Support from Italy!

From Ines Fernandez, convenor, Save Babies Coalition, and Executive Director, Arugaan (NGO):


We have just learned that MAMI (Movimento Allattamento Materno Italiano), the Italian WABA association, and AICPAM (Associazione Italiana Consulenti Professionali prl'Allattamento Materno), the Italian Lactation Consultants Association, have agreed to express their support to our struggle against the milk companies.

We are not afraid of them. We continue to stage people's action in many creative ways despite the media block. We got only minimal press coverage even though we have attractive visual media impact. In fact almost all the media photographers and field reporters were present in our staged public events such as the 1000 slogans painted in umbrellas by 1000 breastfeeding defenders, intergenerational plea by 18 parents and 9 children marching in front of the Supreme Court to file our legal protest, and the March for justice by victims of bottlefeeding - 150 mothers and babies in front of the milk companies with loud angry banners exposing milk companies marketing deception.

Thank you to the Italian community for their support. We have here a staunch advocate of the breastfeeding who is generously supportive of our coalition building efforts. He is an Italian married to a Filipina nurse. He works at WHO Manila. The present leadership of WHO is committed genuinely for breastfeeding and very supportive of us in many kind ways with our coalition building to save babies. Likewise with UNICEF Manila leaders they also provide us with material resources when we stage public events.

We are very grateful from the bottom of our hearts, Gracie.

About the photo: Mothers decorated and displayed advocacy umbrellas during the People's Forum on Breastfeeding held in Quezon City, Philippines, in 2006. Photo @UNICEF/PHI/2006/Albert Garcia