Ambassador Speeches

Remarks by Ambassador Martinez at the Maina Soko Hospital Visit

Lusaka
May 17, 2006

Thank you for the warm welcome you have extended to me here at Maina Soko Hospital, the flagship of the Zambian Defense Force Medical Service. It is an honor for me to be here with you today.

This hospital represents the best attributes of co-operation between our two nations; military assisting military to beat back an enemy – HIV/AIDS – that is attacking and has killed too many Zambians. I am proud of the efforts both of our defense establishments have made to work together in this cause.

Some of these efforts include training and workshops, held both here and in the United States; the advancement of prevention programs; the increase of knowledge and information sharing through the establishing of a Learning Resource Center, and the building of a VCT center here at this site.

The Maina Soko hospital is the central medical facility for the military and their families, and indeed for members of the civilian community as well. And it is now equipped with state-of-the-art laboratory equipment such as light and fluorescent microscopes, certified biosafety cabinets, laminar flow cabinets, centrifuges and other items to support TB reference laboratory activities for the Defense Force.

I am pleased that the Zambian and the American people, and our respective defense forces, are working together to defeat this most insidious foe. To all the doctors, nurses and medical support personnel present, you have my thanks and admiration for the good work you do everyday on the front lines of this fight. And although there is still a long way to go before we can declare victory, I can foresee a day in the not-so-distant future when the tide will turn against HIV and AIDS.

Once again, thank you for your kind welcome.