, who's living [00:49:30] a damn good life. Because you does equal you, and you means you and me, and me and you. Ngā mihi ki a tātou. Thanks Millie. Kia ora tātou. Thank you Millie and Judith for your kōrero. Um, yeah, when I first contracted HIV in... In 1998, I was only 22, and I had to go to Australia to get the knowledge and the medication that I needed to be well. [00:50:00] And, um, when I was 24 and I started on meds, um, I was really scared because, you know, my whole life I was like, Ah, fuck these parkyards, I'm gonna, I'm gonna show you's, and it was like, Oh my God, they got me! The parkyards got me! Oh my God! But, the doctor, um, In Melbourne, who started to treat me, she said, you know, you're only young and these new meds that they have, they're really powerful and if you start taking them, um, I'm pretty sure that you'll live most, you'll live longer than most of your friends and you'll be [00:50:30] much weller than most of them and this has proved true, like I'm, I'm 50 next year and I'm fitter and healthier than, than most of my nieces and nephews. Um, and when I first found out, found out about you, cause you, it confirmed everything I already knew about myself, that I'm a good person, that I'm a well person. And that, um, that I have the mana. Like, when I found out about U equals U, I already knew, because I'm a wild person, how can I be sick when I look like this? And so, for me, that was the most powerful thing, personally, [00:51:00] about hearing about U equals U. But, what the most powerful thing about U equals U is, is that it's, It tells us that we can end HIV, the transmissions of HIV in our lifetime, that's incredible. Because there was a time in my life when the overarching narrative was this, we're never gonna, we're never ever gonna get rid of this. And if you catch it, you're fucked. And that's been proven wrong. And it's so powerful for people to know that we can end the transmissions of HIV. Like, that's incredible. [00:51:30] So, um, yeah, for me, that's the power of U equals U. Kia ora. Kia ora. Um, Judith, I'm really interested, I'm really interested to know what do you think are the biggest challenges that people living with HIV face today, even in the U equals U era? That's a lot. But, starting with, um, Filooke at the beginning but for us living in the HIV, we have seen enormous in [00:52:00] our life change. So, by saying that we still facing the major of the challenges in our life. But the biggest one is the stigma and the discrimination. And the stigma and the discrimination lead to other challenges. Let's say about the mental health issues among the people in the HIV. It's high. Rapaera Tawhai, Te Karere. And that is because people living with HIV are being denied to, for a work, say, example. They are being kicked to [00:52:30] their jobs. People are being denied to their houses. For me, I like to use the example always because that is the things I see in my life in the community I work for. Two weeks ago, I got a call from here, in Warrington, for the organization I don't want to say the name. But they didn't want to give the house to the mother of their children because the mother, she live with the HIV. They think because she was the accessing the houses, the emergency houses, and because that house have other [00:53:00] people, they think she will transmit the HIV to others. And, after talking to them, telling them about you, eco you, how that's safe, how she can't pass the HIV to people, and then they disappeared. I called them, I say, I want to do dedication to your team, to your staff. I never hear about them, but tomorrow I'm going there, um, knocking on their door. But again, let's look the, uh, the challenge of the, uh, railroad [00:53:30] suppression. People are not taking a medication as they should because of the stigma. They are afraid to walk to the, um, uh, to the hospital or to access the services because of the stigma. They are afraid to walk to the hospital or to access the services because of the stigma. The stigma is high, but for me, what I don't understand, what it will take for the legal frameworks to reflect on the science that prove that you equal you is real. Because if [00:54:00] they do, the policy makers, the decision makers, everyone, otherwise the communities are calling us the liars. Hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, hei, [00:54:30] he Rapaera Tawhai, Te Karere. But we don't know our life tomorrow. You go to the HIV specialist, you cram in, get this, and they say, Oh, we're still waiting for the research. And then we go to the residence, the rest home, they have no crew about it. That is another example. A week ago, they called me to do the training to the clinical, um, people who look after the rest homes, I can imagine. Because someone was [00:55:00] In the facility, and they're living the HIV. The staff start