A/HRC/37/74 medicines were significant problems. The health sector was one of the most corrupt in the country, which undermined the credibility of the data it produced and the quality of treatment provided. The fight against corruption, underfunding, and the lack of political will and commitment were cumulative challenges that needed to be faced in order to fight diseases effectively. Since the capacity of Governments in the global South was low, NGOs should lead the fight against discrimination and efforts to combat tuberculosis and HIV in a cost-effective manner. NGOs in Mongolia had succeeded in reducing the cost and improving the quality of drugs. He welcomed the partnerships WHO and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria had set up with local communities to identify and remedy discriminatory practices against children with tuberculosis. 23. During the interactive dialogue, representatives of Panama, Ukraine, the Domino Foundation and the International Federation of Anti-Leprosy Associations took the floor. The issues they raised included violations of the right to health of people who used drugs, minorities and persons living with HIV in Crimea; the need to access high-quality health services for all persons; the close link between mental health, HIV and treatment adherence patterns; the specific needs of specific groups; discrimination against people affected by neglected tropical diseases, including leprosy; and the importance of not leaving behind indigenous peoples and people living in rural communities. D. Role of civil society in the context of epidemics 24. The Executive Director of the Global Network of People living with HIV, Laurel Sprague, said that people living with HIV lived at the intersection of a health condition and social prejudice. They had created the principle of Greater Involvement of People Living with or Affected by HIV/AIDS, which had resulted in their increased representation in various policymaking bodies at all levels. Ending AIDS required a real right to health; the right to non-discriminatory employment and education for people living with HIV; putting a stop to gender-based violence, discriminatory gender norms and laws, arbitrary arrests based on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender identity, drug use, sex work or HIV status; and addressing poverty and the other social determinants of health that made some people and communities more vulnerable to HIV than others. Ending AIDS without ending prejudices and social hierarchies would be a failure. 25. The Strategic Initiatives Advisor to the Board of African Men for Sexual Health and Rights, Kene Esom, recommended breaking the silos that continued to divide human rights and public health work both in national ministries and in international organizations. Funding for community work on health was either for public health interventions or human rights interventions, which restricted the allocation of funds to one area or the other. However, the distinction between them was blurred in the case of many organizations that supported marginalized groups affected by communicable diseases. Other challenges included the shrinking of civil society space through reprisals or restrictive NGO regulations, and the denial of due process. Health-care workers often did not know about the work of the Human Rights Council to prevent and prohibit reprisals, and did not therefore benefit from it. Stigma, discrimination and persecution also impeded the delivery of quality health services that left no one behind. 26. The Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Centre for Reproductive Rights in Colombia, Catalina Martínez Coral, described how the 2016 Zika outbreak in Latin America had disproportionately affected pregnant women due to the increase in the number of abortions and of babies born with microcephaly. Many countries had ignored reproductive rights and reacted by recommending the postponement of pregnancy. That recommendation was unworkable in a region where 55 per cent of pregnancies were unplanned, the availability of contraception was limited and sexual violence was widespread. The region also had legislation criminalizing with harsh sentences most if not all cases of abortion. She recommended that States recognize women’s rights to make an informed decision about their bodies and family planning, provide access to contraception and safe abortions, update health workers in rural areas about the virus and provide good quality free maternal health services. She recommended 8