Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2009. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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Washington Blade - January 23, 2009
Lou Chibbaro Jr.
The development comes just a week after Dybul, whose position holds the status of an ambassador, reportedly was asked to rescind his resignation and stay in his job. Dybul was appointed by former President George W. Bush.
Two sources familiar with the U.S. Global AIDS Office said Obama's senior advisors were concerned about the negative reaction from some AIDS activists and reproductive rights groups to news that Dybul was keeping his job.
"What I can say is that Ambassador Mark Dybul has been asked to submit his resignation as U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and he is no longer serving in that role," said State Department spokesperson Amanda Harper.
Asked if she knew why Obama decided to replace Dybul after reportedly asking him to stay, Harper said, "I can't give any insight into the background. All I can say is that he has been asked to submit his resignation and that he's no loner in the role."
The office is an arm of the State Department. News of the Obama administration's decision to replace Dybul came one day after the Senate confirmed former Sen. Hilary Clinton (D-N.Y.) as the new Secretary of State.
In his role as Global AIDS Coordinator, Dybul, a physician specializing in HIV medicine, was in charge of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, a multi-billion dollar program to fight AIDS in developing countries in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. The program enjoys widespread bipartisan support and is considered one of Bush's most successful initiatives.
As the Blade reported last week, a number of AIDS and reproductive rights groups have urged Obama to replace Dybul with someone the groups see as more likely to change the Bush administration's insistence that at least some international AIDS relief funds be linked to abstinence-only programs.
Among the groups that called on Obama to replace Dybul as AIDS coordinator were the International Women's Health Coalition and the Sexuality Information & Education Council of the United States, which advocates, among other things, for gay-sensitive sex education programs.
News of Obama's initial decision to retain Dybul surfaced when Dybul sent an e-mail to his staff saying he was asked to withdraw his resignation and to stay on for an undetermined period of time. The Washington Post published a copy of the e-mail.
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