SYDNEY, Dec 4, 2006 (AFP) - Former US president Bill Clinton has been made an honorary chief of Papua New Guinea during a visit aimed at promoting the fight against AIDS in the disastrously-stricken Pacific nation.
The former leader flew into the capital Port Moresby at the weekend for a fleeting visit during an Asian swing timed to coincide with last week's World AIDS Day, the Australian Associated Press said Monday.
PNG Prime Minister Michael Somare bestowed Clinton with the Grand Companion of the Order of Logohu, which means bird of paradise in PNG's Motu language, for his role in the fights against AIDS.
The award, which entitles Clinton to use the honorary title of chief, recognises his commitment to the global fight against HIV/AIDS and other health challenges in developing countries, Somare said.
"My belief is we can overcome this challenge if we move from denial to embrace," Clinton said at the ceremony at parliament house late Sunday.
He praised PNG leaders for facing up to the challenge of HIV/AIDS and not denying its threat, and emphasised the importance of testing as 90 percent of HIV-positive people in the world did not know they were afflicted.
The deadly disease remained an unsolved viral illness but is 100 percent preventable and 100 percent treatable, the ex-president said.
Clinton's foundation has helped ensure lower prices for anti-retroviral drugs to treat aids globally.
A United Nations report released in the run-up to World AIDS Day on December 1 said PNG is facing an AIDS catastrophe and accounts for 90 percent of HIV infections in the Oceania region.
HIV diagnoses in the impoverished country have risen by around 30 percent a year since 1997, leaving an estimated 60,000 people living with the disease in 2005.
Before leaving the country Sunday after a 20-hour visit, Clinton said the prevalence of the disease in PNG was still reasonably low but the trends were alarming.
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