12 soldiers in Papua die of AIDS, says military

12 soldiers in Papua die of AIDS, says military

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura

Breaking a long-held tradition of secrecy, the Indonesian
Military disclosed on Tuesday that 48 of its soldiers in Papua
had contracted HIV/AIDS since 2000, with 12 of them having died
so far.

Besides the 12 soldiers, the deadly virus has also taken the
lives of two soldiers' children and a civilian working with the
Trikora Military Command, which is responsible for military
affairs in Papua, a military spokesman admitted on Tuesday.

"The soldiers should not be having sex with prostitutes. This
tragedy should serve as a wakeup call to commanders," said the
spokesman, Maj. G.T. Situmorang, in a rare interview on a
sensitive TNI internal issue.

Some of the soldiers were married while others were still
bachelors, said Situmorang.

The remaining 33 soldiers with HIV/AIDS are still in the
service and are being provided with antiretroviral drugs to
improve their immunity and keep them alive.

In order to prevent the further spread of the lethal virus
among soldiers, the military high command has ordered task force
commanders to keep their men away from prostitutes, who are at
high risk of being infected with HIV.

The Trikora Military Command currently has some 10,000
soldiers, excluding troops from other regions deployed in the
resource rich province where a low level insurgency has been
taking place since Papua was incorporated into Indonesia in the
1960s.

Located in the eastern part of Indonesia, Papua has a high
level of HIV/AIDS infection -- some 19 times higher than the
national rate. Experts say the high rate of infection stems from
a lack of education and a local culture that permits multiple
sexual partners.

Officially, a total of 2,134 people, including the soldiers,
had contracted HIV/AIDS in Papua as of September this year, but
it is believed that the real figure could be very much higher. Of
the 2,134 people who have been infected, 932 have developed AIDS.
The majority of HIV/AIDS cases have been found in Merauke, where
a total of 769 people have been affected.

The report on soldiers dying of AIDS came only a week after
World AIDS Day was marked by a visit from UN AIDS supremo Peter
Piot, who warned that Indonesia was on the brink of an AIDS
epidemic. The nation had to act quickly to fight the lethal
virus, Piot said.