Young women facing greater AIDS risk

Young women facing greater AIDS risk

By Prapti Widinugraheni

JAKARTA (JP): Young women are facing greater and greater risk
of contracting the Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome,
physician-cum-legislator Nafsiah Mboi says.

Nafsiah, citing a recent report by the World Health
Organization (WHO), said an alarming increase in the number of
young women with AIDS and those infected by the Human
Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).

"What I heard was very, very distressing. In all the countries
where the main mode of HIV transmission is through heterosexual
intercourse, the number of women with AIDS and HIV -- especially
young women, adolescents and younger girls -- increase at a very
high rate," said Nafsiah, who attended the WHO-sponsored Global
Consultation for Policy Makers on Women and AIDS in Geneva this
month.

Speaking at a press conference which was also attended by non-
governmental organization and women activists on Thursday, she
said some eight million women in their reproductive age are
infected with HIV, 1.3 million of whom live in South and
Southeast Asia.

From almost absent in the 1980's, over 14 million women will
have been infected by the year 2000 and four million of them will
have died, she said. "Every minute every day of the year, two
women become infected by HIV and every two minutes a woman dies
from AIDS." she said.

According to WHO reports, up to 50 percent of all new HIV
infections are in women. Fifty to 60 percent of HIV infections
occur in young people aged 15-24, most of whom are girls, girl
adolescent and young women.

Young women, adolescents and younger girls were especially
vulnerable because many of them -- for a variety of different
reasons, including economic pressure -- are actively involved in
sexual intercourse.

Nafsiah cited that in some cases, older men try to avoid
getting HIV from 'older' prostitutes and opt for young girls
instead. However, many of them may be unaware that they already
have the virus from past relationships and instead of being
infected they transmit the HIV to the female.

"And if a woman gets AIDS, she will almost be certain to have
an HIV-infected baby," Nafsiah added.

She stressed that both women and men had an equal
responsibility in AIDS care and in preventing further
transmission. "Men have to take their fair share of the
responsibility in preventing the spread of AIDS," Nafsiah
stressed.

She said that everyone, regardless of their job, should do
their best in solving the problem.

"Religious leaders must prevent the spread of AIDS by
conveying religious messages to as many people as possible, while
NGO activists can do their share in the anti-AIDS campaign by
promoting condoms for safe sex," she cited.

Changing attitudes, she said, was "very, very, difficult" and
therefore she recommended people to "opt for the AIDS prevention
method which they feel is most suitable to them... be it through
religion, abstinence, or -- if they can't help it -- by using a
condom".

In Indonesia, 280 people have tested positive for HIV.

"But the actual number could be as high as 350,000, judging
from the extremely biased methods of assessment in the country,"
Nafsiah said.

She said that the bias could be seen, for example, in the HIV
tests which are imposed only to female prostitutes.

"What about the male prostitutes and their clients?" she
asked, adding that such discriminations often occurred in
practice although it was not necessarily stipulated in official
policies.

Nafsiah, who is a legislator from Commission VIII of the House
of Representatives which oversees health and welfare issues, said
that integrating anti-AIDS campaigns with campaigns against other
sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs) would be effective.

"People are more familiar with STDs. By integrating AIDS with
other STDs, they will realize that AIDS is not so far-fetched as
they may have thought," Nafsiah said.

She said that in all provinces in Indonesia, STD cases have
significantly shown a sharp increase. She was certain that the
actual number of AIDS/HIV cases in the country could well be much
closer to the number of STD cases than results of HIV tests.

Nafsiah said that changes in the pattern of infection -- which
was once believed to be limited exclusively among homosexuals --
was mainly due to biological conditions, social-cultural
discrimination and economic situations of women.

"Biologically, women are more vulnerable to HIV...This makes
women two to four times more susceptible to an HIV infection
compared to men," Nafsiah said.

She explained that the Consultation in Geneva, which brought
together members of parliaments, representatives of people with
HIV/AIDS, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations
and ministries, concluded that top-level political commitment was
needed to reduce the social vulnerability of women to HIV
infection.

This, she said, could only be achieved by increasing access
and utilization of basic education, health services, legal
protection from exploitation and other services which will
enhance the women's economic independence and security.

The Consultation also recommended that women should be
empowered and encouraged in their own efforts at networking,
information exchange and advocacy so they could protect
themselves and others against HIV infection.

The Consultation saw the importance of the role of the media
in supporting and educating the public to stop the spread of
infection and minimize stigmatization of those with AIDS.

It considered that research was vital to find ways for men and
women to make new and sustained efforts to build effective
alliances, based on mutual respect and for the mutual benefit of
both.