RI reports 34 more cases of HIV carriers

JAKARTA (JP): Thirty-four more people have reportedly tested positive for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) over the past three months, bringing the total to 346 as at the end of last month.

However, State Minister of Population Haryono Suyono, disclosing the latest official HIV figures yesterday, said he thought the actual number of people carrying the virus is far higher.

"I believe that the real number of cases is a lot higher than that given by our data, which is based on reported cases," Haryono, who is also the chairman of the National Family Planning Board, told a seminar on AIDS prevention in Indonesia.

"Some people who may have been infected with AIDS do not want to go to the doctor to be examined," he said.

At the last official count in June, there were 312 people with HIV.

On a more positive note, Haryono said the recently-opened AIDS telephone hot line -- courtesy of the family planning board and the state-owned telecommunications firm, PT Telkom -- has shown encouraging results, with more and more people dialing 163 for free information and counseling about the disease.

"Although some people are reluctant to be examined, at least they are willing to seek information about AIDS," he said.

The 24-hour hot line service, launched in June, also provides a pre-recorded message with general information about both AIDS and HIV; including how its is transmitted, what preventive measures should be taken, how to respond if symptoms are detected and how to react if a member of the family is infected with the illness.

He said that, among the callers, there had been people who indicated that they might have contracted the virus. But the majority of callers simply wanted information on AIDS; in particular, on how it is transmitted, he said.

A large number of callers are students, Haryono added.

The chairman of the National Commission for the Prevention of AIDS, Azwar Anas, said in his keynote address to the seminar that AIDS or HIV cases have been found in 15 out of 27 Indonesian provinces.

Jakarta tops the list with 112 HIV-positive cases, followed by Irian Jaya with 90 and Bali with 44, said Azwar, who is also the coordinating minister of people's welfare.

Provinces that do not have a single reported AIDS or HIV case are Aceh, Jambi, Bengkulu, Lampung, South Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, East Nusa Tenggara, East Timor and all four provinces in Sulawesi.

Although the number of AIDS cases reported in Indonesia is relatively small compared with a number of countries in Asia, Anwar said an international meeting on AIDS in Yokohama, Japan, last August had viewed Indonesia as "vulnerable" to the spread of the virus.

Experts have predicted that, unless steps are taken to stop the spread of the disease, 2.5 million people in Indonesia will be infected with HIV in the year 2000, Anwar said. The annual cost of treating them will be US$16 billion, he added. (31)