AIDS
health&fitness health&fitness
T
here are two ways to go about
AIDS
doing a story. Access avail-
able information and build
an article on that. The second
is building an article on the lack of
information.
To observe the month of AIDS Aware-
ness (December), this piece does both. It
AIDS
is first an article about HIV/AIDS, You
and What You Should Know.
It is also an article about What We
Don’t Know – about the Bubble We
Live In.
A couple of years ago, a local Arabic
AIDS
daily carried a full page first person ac-
count of an HIV infected Qatar resident.
He blamed his plight on lack of aware-
ness and the continuing denial that
HIV/AIDS could be a problem here.
And that was the end of that story – at
least in public view.
AIDS & YOU -
Do we believe that that was the
beginning and end of the STD (Sexu-
ally Transmitted Diseases) saga in the
country?
The levels of complacency and denial
amongst people in the region is frighten-
The Cold,
ing, to put it mildly.
Having participated in HIV/AIDS
awareness campaigns in college, and hav-
ing covered and written about the issue
Hard Facts
of HIV/AIDS in India (with amongst the
highest populations of infected people in
the world) for over six years, the attitude
in Qatar is a dreaded echo of what I saw
back in the sub-continent.
Development indicators apart, socially
and culturally the sub-continent and the
Gulf share far too many similarities: con-
servative, family-oriented societies where
problems are tackled first by brushing it
under the carpet, then with a knee-jerk
reaction, and finally with thought.
India was forced to face increasing
infections and AIDS-related deaths, and
begin a campaign to control and prevent
its spread.
Fortunately for Qatar things have not
come to such a head. But it well may,
if we continue to bury our head in the
desert sands.
AIDS and the Middle East
The Middle East and North Africa have
December 2005 44
Talking AIDS with your Kids
This is why you need to roll up your sleeves, drop your inhibitions and stop minc-
ing words with your kids.
One study shows that 25 percent of all new HIV infections are in young people
under the age of 22. So have that “sex talk” with your adolescent sooner than
later. Stress that abstinence is the only 100 percent prevention, but power them
with knowledge.
About three million teens contract a sexually transmitted disease each year, and
talking to your child will help bring that number down, one child at a time.
It is crucial, but not easy. Here is a 10-point approach towards frank discus-
sion on HIV/AIDS with your teen or pre-teen.
1. Before starting any conversation, know what information you want to give
your child and how you want to present it.
2. Review the facts about HIV & AIDS prior to talking with your child. It is es-
sential that you give them accurate and current HIV information.
3. To get the ball rolling, find a common starting point that both you and your
child are comfortable with. Examples of this include research for a school project,
topics of television programs and commercials, current event news from maga-
zines of newspapers or a comment made by a celebrity.
4. Be honest with your child. If you are uncomfortable with the subject matter
chances are they are too. Share your feelings with them. The feelings of you both
can become a common link that will make the discussion easier.
5. Be positive and not punitive. If the child senses your discussion is a lecture or
a reprimand, they are most likely to tune out.
6. Listen to what they have to say and encourage them to share their thoughts
and feelings.
7. While it might be hard not to judge, try and understand your child’s point of
view. Even if you don’t agree or share the same opinion, allowing them to express
theirs without judgement is essential to getting your message across.
8. Be prepared to hear things you may not want to hear from your child such as
their thoughts about sex and past sexual encounters.
9. Acknowledge the difficulties of peer pressure. Urge your child to use their
own judgement when making difficult decisions.
10. Provide them with educational material or web sites where they can learn
in private. They may be more comfortable with this type of learning which will
improve their retention and understanding of the subject matter.
largely escaped the global AIDS epi- and history, University of Illi-
demic. UNAIDS (Joint United Nations nois-Chicago and the founder
Programme on HIV/AIDS) reports that of the Global Network of
at the close of 2003, there were 480,000 Researchers on HIV/AIDS in
adults and children living with HIV/ the Middle East and North
AIDS in the Arab world, Iran, Israel Africa.
and Turkey. Compared to sub-Saharan “UNAIDS estimates that 75,000
Africa, where there are approximately 25 people from the Middle East and North
million cases, or South and Southeast Africa were newly infected with HIV/
Asia, where there are approximately 6.5 AIDS in 2003 alone, while 24,000 adults
million, this number is tiny – about one and children died from the disease in the
percent of the world’s caseload. same year. Moreover, the quality of the
But this low number offers no cause available data is seriously lacking. No
for celebration, says Sandy Sufian, an country in the Middle East and North
assistant professor of medical humanities Africa conducts systematic surveys of
december 2005 45
health&fitness
groups at high risk of infection. As a
consequence, the UNAIDS estimate of
the total number of HIV/AIDS cases in
the region lies within a very broad range
of possible cases, from 200,000 to 1.4
million people,” she points out.
