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COMPASSION RESPONSE NETWORK CIRCULAR NO 12
By David Keane, 4/February/2003
PO Box 582, Gosnells WA 6110, Australia
Email address: keane@nw.com.au
Healing site address: http://www.nw.com.au/~keane/healing/
Compassion Response Network Officially Registered as a Public Company
Right at the turn of the new year, we received a letter from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), which is the official body for registering the incorporation of companies in Australia. The letter read;
"Certificate of Registration of a Company
This is to certify that COMPASSION RESPONSE NETWORK
Australian Company Number 103 240 071
Is a registered company under the Corporations Act 2001
and is taken to be registered in Western Australia.
The company is limited by guarantee.
The company is a public company.
The day of commencement of registration is the twenty-third
day of December 2002."
Together with the official letter of incorporation, we were advised that, because we satisfy the requirements for a charitable non-profit organisation, Compassion Response Network "may become registered as a company with limited liability without the addition of the word "Limited" in its name".
This was the rewarding end result of a year's strenuous effort by our group, to formulate our vision, mission statement and main aim, develop our project guidelines, research the legalities of incorporation as an Australian company, draft with minimal legal background a technically complicated constitution, debate the various articles within that constitution, and apply and then reapply to ASIC for official incorporation.
This vital act of incorporation is a watershed experience, and it now opens up the opportunity for our long developed vision to become actualised and manifested during the year 2003. Our Inner Planning Circle has now stepped into top gear in working through the host of remaining tasks that need to be tidied up before Compassion Response Network can officially launch its global public appeal and commence its trials for treatment and blood testing of AIDS patients in Kinshasa and Harare.
David Keane, formerly the acting-secretary, has now been elected as official secretary. We have opened a registered office at 29B Percy St, Gosnells 6110 Western Australia. The office will be open for three hours every business day, Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 9am to noon and Tuesday and Thursday from 2pm to 5pm. As required under the Corporations Act, there is proudly displayed a notice reading "Compassion Response Network, registered office" at the front door of the office.
Postal address is Compassion Response Network, PO Box 582, Gosnells 6110, Australia.
Email address: keane@nw.com.au
Compassion Response Network is now a legal entity with its own rights and responsibilities, able to open a bank account and enter into contracts.
Our Inner Planning Circle immediately entered into top gear to debate our new rights and responsibilities, and accounting and banking policies. We are very conscious that as a global charitable organisation, we must seek to be as open and accountable as is possible. We will aim for the very highest of accounting standards. We have submitted to the auditor and received back the auditor's report, for the financial year 2001-2002. We have now lodged an application with the State Government Department of Fair Trading to become registered as a charitable organisation.
During February we are negotiating the complex task of opening a bank account with Bendigo Bank in Gosnells. Bendigo Bank is a people's bank, begun as a reaction to the commercial extravagance of the big banks. Bendigo Bank has a policy of people's participation, customer service and ethical investment. We will be exploring the avenues available for international receipt of donations, without having to pay exorbitant international transfer fees. We want to make things as easy as possible for donors. Internet banking and merchant facilities (to accept credit card donations) will be explored. We will be applying to the Australian Tax Department for tax exemption status.
Our Inner Planning Circle has worked out the general policy and guidelines for the Kinshasa and Harare projects for treatment, blood testing and comparative assessment of AIDS patients. Details will be shared later in this circular. We now need to fine-tune the budget costings for the overall projects, complete the construction of our Compassion Response Network website which will provide much information, and plan the public launch of our global appeal.
If everything goes to plan, we will be launching our public appeal in March, and the trials will be commencing in April, and will be completed before the end of the year 2003. It will be a very tight schedule, but our team of volunteers is deeply committed and we are prepared to meet any challenges directly. The need is so urgent and acute.
Guidelines for the Kinshasa and Harare Projects
Our Inner Planning Circle has now decided the major policy decisions for conducting the treatment, blood-testing and comparative assessment trials in Kinshasa and Harare. Our Inner Planning Circle still needs during February to debate the fine detail for our budget targets, but the broad guidelines for the projects have been worked out.
