Media sensitivity urged for AIDS information

By Wirasti Wiryono

YOGYAKARTA (JP): "They should ask God for forgiveness," a resident said here recently, offering his perceptions on people affected by HIV, the virus which causes the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

Despite looking bewildered when told that "innocent" people can get AIDS through blood transfusions as well as sexual intercourse, which he believed was the only cause, the resident said that people with the syndrome could help others.

"Perhaps they could share their experience with others so that they can learn about the dangers of HIV/AIDS," he said.

Participants of a recent media workshop on AIDS sponsored by the non-governmental organization Yogyakarta Institute of Research, Education and Publishing (LP3Y) asked 60 residents of this ancient city for their perceptions on HIV and AIDS. The respondents' views ranged from the well-informed to the downright hilarious about this syndrome which has yet to find a cure.

The four-day workshop involved 20 magazine and newspaper journalists from throughout Indonesia who were divided into four groups to observe and review people's awareness about AIDS in the city.

Those with higher education and socioeconomic levels were generally better informed. College and university students were also among the better informed, who learned about HIV/AIDS through the print media and television.

Most of the respondents were aware that HIV/AIDS can be transmitted through unprotected sex, blood transfusions and a pregnant woman who is HIV positive.

The main source of information about HIV/AIDS was from the print and electronic media, especially television. Although the respondents had access to the information, they often found the media coverage on HIV/AIDS "confusing".

Dicky, who helps manage a foreign language school for children aged between four and 12, reads Kompas and the monthly health magazine Higina for his source of information.

He believes that strong morals can stop a person from being lured to the dangers of AIDS and should a person become HIV positive then he or she must ask for God's guidance.

Amiek, a tourism student, receives information about HIV/AIDS from Femina magazine and television, not through education and information programs offered by non-governmental organizations or her campus.

She said the media was responsible for the confidentiality of HIV/AIDS carriers since their families and friends could be stigmatized.

"Besides, I'm sure these carriers could offer a meaningful contribution to society. After all, it's the disease not the person," she said.

She said information on HIV/AIDS should be tailored to the various levels of Indonesian society to prevent the further spread of the deadly virus.

Aswan, who works at an oil company in Jambi and was visiting his daughter, a communications student at Gadjah Mada University, said that strong religious beliefs and morals are important to prevent oneself from becoming infected with the deadly virus.

His awareness about contracting HIV/AIDS was limited to sexual contact and he was unaware that people could become infected with HIV/AIDS through a blood transfusion.

Tarman, a taxi driver, considers AIDS a "foreigner's disease". "Look at Americans who keep dogs as adored pets, they get bitten and then die. Thank goodness we Indonesians do without dogs so we don't get AIDS."

But Tarman, a retired Armed Forces officer, said he has few qualms accepting foreigners as his passengers and shaking their hand. "I concern myself with giving them convenient transport, not with their personal affairs," he said.

Other myths persist, including the belief commercial sex workers in the city's red light district are spreading HIV/AIDS.

A pedicab driver was willing to show us an area near Pasar Kembang, saying: "That's where somebody can get AIDS."

All the more disturbing from the findings was the ignorance among people like street vendors at the Alun-Alun amusement park and market. They were more concerned about their next meal and next job, not about AIDS.

Endang, 40, a housewife whose husband is a retired rice vendor, said she has no opinion on AIDS.

Puti, an 18-year-old high school graduate who works as an assistant at a photocopying shop was completely unaware about the spread of HIV/AIDS and her attitude was literally "grin and bear it".

Media perspective

Kompas' health, science and technology editor Agnes Aristiarini urged reporters to exercise caution in reporting on HIV/AIDS to prevent public panic and further misconceptions about the syndrome.

Agnes stressed the importance of accurate facts and data, the relevancy of the news topic to the situation, respecting privacy, avoiding sensation and using a positive approach in media coverage about AIDS.

"The media's role is not merely to record events but to act as trendsetters who can make a real difference because we have a major impact on public opinion," Agnes said.

"We in the media have an urgent mission to promote public awareness and meaningful change."

Journalistic coverage about HIV/AIDS is a relatively new phenomenon which began in the early 1980s and deserves more attention, she said.

"The most important key to investigative reporting on AIDS is to open the heart and eyes by investigating the problem affecting the carriers and their surrounding community and exercising caution and empathy," she said.

Investigative reporting owes much to two reporters at The Washington Post, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, who uncovered the Watergate scandal in 1972. The event marked the media's position as a force of change.

She stressed the need for empathy in journalism toward HIV/AIDS carriers who could face discrimination from neighbors, relatives and employers at their workplaces.

Of all the greatest triumphs against AIDS, she hailed the strong individualism of volunteers willing to help HIV/AIDS carriers.