AIDS in Qatar
The Gulf states have also begun to ad-
dress HIV/AIDS, according to the same
UNAIDS reports.
Oman reports collaboration among
many sectors of society and boasts of a
National AIDS Technical Committee
and a National AIDS Health Education
Committee. The government does not
promote sex education for young people
due to “cultural and religious traditions,”
although condoms are provided free of
charge at supermarkets, family planning
clinics and private pharmacies.
Saudi Arabia has established an
HIV/AIDS Health Education Com-
mittee that includes governmental and
non-governmental agencies. It has not,
however, integrated the HIV/AIDS issue
into general development plans.
The Saudis have instituted health
programmes for at-risk populations
and reproductive and sex education
programmes in schools. Saudi Arabia
also supplies anti-retroviral therapy for
infected pregnant women.
But here is the spin on Qatar. Accord-
ing to the report, the government pro-
vides limited programmes like screening
of HIV patients’ families, tuberculosis
patients, school lectures and anti-retrovi-
ral therapy but does not have a compre-
hensive, multi-sectoral programme or a
coordinating agency.
They do pre-screen foreign labour for
the virus upon entry to the country as
well as new army recruits, but they do
Women and AIDS
not screen pregnant women. Stigma
In western countries, women are four
associated with HIV/AIDS and at-risk
times more likely to contract HIV
populations remains a major problem,
through vaginal sex with infected males
according to the UNAIDS report.
than vice versa. This biological vulner-
When Woman Today tried drawing
ability is worsened by social and cultural
comments and collecting local data, it
factors that often undermine women’s
drew a blank. Even the Hamad Medical
ability to avoid sex with partners who are
Corporation website did not return any
HIV-infected or to insist on condom use.
data for search on HIV/AIDS and other
STDs.
health&fitness
Religious leaders roped in Should I Get
A couple of months ago, a sub-regional workshop in Yemen discussed the role of
religious leaders in HIV/AIDS prevention.
Breaking the silence surrounding HIV/AIDS is a prerequisite for understanding the
Tested?
If you think you might have been
true scope of the problem and therefore becoming more capable of addressing it. exposed to HIV, you should get tested
Distinguished religious leaders from Yemen, Somalia, Djibouti and Sudan dis- as soon as possible. Here’s why:
cussed ways to enhance their role in the prevention of HIV/AIDS. * Even in the early stages of infec-
The workshop capitalised on the work of the previous regional meeting of tion, you can take concrete steps to
religious leaders in Cairo in December 2004 which reviewed the first draft of the protect your long-term health. Many
Guide. The Guide was designed to assist religious leaders from across the region in physicians still recommend a “hit early
contributing more effectively to the fight against HIV/AIDS. and hit hard” approach to anti-HIV
therapy.
The four-day workshop was jointly organised by the Regional Programme on
HIV/AIDS for Arab States (RPHAS) of the United Nations Development Programme * But even if you don’t begin taking
(UNDP), the Steering Committee of the Religious Leaders Initiative to Combat HIV/ medications right away, regular check-
AIDS in the Arab World and UNDP’s office in Yemen. ups with a doctor who has experience
The workshop brought together imams, lecturers and religious leaders from the with HIV/AIDS will enable you (and
four participating countries. It sensitised these religious authorities to basic facts your family members or loved ones)
about the disease, the causes of its spread, the symptoms and implications of the to make the best decisions about how
disease. Moreover, some statistical data about the spread of the virus at both the and when to begin treatment, without
The Qatar page on UNAIDS website
international and regional levels were shared with participants. waiting until you get sick.