gossiping. Changing, wearing the gloves because they don't want to give the person the care, because the person is living with HIV. I was shocked, and this is essentially, It is annoying, And it's, Our energies being wasted having to work. When you go in the community and hear about this, what are we doing? So we need people who have the power, o te reo te reo. [00:55:30] Yeah, that's right. And that's only the tip of the iceberg in terms of the challenges. But I was wondering if Mili or Tafanga have anything else to add on to that? No? Okay. Tafanga, what needs to happen to normalise UEKUZU and ensure wider understanding across all communities? This is a bit out there, but, um, I think the language that we use to talk about ourselves and being healthy needs to completely change. Um, you know, we live in a society where the help's over there. Thank you. Over there, [00:56:00] over there, go over there and get help. Go over there, because you don't know. You don't know, you don't know, you don't know. You're dumb, you don't know. But you do know. Every single one of us has billions of years of whakapapa in our bodies. Like, an incredible genetic memory with all of our tupuna always telling us, this is the way to go, this is what you do, this is what the answer is. We all have the answers, we all have mana, we all have power. Papa Tuanuku loves us unconditionally. Ranginui loves us unconditionally. That's not just the sky, that's the whole universe. Like, God loves us. It's unconditional love. Unconditional. [00:56:30] So that judgement comes from us. And so if people know that the answers are right here, if people are taught, you have the knowledge, I'll help you find out what you know. If we reframe the way we talk about wellness and being well, and let people know that actually we are good, and even our bad thoughts are good to have, and we have the answers, then we have the answers. Like, that's a really, really powerful thing that can take away people's judgement of other people. Because if you feel well in yourself, you're not worried [00:57:00] about anyone else. Or, or what they're doing, you know, you trust that they are doing good things. Um, but secondly, I think, you know, on a less out there level, I think, um, you know, the evidence of the past 30 years has shown that, um, our population based model of funding doesn't work. You know, it's, it's 30 years now. Like, people around us shouldn't know about HIV. People around us and our whānau, and our papakainga, they should know [00:57:30] that we have a solution to end HIV, or transmissions of HIV, because we don't want to end us, we're HIV, you know. People should know that. And 30 years with that knowledge still captured in particular parts of our country, on K Road, Ponsonby Road, in the centre of Wellington, that's not good enough. And so we actually need to fund our organisations the most. Tēnā koe. Because we have the answers, we know, we live it. And actually, you know, the organisation that's gotten the majority of the funding, they always take our solutions, you know? Because they've got the money to do so. [00:58:00] So the money needs to come to us, we know. And so, kia ora. Kia ora Te Whanga. And I also think that in terms of normalised UXU, and given that we're in this government house, it's for the government to completely endorse the UXU message. So it comes from the top, as you said, Judith. You know, if the decision makers, if the leaders in this, Um, in this country, I completely endorse that message and acknowledge that we cannot pass HIV if we are on treatment, [00:58:30] then it is going to permit to the rest of the society, so we need that to happen amongst many other things as well. Millie, what changes are needed from government to support people living with HIV and achieve the goal of ending HIV transmission in your view? That's a really good question. Minister Ducey, this is for you. You know it is. There does need changes. [00:59:00] You equals you. This is what our message is. You know. And to get those changes, you need to come and talk to people like us. The ones on the ground that knows what's happening. That lives with it day in and day out. That knows the stigma. That knows the hurt. That knows the pain. We know. Thank you. And we need to let you know, so that you are made, you can make these [00:59:30] informed decisions about how our lives are playing out. And it's really important that we have ministers like you that come amongst us. There are plenty sitting in the audience that are like us. And we hunger for that change. We need that change. We need that understanding. Thank you. So we ask you. Minister Doocy, with all humbleness, please [01:00:00] come talk to us. Those of us sitting up here, and there's plenty more sitting out there. Ask us, don't send your Indians. You know this old saying, you don't send a man, a boy out to do a man's