Kaisernetwork.org (Washington, DC)
24 October 2008
Global Challenges
Chinese HIV/AIDS, Human-Rights Advocate Hu Jia Wins E.U. Award
[Oct 24, 2008]
Chinese HIV/AIDS and human-rights advocate Hu Jia was awarded the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize on Thursday for his work in the fight against the disease, as well as for his efforts to address civil rights and environmental issues, AFP/Yahoo! Asia News reports (AFP/Yahoo! Asia News, 10/23.) Hu currently is serving a prison sentence for allegedly attempting to subvert state power and was one of the 197 nominees for the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 10/6).
According to Reuters, Hu began his work among people living with HIV/AIDS and "emerged as one of China's most vocal advocates of democratic rights, religious freedom and of self-determination for Tibet" (Brunnstrom, Reuters, 10/23). Hu in 2000 began advocating for improved treatment for HIV-positive people in China, as well as children who had lost one or both parents to AIDS-related deaths. According o the Washington Post, he focused on Henan province, where blood selling practices in the 1990s led to the spread of the virus (Eunjung Cha, Washington Post, 10/24).
Lawmakers Daniel Cohn-Bendit and Monica Frassoni said, "Awarding the Sakharov to Hu Jia is a reflection of this very spirit of this prize, which supports free thought and honors human-rights defenders fighting repression" (AFP/Yahoo! Asia News, 10/23). European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering added that Hu is "one of the real defenders of human rights in the People's Republic of China" and that by awarding him the Sakharov Prize, the "European Parliament is sending out a signal of clear support to all those who support human rights in China" (Ames, AP/Google.com, 10/23). Gao Yaojie, a prominent HIV/AIDS advocate in China, said, "We didn't do anything wrong. The only thing we did was to help HIV-positive people. But we were always under great pressure from the government" (Yardley, New York Times, 10/24).
The annual E.U. prize is named after Soviet Union advocate and dissident Andrei Sakharov and was first awarded in 1988. The formal award ceremony -- which includes a monetary prize of $64,280 -- will take place on Dec. 17 in Strasbourg, France (Reuters, 10/23).
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Caribbean Needs To Increase Efforts Against HIV/AIDS, U.N. Official Says
[Oct 24, 2008]
Increased efforts are needed to bolster HIV/AIDS prevention, care, treatment and education in the Caribbean, Karen Sealy, head of the UNAIDS Caribbean office, said recently at the seventh annual United States Chiefs of Mission Conference on HIV/AIDS, the Caribbean Media Corporation reports. Sealy said that 38 people in the region die from AIDS-related causes daily and that 55 new HIV cases occur each day in the Caribbean, adding that high-risk groups include commercial sex workers and men who have sex with men. An increase in HIV/AIDS cases also is being recorded among drug users, Sealy said, adding that "perhaps the category that we have not identified is that of prisoners." In addition, she said, "We know that the spread of HIV in the Caribbean is in fact being fueled by serious gaps in gender equality," adding, "All the countries of the Americas which have homosexuality as a crime are now located in the Caribbean region."
Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning said that "one of the true successes" of the country's efforts to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS is the decrease in mother-to-child transmissions because of the no-cost antiretroviral drugs provided to all pregnant women who receive treatment at government clinics. Manning said that many of the people living with HIV/AIDS in Trinidad and Tobago are able to live "a high quality of life" because of the country's health care program but added that more work needs to be done to address the spread of HIV.
According to the Caribbean Media Corporation, the Caribbean has the second highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rate worldwide after sub-Saharan Africa (Caribbean Media Corporation, 10/22). UNAIDS figures show that an estimated 230,000 people are living with HIV/AIDS in the region and that 14,000 AIDS-related deaths were recorded last year (Kaiser Family Foundation fact sheet, July 2008).
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Program Provides Teachers in Papua New Guinea With HIV/AIDS Training
[Oct 24, 2008]
Primary public school teachers in Papua New Guinea's capital of Port Moresby recently completed a two-week workshop aimed at providing them with the skills to teach young people about HIV/AIDS prevention, Papua New Guinea's Post-Courier reports. The program was run by the country's Education Department and UNAIDS and focused on a life-skills approach to HIV prevention. During the sessions, teachers were trained on providing students with the skills and behaviors that will enable them to avoid contracting HIV, Joe Anang of UNAIDS said. According to Anang, this approach is based on the fact that many young people find decisions about sexual relationships difficult to make despite having knowledge about how to live healthy lifestyles, the Post-Courier reports. This makes youth vulnerable to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, Anang said.
Seventy-six teachers from three areas -- the Autonomous Region of Bouganville, Madang and Eastern Highlands -- attended the workshop and have returned to teach in these provinces. Teacher Emleen Sioni said that the training was valuable because many educators feel uncomfortable teaching about HIV/AIDS at the primary-school level. Participants of the program also were provided a newly published HIV/AIDS life skills resource book from UNAIDS (Post-Courier, 10/22).
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Public Health & Education
Study Examines E-Cards Used To Alert People of Exposure to HIV, Other STIs
[Oct 24, 2008]
A study published recently in PloS Medicine examines a San Francisco-based program that allows people to send electronic postcards to let sexual partners know they might have been exposed to HIV or other sexually transmitted infections, Reuters reports. The program, called inSPOT, was created by Internet Sexuality Information Services in 2004 to aid in partner notification for STIs, which traditionally has been done via phone, mail or in person through the help of a public health worker.
The Web site offers six different cards that alert the recipients that they might have been exposed to an STI. The cards also provide links with more information about STIs and a map of clinics for testing. The people sending the e-card can use their own e-mail address or send it anonymously, according to Reuters.
The program has expanded beyond the San Francisco area to more than 12 states and has been used by more than 30,000 people, who have sent almost 50,000 e-cards to their sexual partners. The report also said that the percentage of e-card recipients who click on the links differs by city. For example, almost 50% of Idaho recipients click on the links compared with 20% in Los Angeles.
The use of the e-cards "can enhance sexual communication and help with community responsibility and easing a process of disclosure that can be extremely difficult," ISIS Executive Director and co-author of the report Deb Levine said, adding that the e-cards are "one more tool in the toolkit" to reduce the spread of STIs but "do not replace in-person communication" (Norton, Reuters, 10/23).
The study is available online.
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Opinion
Former Botswana President Mogae's Recent Award 'Testimony' to Good Governance, Fight Against HIV/AIDS, Editorial Says
[Oct 24, 2008]
The 2008 Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, which was awarded earlier this week to former Botswana President Festus Mogae, is "testimony" to the "solid foundation that Mogae laid for good governance" and his efforts to fight HIV/AIDS, a Mmegi editorial says. Mogae particularly will be "remembered for his tireless efforts in fighting HIV/AIDS" in Botswana, the editorial says, adding, "There was a time when the epidemic seemed set to decimate the population of this country, and this eventually would have come to pass if Mogae had not been equal to the task." Although HIV/AIDS still is a "huge problem" in Botswana, before Mogae left office, he "managed to arrest" HIV/AIDS in the country and reduce the stigma associated with the disease, according to the editorial. In addition, Mogae "brought hope to people that had given up hope by introducing" antiretroviral drugs and mother-to-child transmission programs, the editorial says, adding, "In a nutshell, Mogae left a solid foundation in the fight against HIV/AIDS. His is a record to be emulated by other leaders in Africa and the world" (Mmegi, 10/22).
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