Canadians care about global AIDS issues: survey

Canadians show more compassiontoward people affectedaround the globeby AIDS and HIV than those in six other G8 countries, a new survey released on Thursday suggests.

"What matters most is our humanity," said Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty at the Toronto release of World Vision's Global AIDS Attitudes Survey. "We come to pledge our part in the battle against AIDS, to do what needs to be done."

McGuinty's comments also kicked offa 24-hour global event to boost awareness about children who have been affected by AIDS.World AIDS Day is this Saturday.

The World Vision survey finds that Canada has the highest level of empathy for people affected by AIDS worldwide, followed by France, Germany, the U.S., Italy, the U.K. and Japan. The survey was conducted by Ipsos Reid in September 2007 and included the responses of 3,558 adults.

"The results were somewhat surprising in the revelation about public concern about HIV and AIDS globally and the strong desire for action," Dr. Glenys Babcock, vice-president if Ipsos Reid Public Affairs, said Thursday during the release of the findings.

Canadians also ranked well on their knowledge of the global AIDS issue. Seventy-one per cent reported that they have "some" or "a lot" of knowledge about it.

"One in four of us here in Canada feel that we know a lot about AIDS and HIV around the world. The more people know about HIV and AIDS globally, the more concerned they are, the more empathy they have," said Babcock.

And 90 per cent of Canadian respondents also indicated they feel they have a personal and moral obligation to try to do something to prevent more individuals from becoming infected with the virus even if that's not possible.

Seventy-three per cent of those surveyed also want the federal government to do more for children who lose parents to AIDS and AIDS-related illnesses around the world.

Other findings include:

• 91 per cent of Canadians surveyed believe that HIV and AIDS education programs should be a high or moderate priority for the government of Canada in slowing the spread of the disease worldwide
• 88 per cent feel condom programs should be high or moderate government priorities
• 88 per cent feel that increased funding for prevention and treatment programs should be high or moderate government priorities.
• 52 per cent feel frustrated, angry or disappointedabout the G8's progress on the AIDS issue.
• 43 per cent of women versus 31 per cent of men from all countries surveyed say they are very concerned about AIDS and HIV globally.
• Eightper cent of all survey respondents feel their governments should do more to help children orphaned by AIDS.

The overall results of the survey are considered accurate to within 1.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.