job. So this is our karanga to you, Minister Doocy. Come talk to us. Let's have this conversation. Let's make these changes together. Thank you. [01:00:30] Let's be the catalyst of how, especially, indigenous, refugees, immigrants, Māori, and our cohorts ki te Tiriti o Waitangi work together. Let us be the catalyst. So he karanga tēnei kia koe, Minister Dixie. It's wonderful that you're sitting here amongst us. We have a lot of Ministry of Health here as well. We have a lot of other organizations here, but Kia ora kia [01:01:00] koutou. You are our allies. But hear me, listen to us. We are the ones that know. We are the ones that know the stigma. We are the ones that know the discrimination and get dropped from where we should be. Why? Because you can't handle the truth? Kia ora koutou. You can't handle being spoken to about what you equals [01:01:30] you for people like us. You and I. Those of you who live with HIV that are sitting in the audience, you know, let's stand up and make this call. Let's put the karanga out to Mr Ducey while he's sitting right here. He's sitting right here. So let's take this opportunity. And all humbleness. Minister Ducey, thank you so much for being amongst us. Thank you for hearing us, and [01:02:00] thank you, if I bear a little bit promiscuous here, for endorsing the you equals you process. Cheers. Thank you. Sorry, I just wanted to add something to that, Minister. Um, you did, you said, um, you know, $18 million has been allocated towards the sector, and, um, that's fantastic, but what we need is that money in our accounts. [01:02:30] Because the trend is that we don't get that money until maybe 10 months after it's been allocated. Like this year, um, there's been no outcomes determined for the action plan, you know, so we are operating on no money, no specified outcomes. We've got a plan, but you know, we've got a plan. Thank you. Put your money where your mouth is, and give us that money so that we don't get it 10 months before we have to report on it. Because that's what's been happening over the past 10 years, and I know, because I've been sitting on the board of Body Positive, listening to that kōrero over and over and over, and it affects our ability to do the work, because we [01:03:00] spend 10 months of the year operating on nothing to do to reach the outcomes, and then only 2 months funded. And then we've got to report on it, you know, and so, um, we need you to put your money where your mouth is. Kia ora. Quick one. Two minutes Rodrigo or one minute. Yes. Less than two minutes. I can't leave this table without speaking on behalf of women living with HIV. It's still seeing like majority of people focusing on MSM, I'm not fighting for that. But don't forget [01:03:30] that there is other people can, you know, suffering from HIV, the women. I give you example, it's shocking for me. I can ask the doctors. They are there. They know what I'm talking about. When a woman living with HIV have a baby, they want to have a normal birth at home because they are undetectable. When they want to do the breastfeeding, it's a fight. They don't know there is information. Even the health professionals are scared to explain it very well. Do you know why? [01:04:00] Because when you go on the website, the Ministry of Health website, try to search that information. They don't know the information. It doesn't pop up easily. People have to dig and search and things. That's something that should be visible. Not leaving for a woman living with HIV to go to search those information, to dig somewhere international, the World, uh, the World Health Organization. When we have the government, we have the, uh, a country, develop the country that could give us that [01:04:30] information visible. That is from me. So HIV affect us women in many ways. So thank you. Thank you. And U . E . C . U. bring us all people living with HIV together. Um, U . E . C . U. is one of the most important public health messages and It has played an immense role in the HIV response, um, so thank you, thank you so much for all of you. Um, let's not take this for granted, so it is very brave and courageous for people living with HIV to be in a place like this, to provide a face to the HIV epidemic and to talk [01:05:00] about the lived experience, so thank you so much for your contribution, your ideas. Your advocacy, your passion. I really, I really love you, all of you. So thank you so much.