The sobering reality of the scourge that is HIV/AIDS is the focus today of World AIDS Day. Globally the numbers are grim: approximately 65 million people worldwide infected with HIV and AIDS, and nearly 3 million people died last year of AIDS.In Latin America and the
- An AIDS “crisis” is growing in
- The Latino Commission on AIDS reports that Hispanics represent 1 out of every 5 cases of AIDS in the U.S. and a study from the University of California's AIDS Research Program shows that language barriers and immigrant status are two of the main barriers against AIDS prevention amongst Latinos in the U.S.
- Around 23,000 people live with AIDS in
- Three women from
- Ever day four El Salvadorans become newly infected with HIV according to government figures, while it is estimated that nearly 100,000 Peruvians have AIDS.
- Though the number of deaths due to AIDS has decreased slightly in the Caribbean, increased violence in
Image- Inter-American Development Bank
Links- United Nations, The Latin Americanist (blog), Monsters & Critics, Reuters, KBPS, Vivirlatino (blog), gaywired.com, Sydney Morning Herald, The Observer, BBC News, Prensa Latina, Living in Peru (blog), Hardbeat News, Center for Public Integrity, Reuters, AlertNet,
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HIV/AIDS in the Asian Region
After 25 years of HIV/AIDS prevention efforts considerable knowledge has been accumulated regarding how the spread of HIV/AIDS can be controlled. It is necessary to block the transmission of the virus by changing the behaviour of people who are most at risk of contracting HIV infection and of transmitting it to others. The main approach to prevent sexual transmission are convincing people to delay or abstain from sex, to have fewer sexual partners and to use condoms in order to reduce the likelihood that sex between an infected and uninfected person will lead to an infection.
HIV/AIDS is not new to the Asia. More than two decades into the epidemic, the situation of HIV within Asia continues to grow at an alarming pace, with one person dying every minute due to an HIV related disease. With moderately 10 Million people living with HIV/AIDS, the impact of the epidemic can be devastating. The “Rainbow Nari O Shishu Kallyan Foundation” identified four major approaches in a groundbreaking study on spread out HIV in Asia. This study undertook by comparing of social-economic norm, family pattern, economic dependency, cause of mounting sex industries, gender discrimination status & global analysis fact. There are four factors that appear to play a crucial role in HIV transmission in Asian countries: Injection/ intravenous drug use (By sharing needle), female sex work (Due to lack of safe sex knowledge), gender discrimination (which indirectly force females commercial or non-commercial sex), Same sex/ homosexually/ Hijara (Due to lack of HIV/AIDS information, because they act invisible in this society). Poverty & illiteracy fueled it proportionally.
Overall, the countries in the region are considered to be in the early stage of the epidemic with the exception of Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand which are experiencing generalized epidemics—a generalized epidemic is one where 1% of the population are HIV positive. The prevalence is growing in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam and Indonesia, with epidemics concentrated largely among vulnerable populations such as sex workers, intravenous drug users and men who have sex with men. The bulk of the burden of HIV is on poor people, marginalized communities, the youth and women.
In this region, there are some superstitions about HIV/AIDS. This can be found in other countries too. Suppose, one-third people of China think that by using bathrooms, towels, plates and glasses of AIDS patients, HIV can be infected. Remember, it is not true certainly. The virus has been found in saliva in a small percentage of infected people, but usually this is late in the stage of the disease when you would not expect people to be too sexually active. After HIV enters the body, it attacks the immune system in stages. A person with HIV can infect others once the virus enters the bloodstream.
In the past few decades, the Asia has witnessed unprecedented economic growth and a rise in living standards. However, it has brought to the region disturbing concerns such as increasing levels of economic disparity, income poverty and new forms of deprivation. In addition, challenges such as conflicts, various forms of exploitation and discrimination, and gender inequality continue to mark the region’s socio-economic and cultural landscape. The fact that about 600 million people in the region live on less than US$ 1 a day testifies to the stark reality that a large majority of people in the region are still disempowered, with limited or no access to resources or information that would improve the lives.
Shravea Kumar
CEO
Urban Development Center (UDC)
Ahmedabad Gujarat
India
shraveakumar@walla.com
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