Alternative Treatments
We have over the past 6 months negotiated 8 alternative treatments for advanced AIDS. The criteria we required in selection, were that the treatments were simple, safe, and reputedly effective in the treatment of AIDS. As regards any claims for curative value of any of these treatments, we make no claims ourselves and remain detached from any expectations. Our task is to network and facilitate the conditions necessary to conduct treatment under close medical supervision, and quality blood sampling and laboratory testing to the highest scientific/medical standards.
Some of the treatments have been generously donated to us. Others, Compassion Response Network has sponsored the minimal costs involved. The treatment will be absolutely free to all advanced AIDS patients involved. It will remain our goal that as our projects expand from year to year, the treatment to the patient will remain free. There have been many claims that there do indeed exist several alternative treatments that are simple, safe and effective in either easing the illness or completely curing the patients of AIDS. Whether claims for complete cure are justified we shall have to wait and see. It is simply our task to provide the treatment, facilitate 2-monthly comprehensive blood testing, and openly and immediately publish the results, through our website that will be available before our global launch (probably in March) and so open to the public. We will also be updating the results in our CRN circulars. Anyone wanting to be placed on our CRN circular distribution list, please email us on <keane@nw.com.au> and let us know of your interest in receiving the circulars.
The eight treatments selected are;
The last two of these treatments, glyco-nutritionals and Sutherlandia herb are still in the process of negotiation, though we are confident of having them by the time the trials begin.
You will all doubtless be curious to know more about these treatments. We are in process of updating heaps of information about all these treatments that should be available over our new website by the time we launch our public appeal.
Selection of Patients for Harare
Originally, we had planned to treat 18 advanced AIDS patients in Harare involving six treatments, but that has now increased to 36 advanced AIDS patients in Harare involving eight treatments. Of these 36 patients, 24 will be specially selected to have full blood testing. Of the specially selected 24, three will be provided for each of the eight treatments.
Full blood testing is one of our most expensive areas of costs, and so we must reduce costs here as much as possible. One way to reduce costs is to take twelve of the 24 patients selected for full blood testing from that minority of patients who have the benefit of medical aid, through which some medical tests can be paid for. Twelve of the patients specially selected for full blood testing will not be on medical aid, and although testing these will be more expensive, we feel we cannot strongly discriminate against them because they are not so fortunate as to be on medical aid.
We will have funds only to provide 24 patients in Harare with full blood testing and so these 24 will have their results openly published (their names will remain confidential and each patient will be identified by a reference code). We have found such a demand for treatment, that we have agreed to provide treatment for 12 more patients in Harare. As with all patients we will provide one nutritious meal daily plus ferrous sulphate and folic acid supplementation, but we will not be sponsoring blood testing for them.
Selection of Patients for Kinshasa
Originally we had planned to treat 6 patients in Kinshasa, two receiving one of three treatments (zapper + colloidal silver, Beck treatment, and Imusil). We increased the number to seven with three AIDS patients receiving Imusil.
The seventh patient in Kinshasa, who will be receiving Imusil, is a young boy named Serge (this is not his real name, but a pseudonym we provided for him in an AIDS treatment project in Kinshasa in the year 2001, treating three patients with zapper + colloidal silver). We then had limited finances and so could not continue treatment and blood testing beyond a month. Though all three patients had great improvement in health during the month of treatment, since the treatment ended, two of the three patients have passed away. They had a far better quality of life in their final months than would have been the case without the treatment.
Young Serge had contracted HIV infection through blood infusion, and at the time of the month's treatment his health was declining rapidly. Since then his health has improved greatly and his appetite has returned. Recent reports are that he "goes well". We provided 30 ferrous sulphate tablets for him to balance low iron, and have regularly provided him with colloidal silver which he takes daily to keep away infections. His blood remains HIV infected however, and we are committed to continue helping him.