[01:05:30] [01:06:00] Tēnei tēniki, kia koutou, kia ora[01:06:30] Tīna! Tōki e tīnei! Tāiki! Uh, thank you, Rodrigo, Judith, Millie, and Tāwhanga. Um, the uEqualsU message is something we've been pushing since 2018. It's a very strong message. It helps fight stigma. Um, [01:07:00] and I think everybody knowing that there is zero risk of transmission if you are living with HIV and on treatment is one of the biggest announcements that was ever being made in terms of HIV. So, um, the call that we're looking for is for that to be endorsed at a higher level so that we can use that in areas like, people can still go to jail for non -disclosure of HIV even if they're undetectable and there's no transmission. So that's, they're the kind of things that we're fighting in terms of housing, employment, [01:07:30] all these other things. If we could refer up to a statement that said, that recognised zero risk, that's the piece that we're looking for. Because we've been talking about it since 2018, and the message still isn't out there. So we need help. Um, so, One other thing that I just want to say is, the reason we can do you because you're in New Zealand, is because we have really good access to medication. Um, Pharmac, Pharmac, Pharmac, Is amazing in terms of removing barriers and ensuring that everybody has access to the medication that they [01:08:00] need and that's the piece, the key piece in terms of accessing treatment so people can be undetectable. Um, we need newer meds, but in terms of access, that piece, they're doing a really, really good job and I just want to say thank you for that. Um, and the other people are our clinicians, our nurses, our social workers, and um, the other people that make it accessible, but people don't have barriers to access in that piece. Thank you. So, um, the piece I'd like to do now is introduce Liz Gibbs, the new Executive Director for Burnett Foundation. Um, Liz [01:08:30] has recently joined and is quite a visionary in terms of where we're going, so I'd really be pleased to invite her up to the stage. Tū i a ki runga, tū i a ki rara tū i a ki roto, tū i a ti waha'. Tū i a te herei tangata, kā runga, tū i a ki rata Te pō, ka rangau, te ao. Tēnā [01:09:00] koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. Burnett Foundation Aotearoa, tēnā koutou katoa. Thank you very much, Mark, and thank you for our amazing panellists. What an inspiring session that was. I want to offer my deep thanks to everyone who's made this morning's breakfast possible. Not just possible, but actually meaningful. That was an incredibly meaningful session to hear those insights from our esteemed colleagues. To Minister Doocy, thank you for your leadership. [01:09:30] We really appreciate your ongoing commitment and also to our boards and staff across all of our HIV organisations represented here, not just here today, but around the country. I also want to acknowledge and thank Jane at Positive Women, Mark at Body Positive, Millie at Te Toitū te Ao for your vision, your grit and your incredible advocacy. Which you just witnessed in action. To our colleagues at Te Whātua Ora and the Ministry of Health for your [01:10:00] partnership and dedication to public health, to people living with HIV and to every guest who's chosen to start your week with us here today. Thank you. Your presence here today reflects Our shared determination to create a future free from HIV stigma and transmission. And it's our collective energy across our organisations and communities that makes that progress possible. And as I'm speaking here today, I'm not just [01:10:30] representing Burnett Foundation, but um, the part of our wider movement around the country, a coalition of HIV community organisations that have carried this kaupapa for decades. ... many many decades. And we will continue to do so until we get to zero transmission. So we acknowledge we've made massive progress, but we've got lots of work to still do today. You've heard about You equals You. And we need that to be fully and formally adopted across government to ensure [01:11:00] that consistent messaging for this is grounded in both science AND dignity. For people living with HIV, They need to be meaningfully involved at every level. And it's fantastic to hear some of our esteemed colleagues speaking today about that from their deep... live experience courageously. And also for our HIV community to be properly resourced, so we can deliver prevention support, advocacy, and innovation needed to truly get to zero by [01:11:30] 2030, we can be the first in the world to get there. What a massive opportunity and challenge. So these aren't abstract ideas. They're practical and they're urgent, and they're essential elements of building an effective HIV response in Aotearoa. So today is World AIDS Day. So it's time to honour the mana and the mahi of those whose lives have been touched by HIV. And to take pride in who we are as a sector. That we're resilient, we're visionary, [01:12:00] and we're deeply committed to ending this. We've made extraordinary progress and we've heard about some of that earlier today, um, from, from colleagues who've spoken before me. And our numbers are now at historic lows, and it's fantastic to acknowledge some of our, um, amazing academics in the room, Peter and Sue and others, who absolutely provide