Working committee on HIV\/AIDS in jails formed<\/p>\n
Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Alarmed by the rising number of inmates testing positive for
\nHIV\/AIDS, the government and non-governmental organizations
\nhave formed a national working committee as part of an attempt to
\nhelp curb the spread of HIV\/AIDS in penitentiaries.<\/p>\n
During a meeting with health agencies and prison wardens here
\non Monday, the working committee revealed that an increase in the
\nnumber of intravenous drug users (IDUs) sharing needles with one
\nanother and unsafe sexual practices were the major causes of the
\nrise in HIV\/AIDS among inmates.<\/p>\n
Data from the Ministry of Health and the National Narcotics
\nAgency (BNN) show that in the Salemba penitentiary in Central
\nJakarta, only 0.2 percent of 497 blood samples taken anonymously
\nin 1998 were HIV positive. In 2001, however, 22 percent of the
\n250 inmates tested were found to be HIV positive.<\/p>\n
In the Kerobokan prison in Kuta, Bali, 35 out of 62 inmates,
\nwho were also IDUs, were found to be HIV positive in 2001.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Justice and Human Rights' director for
\nnarcotics, Soejoto, said on the sidelines of the meeting that
\nthe committee would first concentrate on fourteen prisons housing
\nlarge numbers of narcotics inmates.<\/p>\n
There were 383 correctional facilities across Indonesia with
\napproximately 68,000 detainees and inmates in 2002.<\/p>\n
\"Up to the end of this year, our focus is to raise awareness
\nby giving information to inmates and wardens on HIV\/AIDS,\" said
\nSoejoto, who is also the chairperson of the committee.<\/p>\n
The national committee includes representatives of the
\nIndonesia HIV\/AIDS Prevention and Care Project (IHPCP), the BNN,
\nthe Ministry of Health and the National AIDS Commission (KPA).<\/p>\n
Provincial working committees will also be established and
\nfuture programs in prisons will include counseling and voluntary
\ntesting.<\/p>\n
\"The NGOs will fund this project and the health agencies will
\nprovide technical assistance,\" said Soejoto.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, following a memorandum of understanding signed last
\nDecember between the BNN and KPA on harm reduction measures,
\nthree prisons -- in Bali, Cirebon in West Java, and Cipinang in
\nJakarta -- have been chosen to serve as pilot projects.<\/p>\n
BNN director Comr. Gen. Togar Sianipar said that should these
\nprojects fail, harm reduction, which includes needle exchange and
\nmethadone treatment programs, would not be applied in the general
\ncommunity.<\/p>\n
Ministry of Health figures reveal that from 1987 to March 31
\nthis year, 2,746 people were found to be HIV positive and 1,413
\nfound with AIDS. A UNAIDS report, however, estimates the number
\nof people living with HIV\/AIDS in Indonesia to be 130,000. The
\ngovernment has accepted that the UNAIDS figures are probably
\naccurate.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/working-committee-on-hivaids-in-jails-formed-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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