Blood Tests
All 7 patients in Kinshasa and the 24 in Harare selected for blood tests will be treated over 6 months.
The seven patients in Kinshasa will have a blood sample taken pre-treatment, and at the 2-months, 4-months and 6-months stages of treatments. There are no viral load and immunity laboratory testing facilities in Kinshasa, so these samples will be sent every 2 months by private courier to a laboratory in South Africa for
The 24 patients in Harare selected for full blood tests will be provided with the same 2-monthly blood tests, only the testing will be conducted at a local laboratory in Harare.
If on return of the 4-months viral load test a blood sample shows completely clear of active HIV, and the CD4 count and full blood count are normal, then we would stop the daily treatment for that patient, though we would still provide the full 6-monthly blood tests. Food and ferrous sulphate + folic acid support would continue as already planned.
For all 7 patients in Kinshasa and the selected 24 in Harare, we will be conducting other tests before treatment and at the conclusion of the 6-months of treatment. These tests will include;
creatinine test for renal function,
ferritin test
urea test,
hepatitis test (either transamine test + the direct and indirect biturtine
test, or liver function test and B12 levels test).
Eight patients in Harare (one for each of the eight treatments) will be provided with viral load tests for biopsy samples from bone marrow tissue, before and after the 6 months of treatment. Even though some treatments may clear HIV infection from the blood, a question remains whether HIV has been eliminated from deeper body tissues such as bone marrow. If it is not cleared from the bone marrow, then as soon as some of these cells burst they will re-infect the blood stream. This test, though expensive, is vital to confirm whether a treatment is comprehensively healing throughout the body.
Medical assessment
All 7 patients in Kinshasa and 36 patients in Harare will receive regular comprehensive medical checkups with reports taken.
In response to a theory that there exist 5 distinct etiologies (causation of disease) for AIDS, we are requesting that doctors classify the AIDS patients into 5 easily identifiable categories;
p.carinii pneumonia
Patterns of development and response for each of these etiologies can then be assessed and compared.
Treatment Houses
It will be vital that in both Kinshasa and in the high density living areas of Harare, we set up treatment houses. We will need to pay lease fees and rental for 7 months in Kinshasa and 8 months in Harare. The extra month in Harare is to permit a month to stagger the date of commencement of the treatments for all the patients. At these houses we will hire carers to provide the treatments and cooks to provide one daily nutritious meal for each patient. There will be facilities for regular lodging of some patients who are particularly ill or have serious transport difficulties.
It is planned to have daily contact between patient and carer, during which time the patient is provided with a nutritious meal.
Food and Transport
In Kinshasa there is high unemployment, and most wages are low. There is no medical aid coverage in Kinshasa. Often, when a patient contracts AIDS, he or she is too ill to continue working, and so unless there is strong family support the patient is at risk of dying of hunger as much as from AIDS. There is a concern that half way through the treatment, when the patient has only half recovered, the patient will be forced to leave the program to find work, simply through the need to feed himself.
Our Inner Planning Circle has therefore agreed upon a policy of providing one nutritious meal daily to every patient on our projects, throughout the duration of the six months of treatment.
In Harare also there is massive unemployment, but also the country is on the verge of famine. Many basic foods are not available. Maize meal, which is the staple food in Zimbabwe, has been unavailable for 6 months. Many other foods are now no longer available, such as red meats, salt, sugar, fresh milk, and the list goes on. Prices especially for food are escalating day by day. It is going to be an enormous challenge to find a way of delivering basic food.
Transport will also be a basic issue, both for patients and carers and doctors. Many patients live far from the treatment centre, and some are too ill to walk far. In Harare, there have been acute petrol shortages for several months. It will be vital to facilitate or cover various transport costs.
Miscellaneous Costs
We are planning to hire one carer/cook in Kinshasa (US$50 a month) and 5 semi-skilled workers (2 cooks, 2 carers, general assistant -- US$30 to US$40 a month) in Harare.