that continued insight, um, based on science and research to inform our work, which is critical. But with this success [01:12:30] comes new challenges. We must now reach hard to reach people across our communities. We now need to connect with people that we've not perhaps traditionally engaged with and using our channels that don't always look like public health. We face the persistent shadow of stigma and shame and cultural barriers. Business as usual won't get us to zero HIV transmission by 2030. So Aotearoa has always been a country of firsts, and [01:13:00] we're proudly so, not out of arrogance, but out of resourcefulness, of fairness, and a quiet confidence that we can do better for all of our people. And this spirit has driven social change, artistic excellence, scientific breakthroughs, and even, yes, rockets. It's in the same spirit of courage and creativity that I'm pleased to share today that we're launching the Burnett Challenge, Innovation Challenge. Not as the headline of today, but as one [01:13:30] contribution to the collective effort of what we are all making and creating. And I want to particularly acknowledge my dear friend and colleague, Tu Te Hou, who's been leading this work for us today. So our Innovation Challenge... Seeks to be a catalyst for ethical innovation in one of the most complex areas of public health where biology meets behavior and technology meets identity and privacy meets stigma. So our innovation [01:14:00] challenge seeks to harness AI and digital technologies as enablers to change and strengthen provision and well -being for people living with or at risk of HIV. And through this challenge we want to seed ideas and encourage experimentation by inviting start -ups and entrepreneurs and innovators and community organisations to develop new solutions to get us to zero transmission and to address stigma and build equity. [01:14:30] Um, We're pleased to be funding this alongside our partners, um, Perpetual Guardian Foundation, who can't be here today, but great to see a combination of community funding alongside, um, philanthropy, which the Minister touched on earlier as well. So this is our humble contribution to the powerful mahi that's already being led across the sector and for the benefit of our communities and the HIV response in Aotearoa. We're not only supporting innovation in health, we're helping to build an innovation [01:15:00] ecosystem grounded in community and culture and creativity. And as we gather on World AIDS Day, we stand not at the end of a story, but at the threshold of a new chapter. One shaped by courage, collaboration, and unshakeable belief of what's possible. The road ahead will demand persistence, but we've heard amazing deep personal stories about that persistence over many, many years. So we will continue to persist, [01:15:30] and we will build this with imagination and humility. It will require us to listen deeply, which Millie has spoken to very eloquently, and to reach boldly and build trust where stigma has lived for far too long. And I've got absolute confidence in our collective strengths to do this. Because hope isn't something we passively hold, it's something we practice. It lives in every researcher who refuses to give up, every community leader [01:16:00] who speaks their truth, every whānau who shows compassion, and every person living with HIV whose resilience lights the way. So, if we commit to that hope and pair it with action, then zero locally acquired HIV is possible. By 2030 is not a dream, it's our destination. A future where our tamariki inherit a country free of HIV stigma, and free from HIV transmission, and full of dignity for all. [01:16:30] So let us walk forward together, and determination, with determination in our stride, and optimism in our hearts, knowing that Aotearoa has never shied away from hard challenges, and we won't start now. So Burnett Foundation will continue to work with integrity, with innovation, and with hope. And together as a sector, as communities, and as partners, we will get to zero by 2030. So kia ora anō tātou i [01:17:00] runga i tēnei kaupapa whakahirahira. I te tatoko, i te aroha, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa. Tēnā koe. Thank you, Liz. Innovation is the future. Um, and while we have no cure for HIV, that's what we need [01:17:30] to work towards, ending stigma, ensuring all people living with HIV live with full quality lives, and we end transmission. Thank you Hara. Kia ora whanau. Hinoi tātou, kia tau, kia tātou katoa. Te ata whae o tātou ariki, a iu karate, me te aroha o te atua, me te whiwhingatahitanga ki te wairua tapu. Ake, ake, ake, amen. So thank [01:18:00] you, you're invited to stay, meet, mingle. Take a look at the quilts if you have a chance. Um, because that is the first time it's out of Te Papa. So take advantage of that. And enjoy it. Thank you for attending.
