The International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) has confirmed that its 60th annual congress, to take place in Vienna, Austria, from August 26 to 31, will go ahead despite international concern about the political situation in Austria, where Mr Jörg Haider's far-right Freedom Party recently entered a coalition government.
Speaking to The Journal on February 18, the FIP's secretary general, Mr Ton Hoek, said that, as a non-political organisation, the federation could not become involved in political discussion. He said: "Our mission is to serve and represent pharmacy and the pharmaceutical sciences world-wide. We have to be visible to our colleagues around the world - including places where people do not sympathise with the political system."
The FIP would only move the congress if the United Nations initiated an embargo or if a situation developed that might jeopardise the security of FIP members. It was the risk of danger to members that had forced the move of the 1998 congress, from Cairo to The Hague at nine months' notice following the terrorist murder of a number of tourists in Egypt.
Mr Hoek added that it would be difficult to change the congress venue because of long-standing commitments with the congress organisers as well as with hotels and congress venues. It would also be unfair on those colleagues in Austria who had worked long and hard to prepare the congress. Moving it would affect them economically and emotionally and would damage the prestige of the profession in Austria.
Mr Hoek pointed out that moving or cancelling the congress at short notice would also seriously jeopardise the FIP's development projects, which depended on congress income. It was those in the developing countries where such projects were running who would suffer most from the financial consequences.
Asked whether any congress bookings had been cancelled, Mr Hoek said that there had been no cancellations at all. On the other hand, a number of people had contacted the federation seeking confirmation that the congress would go ahead.
The federation has as yet made no decision about invited speakers at the congress opening session, where the programme typically includes a welcome speech by a civic leader from the host city and an address by a national government minister. Mr Hoek said that the Austrian political situation would be taken into consideration when the decision was made.
The Journal asked the FIP for a statement after receiving a letter from Mr Danji Bhanderi, a British registered pharmacist practising in Denmark, calling for the congress to be boycotted.