HIV/AIDS cases increase sharply in northeast W. Java

Nana Rukmana, The Jakarta Post, Cirebon, West Java

The number of people with HIV/AIDS has increased sharply in the northeast coastal areas of West Java in the past two years because of increased drug use and prostitution in the area.

Akhmad Jumarma, coordinator of the Sidikara Foundation, a non- governmental organization working on the prevention of the spread of HIV/AIDS, said on Friday that the foundation had recorded 63 people with HIV/AIDS in the coastal areas by the end of 2001.

"Data for 1999 showed that there were only 14 people with HIV/AIDS. This means that the number has increased by four times within this two-year period," Akhmad said.

West Java's northeast coastal areas include Bekasi, Karawang, Cirebon, Indramayu and Kuningan regencies.

Akhmad said his foundation's research showed that the sharp increase had been caused by two things: the increase of drug users who shared needles and the rising number of sex workers.

The highest drug increase was recorded in Bekasi, while increases in prostitution occurred in Indramayu, Cirebon, Kerawang and Kuningan.

"Our survey shows that in Cirebon, Indramayu and Kuningan regencies, the number of sex workers has increased and they have spread out to more areas. This has caused a rapid spread of the virus," Akhmad added.

He noted that the number of people with HIV/AIDS recorded by his office was in all probability only the tip of the iceberg and that the actual number could be much higher.

This northeast area has about 40 percent of the total cases of people with HIV/AIDS in West Java, which by the end of 2001 reached 172 people. Bandung recorded the highest number of people with HIV/AIDS with 68 people.

Nationally, according to government data, there are around 120,000 people with HIV/AIDS in the country, with three provinces -- Bali, Papua and Jakarta -- having the most cases.

According to the Ministry of Health, most of those infected people contracted HIV/AIDS through sexual contact. Some others got it through shared needles.

The government launched a national movement on April 24 this year to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS in the country with officials pledging some Rp 200 billion annually for the campaign to provide more affordable treatment for AIDS victims.

In addition, the government also aims to provide easy access for people with AIDS to medical assistance such as counseling, HIV tests, Anti Retroviral (ARV) drugs, and pain killers.