The PNI office in Harare has been under-funded for over a year, and PNI Empowerment Trust itself may not survive much longer under the extremely harsh economic conditions. The PNI office was doing such extraordinary positive work in outreach and support for the general AIDS community. It is vital that this valuable work continue, and so we plan to sponsor the maintaining and upkeep of the office, and the hiring of a girl Friday (US$300 a month) during the 8 months of the Harare treatments. Geraldene had formerly been doing such valuable field work among the AIDS infected people, but recently she has been forced to focus upon office duties to the detriment of the field work. Her health and particularly her eyesight have suffered seriously and we need desperately to provide her with secretarial support, or the whole project may collapse.
There are various other costs to consider; phone, photos, some basic second-hand furniture, ferrous sulphate and folic acid supplements, medical items such as sample kits, sundry expenses for upkeep of treatment houses, electricity and water, printing, hire of nurses for 3 days of supervision for Imusil treatment, incidental expenses.
We will require a further month to conclude the fine details for our appeals budget. This budget will be published on our website before the public launch.
At this stage we will probably be looking at a total appeal to raise from US$50,000 to US$70,000 during the year 2003. The treatments themselves are free. Most of this cost will relate to costs for blood testing, wages for support staff (all our directors and administrators are voluntary and receive no financial benefit), rental for accommodation, food and such.
A Vision for the Future
With our providing a daily nutritious meal for the selected patients, there is a concern that some patients may develop dependence upon being so supported. For once they are healthy and fit to work, there are no jobs. Unemployment particularly in Harare is at all time record levels. How do we get our patients out of this cycle of dependence?
We must involve the patients themselves in the planning process. In 2002 the AIDS patients wanting to go onto our treatment project could only wait patiently. They were for the time outside of the planning process. This will all change when the Kinshasa and Harare projects commence. We will then develop sociocratic circles to integrate the patients into the planning process, along with carers, doctors, volunteers and all who are involved in the projects. We will be inviting everyone involved to participate in the planning process.
Then when the 2-monthly blood test results are back for both Kinshasa and Harare, new opportunities for participation will arise. These results will provide for us the first set of scientific data to determine which treatments would be best for long term development in Africa. In such long term planning we must consider many needs, from cost, safety, prevention of secondary infectious diseases, nutrition, psychological development and empowerment, economic sustainability and development of employment opportunities for formerly AIDS infected patients.
With these results, we will start to attract the interest and participation of AIDS patients not on our initial project, doctors not yet involved in the projects but deeply interested in developing future scientific and compassion projects, and experts from affluent countries who long to contribute to provide effective long term solutions to the vast challenges of AIDS in Africa.
And even though the main testing for 2003 will be done in Harare and Kinshasa, the results of these tests will suggest projects and regional development programs in other countries, including those who do not have ready access to modern laboratory facilities. We will be able to plan long term programs for the Congo and other French speaking nations, and throughout Eastern Africa and to India and China. Once we have a sense of direction of how to develop broader regional projects involving tens of thousands within an entire community or region, with creative responses to all the manifold areas impacted by AIDS, then we will begin to grasp the extent of the opportunities that will be opening up. All of these strands of creative contribution will during the year 2003 be linking and synthesising.
If it is found that some of the treatments lead to a clearance of viral infection and restoration of immunity function, then after the 6-months trial period is over, we will seek to provide all patients who have been on our trials with the more effective treatments. Our aim is then to facilitate the provision of the cheaper and more effective treatments to the broader community.
Last year, 2002, was a year of preparation and planning. This year, 2003, we have the opportunity for dreams long dreamed to emerge and manifest as by magic.
Famine is now impacting in a profound way upon Zimbabwe, to add to the already political/economic instability. There will inevitably be profound food and petrol shortages, plus shortages with an ever increasing list of commodities, throughout 2003.
We must not waver at the intense difficulties before us. These very difficulties must awaken within us an ever greater commitment and sense of compassion.
David Keane,
Secretary, Compassion Response Network