HIV in Riau reaches alarming levels
Haidir Anwar Tanjung and Fadli The Jakarta Post Pekanbaru/Batam
Batam was rocked by the news in July 2002 that two residents with AIDS died in separate places on the tourist island.
A 36-year-old who came from Kendal, Central Java, was found dead at Sekupang Seaport and a 39-year-old resident of Kampong Dalam, died of AIDS-related diseases at Batam Authority General Hospital.
The two deceased number among 20 who have died of AIDS-related diseases on the island over the last ten years. The total number of people with AIDS is 21. The number of people reckoned to be HIV-positive has reached 97, which includes the 21.
Besides Batam, Tanjung Balai Karimun is also known as an area where HIV/AIDS has spread in Riau province. It has been developing its tourism industry to attract tourists from the neighboring countries of Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.
There is no accurate data on the number of people with HIV/AIDS in the regency but local authorities reckon the figure is similar to Batam's.
According to data at the local health office, the total number of people with HIV/AIDS in the province has reached 216 and the number of deceased 28. The government-run general hospital in Pekanbaru has noted that 10 of the 216 were injecting drug users and four of them have already died.
Chief of the social affairs office in Batam Nor Arifin said recently the high prevalence of HIV/AIDS on the island had a lot to do with misconceptions about the expansion of tourism there.
"It is a fact that most hotels and entertainment centers on the island offer sex workers to attract foreign tourists. HIV and AIDS could turn out to be a disaster unless local authorities take tough measures against prostitution and gambling," he said, citing that many people from Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand visited the island not for bona fide tourism but for gambling and sex.
Evianora Azwar, a specialist at the Kimia Pharma clinic in Batu Aji, Batam, said besides HIV/AIDS, the prevalence of other diseases transferred through sexual activity was also high. She cited as examples gonorrhea, non-gonococcal urethritis, chancroid and herpes.
She stated she served an average of 50 patients per month who had genital diseases, including HIV/AIDS, every month.
"Most of the patients are employed in dockyards, hotels and entertainment centers on the island," she said.
She warned that such diseases could be a disaster on the island unless the government took immediate tough action to curb widespread prostitution.
Batam has at least 34 karaoke and massage centers providing sex workers at a cost of Rp 200,000 to Rp 500,000.
Chief of the Riau health office Zainal Abidin urged provincial authorities to take immediate measures and launch an AIDS awareness campaign especially in Karimun and Batam to reduce the high incidence of HIV/AIDS.
"Authorities should also expel all sex workers from the province and send them to their hometowns in Java, Sumatra and West Nusa Tenggara," he said.
He said the province was second only to Papua in the national ranking for the spread of HIV/AIDS.