A luta pela saúde é a luta por um mundo mais equitativo, justo e solidário: Declaração da Quarta Assembleia Mundial da Saúde dos Povos - ASP 4 Savar, Bangladesh, 15 a 19 de novembro de 2018

Abstract

After months of mobilisation through national and regional assemblies we, over 1400 health activists from 73 countries across all regions, met in Savar, Bangladesh, six years after the assembly in Cape Town, to reaffirm our commitment to the struggle for health, which-in the words of Amit Sengupta-we see as the struggle for a more equitable, just and caring world. The vision provided in the People's Charter for Health (2000) 1 and the Cuenca Declaration (2005) is more relevant than ever before, as unfortunately the root causes of ill health and inequality persist and are yet to be reversed. These root causes are deeply embedded in patriarchy, caste-ism, racism, religious fundamentalism, able-ism, transphobia and hetero-normativity and reinforced by the current paradigm of development, which is characterised by individualism, anthropocentrism and neoliberal capitalism. Communities the world over are increasingly losing their access to land, water and livelihoods on the one hand, while facing heightened militarisation, violence and repression on the other. This paradigm has significantly boosted the clout of the transnational corporations, leading to an enormous inflation in private profit and creation of a class of transnational executives and shareholders whose wealth and power are direct threats to equity, justice and the health of the planet. The controlling interests of corporate capitalism are systematically eroding the sovereignty of our governments thereby conceding the rights and privileges of the people to interests of profit. Corporations are indulging in rampant destruction of ecosystems and biodiversity, generating enormous volumes of toxic waste, while endangering cultural identities, diversity and ways of living. The complexities of emerging and chronic conflicts, migration, climate change, threat to privacy-to name a few-are presenting new challenges every day. All of this, aided by unjust global and national economic and trade policies, is promoting an unsustainable and inequitable development paradigm and creating a complex canvas of determinants that is seriously impeding the realisation of health for all.