assisting israel's diplomatic situation

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Assisting Israel's Diplomatic Situation

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It is said that if women ruled the world, numerous problems would be solved. In the shadow of recent events surrounding the flotilla to Gaza, a Rambam doctor set out for a preparatory meeting to the international G8 Summit to speak about AIDS from a woman’s point of view. The result: greater understanding of Israel and discussion on Israeli assistance to Pakistan

In the shadow of Israel’s recent diplomatic crises, Dr. Margalit Lorber, director of Rambam’s Unit of Clinical Immunology was sent by the Israeli Foreign Ministry to Ottawa, Canada, to a pre-G8 Summit meeting, where she delivered the opening speech on “The Feminization of HIV/AIDS - the Sharp Rise in Women Infected: Explanations and Questions”.

Dr. Lorber was invited to this gathering to present Rambam’s rich experience in treating HIV and AIDS, and its activities related to AIDS education and prevention around the world. For several years Rambam has held courses in HIV medicine for teams of doctors in cooperation with the Foreign Ministry and UNAIDS.

In addition to delivering her important speech, Dr. Lorber took advantage of the political arena by making diplomatic and work connections with different figures, including Canadian Member of Parliament (MK) Mobina Jaffer, who discussed with her the possibility of building a program for training nurses on subjects of AIDS; MK and member of the National Council for Health

Dr. Caroline Bennett, with whom she spoke of the global activities of Rambam, the Technion and the Israeli Foreign Ministry. MK Dr. Keath Martin expressed interest in Israel’s contribution to international activities, and expressed desire to visit Israel to investigate possibilities for cooperation. Chairman of the Interparliamentary Committee for Israel-Canada relations,
Dr. James Lunney spoke of his great respect and support for Israel. Dr. Lorber also spoke with Dr. Massouda Jalal, a former candidate for the presidency of Pakistan who serves as minister for the advancement of women in the Pakistani government, and who received a UN award in 2010 for her work on behalf of women in Pakistan. Dr. Jalal expressed to Dr. Lorber her readiness to cooperate with Israel on different subjects.

Despite the conference’s upbeat atmosphere, Middle East politics entered the Canadian Parliament. During Dr. Lorber’s speech, the Turkish delegation left the room in protest.
“Despite these disturbing incidents, the conference was positive,” says Dr. Lorber. “Most participants did not deal with a political agenda, but with medicine. Rambam’s and Israel’s activities were received with enthusiasm. The governmental members encouraging responses warmed my heart.”