With the international community’s strong campaign against the virus,
the Philippines still remains one of seven countries with a continued increase
of HIV infections.
Fact is it’s the younger generation who take the biggest blow from the
epidemic. The latest statistics show that 30% of the people diagnosed for
September 2012 alone were 20-29 years of age -- the age where dreams for the
future are cemented and the path towards them are chosen or are already being
taken.
We’re facing a looming threat, and the biggest challenge is how to get
the public to fight with us, or even to just start caring. In a time where
there’s a global decline in the new cases, why are we still on a steep increase
in number?
The low-down on HIV and the
Philippines
The first AIDS case was during the early 1980s. People had a hard time grappling
with it since it was rapidly spreading in the US and it involved a transmission
that is a taboo topic (you guessed it, sex), until now in this Catholic
country. But the advocacy went on, struggling, but it strove to provide correct
information to the public. What was just 1 newly infected person in every 3
days a decade back is now 1 in every 3 hours, and still growing.
Currently, the government is still under the funding of an
international agency, providing support to HIV prevention in priority cities in
the country as well as treatment, care, and support for people living with HIV.
The DOH has been preparing for the departure of its major funder, and is facing
uncertainty as to what the end of the project would mean for the Philippines.
The project helped us equip the social hygiene clinics with free HIV
testing, a handful of hospitals with HIV and AIDS Core Teams to handle people
living with HIV, and provide free ARV treatment (under specific conditions).
On the other hand, the past few years have provided the advocacy with
great allies from the private sector. Organizations like Take The Test, Project
Headshots Clinic, The Love Yourself, Yoga For Life, Society of Transsexual
Women of the Philippines, and other groups have taken on the challenge of
making HIV more than just a health issue, but a social issue.
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| Infographic from AIDS Society of the Philippines, Inc. |
Hopefully not a repeat of the
San Francisco AIDS scare
In the stats, 96% of HIV cases are males.
It might not be known to a lot of people but what is happening to us
here, with the exponential growth of the HIV epidemic, has happened before in
San Francisco during the 80s. It was the time where the virus was not even
known as HIV yet but was called a lot of different names, a couple of the more
famous ones are Gay Related Infectious Disease (GRID) or the “Gay Cancer”. If
you look at the data now, I’m sure you’ll see the similarity.
Just to make things clear, homosexuality does not equate to HIV. What
needs to be seen here is the persistence of the government to deny the public
of the basic means to prevent the spread of the infection. Prioritization
needed: Education for all, acceptance of condoms as one of the best ways to
protect the people, and acknowledging the necessity to have legislation that
will cradle the advocacy for HIV awareness and the care for the positive
community.
The LGBT community in the Philippines has been vehemently trying to
promote HIV awareness, especially since most of the cases are tallied under
infection via homosexual activity. Much like what they’ve clamored for in the
US, they call for the government to allow them to freely express their sexual
rights and recognizing the fact that there is a need to focus on HIV as a
national concern, especially since HIV and AIDS isn’t a “gay disease” but it affects
everyone. Everyone has sex, and doing so unprotected increases the risk not
only of getting HIV, but also of other sexually transmissible infections. And
to quote Ms. Teresita Marie Bagasao, UNAIDS Philippines Country Coordinator,
“If we lift the stigma, lift the discrimination, people will come forward and
participate in finding solutions to the problem.”
HIV, the Internet, and me
The Internet is everywhere, and that’s a fact. The boom of social
networks and the accessibility of mobile internet contribute to satiating the
Filipino’s thirst for being connected with people. One of the drawbacks brought
upon by this innovation is the increase in sexual negotiations. And since the
youth are growing in the world of Android and iOS, ensuring their guidance
about sex and HIV should be a priority.
This was given recognition by the DOH and AIDS Society of the
Philippines, Inc., which paved the way for the promotion of HIV education and
free testing services via social networking sites. As earlier mentioned, the
private sector advocacy groups took to the internet to mount their HIV prevention
advocacies. The AIDS Candlelight Memorial activities that celebrate the lives
of people living with HIV, and World AIDS Day which is the livelier and
awareness advocacy-driven event, are the two events where most of the groups
come together to help out, especially promoting activities online.
On a good note, education has been a lot easier to disseminate because
of the internet. Cool ways of telling people the basics about HIV and how to
stay protected have sprung from the creative minds of people from different
sectors. Photographer to the celebrities Niccolo Cosme has the yearly Project
Headshots Clinic online campaign that features celebrities on portrait shots
that is coupled with statements about how HIV has affected their lives. Much is
to be explored with the presence of the internet, hopefully more of the
positive ones.
Helping out isn’t all too hard anymore as well. All you need do is go
online, and find these organizations. Pretty sure they all have online handles.
What happens next?
That’s pretty much up to you.
According to Dr. Eric Tayag of the Department of Health, the projected
number of HIV cases in the country by 2015 is 30,000 or more.
How do you start? The best way is to have you tested for HIV and
educating yourself about it. HIV testing is the only way one finds out if he or
she has the virus. Knowledge is power, they say, and if you know your status,
you’re well on your way to a better life.
Being HIV positive and knowing it soon is the start of having yourself undergo
the right treatment and is your best springboard to changing your lifestyle to
a healthier way of living. There are also institutions and organizations that
provide support to people living with HIV, both government and private, so
there’s always somewhere to go to. Being HIV negative, however, should be
always taken seriously. Knowing your status and continuously living a risky
sexual lifestyle always puts a target on your wellness, so having a negative
status should be given priority and kept as such.
Education is pretty much the key to ending confusion and disparity
between morality and what is actually happening. Knowing HIV 101 not only gives
people the ammunition for war against the epidemic, it also builds the
foundation to a well-informed country, further preventing another prospective
HIV case.
It’s all about knowing where we stand and why we do the things we do.
People have different reasons for what they do under the sheets, especially
when they’re young. I always say one thing though, explore your sexuality
responsibly.
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For more information, please visit our website aidsphil.org. For your
sexual health needs, contact iCON Clinic at 0917-826-iCON (4266) /
0932-877-iCON (4266). The clinic is open on Saturdays 1pm-9pm.
Article originally posted on MadHouseMNL.
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