* Taking an active approach to man-
In his statement during the opening of the workshop, Sheikh Yahya Al-Najjar, the mated by UNAIDS in the Middle will somehow avert an
Deputy Yemeni Minister of Endowment and Religious Affairs, stressed the impor- aging HIV may give you many more
East and North Africa, approximately HIV/AIDS epidemic.
tance of the role of religious leaders in establishing moral and safe behaviours, years of healthy life than you would
220,000 were women. Young people But, in the words of the
thereby sparing communities from the scourges of epidemics. He also emphasised otherwise have.
form an at-risk group because of their report, “low prevalence * If you are HIV-positive, you will be
the necessity to treat HIV-positive as patients, regardless of the initial cause of their
infection, as a cornerstone in all humane and religious Islamic principles. Equally common risk-seeking behaviours like does not equate to low risks.” able to take the precautions neces-
important, to Al-Najjar, is the central goal of breaking the silence surrounding HIV/ taking drugs, having multiple sex Current scientific knowledge about sary to protect others from becoming
AIDS which is a prerequisite for understanding the true scope of the problem and partners or sexually experimenting, HIV/AIDS transmission shows that once infected.
therefore becoming more capable of addressing it. and failing to use condoms. Scientific infection rates exceed “a certain thresh- * If you are HIV-positive and
pregnant, you can take medications
“It is important to preserve the unique spiritual values of this region,” Khadija evidence has shown that individuals with old, the virus spreads very fast, some-
Mulla, the Regional Coordinator of RPHAS indicated at the opening of the work- and other precautions to significantly
sexually transmitted infections also have times increasing by as much as tenfold in
shop. Mulla pointed out that reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS in the region reduce the risk of infecting your
increased susceptibility to HIV/AIDS. five years as has been the case in several
requires bold and timely action “to prevent diseases from turning into serious epi- infant, including refraining from
Strong taboos attached to HIV/AIDS southern African countries.” breast-feeding.
demics”. She also warned against treating the disease as if it is a Godly punishment
for committed sins – a common myth to which many religious leaders in Muslim in the Middle East and North Africa Calculating that threshold is com-
countries were trapped. Furthermore, Mulla reiterated that the region is in a race make it hard to measure the scope of the plicated. According to Joan MacNeil,
with the disease, with trends pointing towards increased number of cases in the problem and plan accordingly. Extreme senior HIV/AIDS Specialist for the
future if complacency is to dominate at this stage. Finally, she called upon religious stigma not only marginalises those who Global HIV/AIDS Programme of The
leaders to reach out by all possible means to the most vulnerable segments of the are HIV-positive but also inhibits people World Bank Group, an epidemic thresh-
society to the disease. from going for testing in the first place. old is reached when enough critical mass
The workshop provided a forum for discussion on the role of religious leaders in
of risk behaviours and contributing
changing behaviours and thus, social environments to become better equipped to
Assumptions and Denials biological factors exists in a population
combat the disease, to ensure that people living with HIV/AIDS are not isolated,
excluded or subjected to discrimination or deprivation from inalienable human and According to a 2003 World Bank to sustain an epidemic.
religious rights. report, probably the most substantial “This is described scientifically by the
research document on HIV/AIDS in concept of reproductive rate, which is
the Middle East and North Africa, the the number of new infections generated presence of other sexually transmitted
risk for HIV/AIDS contrac-
assumption of low rates of infection has by each current infection. The threshold infections...”
tion because of their fre-
led governments to dismiss the disease is exceeded when the reproductive rate At base, the threshold is usually
quently weakened negotiating
as an insignificant problem or exhibit exceeds one. This means that, if infected designated as, and equal to, a 5 percent
power in sexual relations with
complacency in taking action. Many individuals, on average, infect more than infection rate in most countries. If gov-
their husbands to practice safe
governments faced with pressing crises of one additional person in their lifetimes, ernments delay action, scholars believe
sex (who may also be having sex
housing, employment and education see the epidemic will be sustained and grow. the trend witnessed in other regions
with female sex workers or with
HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment as However, the threshold can be influ- will likely recur in the Middle East and
men) as well as their relative lack of
low priority. Other governments believe enced by the size of risk populations, North Africa.
knowledge about the HIV/AIDS virus.
Women worldwide are particularly at that social and cultural conservatism type and frequency of risk behaviour, – By Vani Saraswathi
Of the 480,000 infected people esti-
December 2005 46 december 2005 47