Indonesia inmates are most vulnerable to HIV\/AIDS<\/p>\n
By Triagus S. Siswowihardjo<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Boxer Tommy Morrison enjoyed sudden worldwide
\nmedia attention in the middle of February not because he just
\nbeat George Foreman and once felled Mike Tyson, or because he had
\nsigned a film contract. No, Tommy Morrison, the WBO heavy-weight
\nchampion of 1993, had just announced to the press that he was HIV
\npositive.<\/p>\n
Tommy Morrison is the fourth well-known athlete to admit
\nhaving the virus. Tennis star Arthur Ashe, now dead, basketball
\nlegend Earvin 'Magic' Johnson, and diver Greg Louganis had all
\nwent public before him. The virus has killed celebrities like
\nFreddy Mercury, the lead vocalist of the rock group Queen, and
\nmovie idol Rock Hudson.<\/p>\n
Don't expect to hear a famous Indonesian announce that he or
\nshe is HIV positive. Although the virus has taken its toll here,
\nit is still considered improper to talk about the virus or the
\npeople it infects. The HIV\/AIDS taboo hits prisoners in
\nIndonesian jails the hardest. The are not educated about the
\ndanger of AIDS, and, because of their less than low profile, they
\nare frequently ignored or forgotten.<\/p>\n
Only a little better informed than the prisoners, the average
\nIndonesian is forced to make do with frequent updates on the
\nnumber of HIV and AIDS cases in the country.<\/p>\n
By the end of February this year, 376 HIV\/AIDS cases were
\nrecorded in Indonesia. Last week the Director-General of
\nContagious Disease, Hadi Abednego, announced that 10 more
\nIndonesians were infected with HIV between February and March,
\nbringing the number of people carrying the virus near 390. Of
\nthese people, 56 have died. The people come from very different
\nsocial and educational backgrounds.<\/p>\n
Anyone can get HIV, regardless of sex, religion, race, age,
\neducation or profession. The virus is spread by sexual contact,
\nblood transfusions and unsterile needles, or transferred by an
\nHIV infected mother.<\/p>\n
Highly-mobile people and those confined to one place, like
\nprisoners, share the same chances of getting the virus. It has
\nbeen proven that prisoners are just as vulnerable to AIDS as
\nthose living life in freedom.<\/p>\n
Indonesian penitentiaries have no HIV\/AIDS prevention
\nprograms. The overcrowding and poor conditions propagates the
\nproblem.<\/p>\n
The Salemba penitentiary in Central Jakarta, for example, was
\nbuilt to hold 750 prisoners. Today it houses between 950 and
\n1,100 inmates. The Cipinang penitentiary in East Jakarta is meant
\nto hold 2,800 people but is crammed with 3,000 prisoners. Three
\nprisoners live in a cell measuring 1.5 by 2 metres.<\/p>\n
The shortage of space is aggravated by a lack of disciplined
\nwarders. Such horrendous conditions and the restricted social
\nenvironment often leads to behavioral changes.<\/p>\n
In prisons, HIV is mainly transferred by homosexual and
\nheterosexual relations. The use of dirty needles for drug taking
\nand tattooing is the secondary cause of the spread.<\/p>\n
Prisoners who have had sexual intercourse with sex workers
\nbefore being jailed pose a serious threat to other inmates.
\nUnscrupulous warders also allow prostitutes to visit prisoners.<\/p>\n
At the Cipinang penitentiary ,for example, affluent prisoners
\nare known to be able to get a call girl for as little as
\nRp200,000. Mintardjo, the warden, denied this was possible.<\/p>\n
It is common knowledge that prisoners can order almost
\nanything if they can pay the price.<\/p>\n
At the Pondok Bambu penitentiary in East Jakarta, teenage boys
\nand girls are free to mingle during visiting hours. Socializing
\ncan be extended into evening for Rp75,000. If the couple pay
\nRp100,000, they can have sex in a private room. A point of
\nconcern is that about half of the female inmates in Pondok Bambu
\nhave been booked for commercial sex.<\/p>\n
Homosexual practices in prison happen throughout the world.
\nUnfulfilled sex drives frequently push heterosexual inmates to
\nhave sex with males. Young boys and rapists are in for a very
\nunpleasant time when jailed. Young inmates are all too often
\nvictimized by homosexual prisoners. The bill on young offenders
\nbeing prepared by the House of Representatives will be too little
\nand too late.<\/p>\n
Many young convicts lie about their age to avoid being sent to
\nPondok Bambu, which is notorious for its homosexuals. They prefer
\nthe Salemba or Cipinang penitentiaries. The two jails, however,
\nalso have their share of pimps waiting for the young offenders.
\nRapists are physically abused by cell mates, usually sodomized
\nand forced to perform oral sex. Prisoners deemed effeminate are
\nin for the same treatment.<\/p>\n
Although prison records indicate that sexual contact accounts
\nfor 95.7 percent of the reported HIV\/AIDS cases in prisons, with
\n62.6 percent being heterosexual contact and 33.1 percent being
\nhomosexual contact, another cause of the spread of the virus is
\nthe use of unsterile needles for blood transfusions, drug taking
\nand tattooing.<\/p>\n
Tattooing, common in all prisons, is a likely way to spread
\nHIV. Aside from tattoos, inmates also crave what is called
\ntasbih.<\/p>\n
A tasbih is a small plastic object. The stem of a toothbrush
\nis filed down to the size of a capsule and then implanted close
\nto the top of the penis. The implant is said to give immense
\npleasure to the sex partner. As the knife used to make the tasbih
\nand slice the penis is most likely unsterile, an HIV positive
\ninmate using a tasbih may infect his partner.<\/p>\n
Syringes smuggled in for drug addicted inmates are also a
\nlikely way of spreading the virus. On record are cases of
\nprohibited pills being found in a prison in Denpasar. A strong
\nindication that prisons are fertile grounds for free sex and
\nconsequently HIV and AIDS.<\/p>\n
Indonesian prisoners generally know little about AIDS, and
\nwhat they do know depends n where they are incarcerated. A recent
\nsurvey conducted by the National Networks of Epidemics
\nfound Jakarta prisoners know more about the virus than their
\ncounterparts in Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n
The government is responsible for disseminating information on
\nAIDS to all prison wardens and inmates.<\/p>\n
In Italy, the government passed a special bill in July 1993,
\nforbidding inmates with full-blown AIDS from being jailed. Italy
\nhas 29,030 registered AIDS carriers. The law requires that
\nprisoners with AIDS be kept in special cells. Because the Italian
\ngovernment is unable to provide the cells, so for it has sent
\n3,000 of the 4,600 prisoners with AIDS home. Indonesia should
\navoid this situation because the former prisoners may commit more
\ncrimes and spread the virus.<\/p>\n
It is time the Indonesian government paid more attention to
\nthe fate of Indonesian prisoners, and protect them from HIV and
\nAIDS. They are citizens with the same right to learn about the
\nprevention of HIV and AIDS.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/indonesia-inmates-are-most-vulnerable-to-hivaids-1447893297",
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