AIDS in Irian Jaya

AIDS in Irian Jaya

Congratulations on your fine and accurate reporting on the
HIV/AIDS situation faced by the community at Merauke, Irian Jaya
(The Jakarta Post, Dec. 14, 1994/Features).

However, to avoid another kind of scapegoating Yayasan Mitra
Indonesia feels it necessary to comment on two allegations
reported to be made by our team members while working there. The
two stories, (1) that "(people) put (news)papers on bus seats (to
avoid contracting AIDS by casual contact)" and (2) that "the
(Thai) fishermen are former criminals (with disproportionately
high rates of HIV infection) who provide cheap labor for the Thai
fishing companies", have been around for some time and were told
by the locals to our team members.

Had your correspondent interviewed the local people instead of
our team members, she would have heard the same stories told.
Therefore, we are not the origin of the stories, nor are we
accountable for the accuracy of those allegations.

Not reported in your article, however, is another allegation
that has been around for some time, and is much more
disconcerting. It has been said that some women of the indigenous
tribe around Merauke--who were not prostitutes by
profession--often boarded the Thai ships to exchange sex for
money. It has been said that the local health authorities did not
have the means to access these people. They could only access the
professional prostitutes--who were transmigrants from Java and
other islands--who resided in the local officially designated
prostitution area.

Currently, a local indigenous non-governmental organization
(NGO) is very much concerned about this situation. Should HIV
enter this community, and no prompt actions taken, it could cause
major devastation, the magnitude of which is comparable to the
one suffered by this same tribe during the 1910s when a
considerable segment of its population was wiped out by venereal
disease. At this time the leaders of the said NGO are preparing
to launch an educational campaign among the people of this tribe,
and we at Mitra Indonesia are committed to help them. The
educational material will take into account the cultural habits
of the tribe, and condom use will probably comprise its main
message.

Hopefully your fine article will enlighten the government and
other parties on the seriousness of the HIV/AIDS threat faced by
the local community--especially the local indigenous tribe.

Hopefully they will take appropriate, prompt, and adequate
actions to eliminate the threat completely.

HUDOYO HUPUDIO

Director

Yayasan Mitra Indonesia

Jakarta