"We cannot turn a deaf ear to the call of life, and we must not be slow in reaching out. We should redouble our effort to advance the global campaign against HIV/AIDS and ensure that the related MDG be met on schedule," Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Wednesday at a UN panel on anti-AIDS efforts.

At the UN headquarters, Wen expressed China's determination on HIV/AIDS prevention and control and called on countries worldwide to work together to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). He also shared his personal experiences with officials and experts of the UN and world countries attending the AIDS plus MDGs discussion panel.

As the premier shared his experiences, he suggested that the disease equaled a death penalty for HIV/AIDS patients. The bitter expression in the eyes and faces of the patients and the desperation of broken families -- all the suffering of those people affected by HIV/AIDS -- profoundly moved the Chinese premier time and time again.

Despite shouldering a heavy daily work load and a busy agenda since taking office more than seven years ago, the Chinese premier has not forgotten the suffering of HIV/AIDS patients and their families.

Wen often visits the patients, makes friends, listens to them and encourages them to have faith to live -- all this interaction helps the premier better understand the real feelings of the patients, who often call Wen "a volunteer" and close friend.

More than 300 representatives across the world, who were wearing red ribbons, the global symbol of the fight against AIDS, listened intently to the heartfelt words of the Chinese premier.

"Each time I visit a groaning AIDS patient or an elderly person or child whose loved ones were killed by the disease, each time I walk into their homes and hold their hands in mine, I feel deep in my heart a strong sense of responsibility, a belief that the government needs to do more on their behalf," Wen said.

Love and duty to life are the common language of mankind. Wen's words touched the participants of the meeting deeply.

Motivated by love, the Chinese premier frequently visited AIDS patients in hospitals and China's Henan and Anhui provinces, and made friends with them.

Motivated by love, the Chinese premier invited 15 AIDS-affected children to Zhongnanhai, the Chinese leadership's Beijing compound, in December 2006.

Motivated by love, the Chinese premier visited a hospital in Uganda and shook hands with African AIDS patients. He still remembers what Uganda advocates: "We are fighting AIDS, not AIDS patients."

Motivated by love, the Chinese government has taken active measures. An HIV/AIDS prevention and control committee was set up in 2004. Over the years, the mid- and long-term program on HIV/AIDS prevention and control and two five-year action plans have been formulated. Regulations on HIV/AIDS prevention and control were promulgated in 2006.

Funds allocated by the central government to HIV/AIDS prevention and control have jumped to 1.6 billion yuan (some US$239 million) this year from some 100 million yuan (some US$15 million) in 2001.

The fast spread of HIV/AIDS in China has been basically brought under control. The mortality rate has been significantly lowered, and the livelihood of infected persons and patients has markedly improved.

Motivated by love, the Chinese premier made a strong call here to further enhance international cooperation on HIV/AIDS prevention and control, and promised that China would donate US$14 million to the Global Fund in the next three years.

"Love helps ease the pain of AIDS sufferers, although no permanent cure for AIDS has been found yet," Wen said.

The Chinese premier still remembers the people he met and the words they said.

"Here, I cannot help thinking of the kids that I invited to Zhongnanhai three years ago. Among them was a 12-year-old boy from Fuyang city of Anhui province," Wen said.

"He lost both parents to AIDS, and his aged grandmother was the only person he could turn to in the family," Wen continued.

"When I asked him what he wanted to say to me, he said, 'I want to be a doctor when I grow up. I want to build a world that no longer has HIV/AIDS, a world where no kid will lose his parents to AIDS,'" Wen recalled.

"Those were but simple words from an innocent child, yet they spoke to the best of humanity. They were the call of life, the call of conscience and the call of hope," Wen said.

The Chinese premier expressed his hope that "there will come a day when we will defeat HIV/AIDS and see on the faces of unfortunate victims smiles of hope, not tears of despair."

"Let us work even harder for the early arrival of that day," Wen said. The concluding words of his speech were warmly applauded by the participants of the meeting.

After Wen's speech, 11-year-old Ebube Taylor, a Nigerian girl, told her own story.

Taylor said her mother was infected with AIDS. Fortunately, the mother took drugs at an early stage of the disease and thus didn't infect her daughter.

"Otherwise, I cannot go to school if I was infected with the disease when I was born," the girl said.

"I'm so lucky. But how many children are as lucky as me?" she asked, expressing the hope that no child would become an AIDS carrier and succumb to the disease.

The girl's mother was also present at the meeting. She received warm applause when she was introduced to the representatives at the meeting.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who also introduced his country's experiences and practices, praised China's achievements on AIDS prevention and control.

When Wen left the meeting room, there was another round of applause for his powerful speech.

Assistant Director-General of UNESCO's Africa Department, Lalla Aicha Ben Barka, said China is a big country with a big population and has taken various measures to prevent HIV/AIDS, including HIV/AIDS education, which was important for school-aged children.

"China's strong commitment and leadership, the right strategy and process and the sufficient resources behind the strategy are the most important for the fight against HIV/AIDS," she said.

(Xinhua News Agency September 23, 2010)