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## START KEYWORDS
1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s, AIDS, Aotearoa New Zealand, Atua, Auckland, Audrey Sorenson, Australia, Ayesha Verrall, Banquet Hall, Body Positive, Bruce Burnett, Burnett Foundation Aotearoa, Burnett Foundation Aotearoa Innovation Challenge, COVID-19 (coronavirus), Christchurch, Coming Up, Dunedin, Eve van Grafhorst, Fiji, Gandhi, Glen Bennett, God, Government House, Green Party, HIV / AIDS, HIV Action plan (2022-2032), HIV Monitoring Report, HIV education, HIV stigma, HIV testing and prevention, HIV transmission, Hansard, Heta Timu, Homosexual Law Reform, Ika, Istanbul, Jane Bruning, Job, Judith Mukakayange, Lawrence Xu-Nan, Liz Gibbs, London, Manatū Hauora Ministry of Health, Mark Fisher, Matt Doocey, Melbourne, Member of Parliament, Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund, Michael Stevens, Milly Stewart, NZPC: Aotearoa New Zealand Sex Workers' Collective, Nate, New York City, New Zealand AIDS Foundation (NZAF), New Zealand AIDS Memorial Quilt, New Zealand Needle Exchange Programme, Parihaka, People, Peter Saxton, Ponsonby, Positive Women Inc, Rainbow Tick, Rodrigo Olin German, STD, STI, San Francisco, Tangi Utikere, Te Reo Māori, Tino Rangatiratanga, Toitū te Ao, Tonga, Tuberculosis, Turkey, Tāwhanga Nopera, Undetectable = Untransmittable (U=U -  campaign), United Kingdom, Waitangi, Wellington, World AIDS Day, World AIDS Day Parliamentary Breakfast, academics, access, action plan, activism, advocacy, advocate, allies, aroha, artist, audience, barriers, bear, belief, bigotry, bisexual, blood, board, breast feeding, budget, building, camp, career, change, children, class, collaboration, collective, combination prevention, community, community response, community support, compassion, concentration camp, condoms, confidence, connect, conversation, counselling, courage, courageous, creativity, culture, data, death, dementia, denial, difference, dignity, disclosure, discrimination, diversity, dream, drugs, earthquake, education, employment, empowerment, energy, epidemic, epidemiology, face, facilitator, family, fear, film, fire, frameworks, friends, funding, fundraising, funeral, future, gay, gloves, gonorrhea, government, grave, guilt, gym, hair, hate, health, health care, health education, health funding, hell, heterosexual, history, home birth, homosexual, homosexual law reform, honour, hope, hospital, housing, humanity, ia, identity, imagination, inclusion, injection drug user (IDU), integrity, intervention, iwi, judgement, justice, kai, karanga, karate, kaupapa, knowledge, korero, ladies, language, law, leadership, legacy, liberation, listening, lived experience, love, mahi, mana, mana whenua, manaakitanga, marae, maui, memory, mental health, middle class, monitor, movement, msm, narrative, news, normal, nursing, opportunity, optimism, organisation, other, outreach, pain, pandemic, parents, partnership, passing, passion, peace, peer support, persistence, plan, policy, power, prejudice, prevention, privacy, programme, public health, punishment, purple, quilt, rainbow, rangatiratanga, reflection, relationships, representation, research, resilience, resistance, rest homes, retirement, safe sex, sailor, science, security, sex, sexual behaviour, sexual health, sexual liberation, shame, slave auction, smoking, social, social change, sodomy, stickers, stigma, study, success, suffering, suit, support, suppression, sustainability, syphilis, tainted, tangi, tapu, tax, technology, testing, tika, time, top, touch, training, treat, trust, truth, tupuna, unconditional love, understanding, undetectable viral load, university, unnatural, victim, violence, voice, wahine, waiata, wairua, walking, website, wellbeing, wellness, whakapapa, whakatauki, whenua, wish, women, work.
## END KEYWORDS

## START REFERENCES
The original recording can be heard at this website https://www.pridenz.com/second_world_aids_day_parliamentary_breakfast_2025.html.
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Generated 2025-12-14T21:24:40+13:00.
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