Nearly a quarter of China gays have 100 partners and no AIDS knowledge

The results were shown in the country's first survey of its gay population, conducted by the center of AIDS control and prevention under the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

It showed more than 50 percent of China's estimated five to 10 million gay men have more than one male sex partner, 31.7 percent have one to 10 partners and 22.2 percent have more than 100, the Xinhua news agency said.

Lu Fan, chief of the center of AIDS control and prevention, said among sexually active Chinese men aged 15 to 49, about two to four percent were gay and as many as 1.35 percent were infected with the AIDS virus.

He said the survey showed more than 80 percent of gays were totally ignorant of their exposure to the virus and practiced unprotected sex with multiple partners.

"The gay community is one of the most vulnerable groups, but they have long been ignored in China," he said.

The survey showed 17.4 percent of gay men also had female partners and 12.6 percent of them were married, increasing the likelihood HIV/AIDS would spread,

The survey was conducted in Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province.

Xinhua did not specify how many people were questioned. Information was largely collected from pubs, parks, public bathrooms, squares and cyber cafes.

Lu and other experts cited by Xinhua urged public health authorities and the general public to adopt more balanced attitudes toward homosexuals and make HIV/AIDS knowledge more available.

Many gays in China shy away from revealing their sexual preference for fear of discrimination.

International organisations have warned China faces a potentially catastrophic situation if more is not done to tackle AIDS and educate the public.

Singapore Intensifies Battle Against AIDS

Sat Nov 27, 2004 03:40 PM ET

By Fayen Wong

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore, facing a rise in AIDS cases, is considering making it compulsory for pregnant women to be screened for HIV/AIDS, an official said on Saturday.

"If all mothers had been tested for HIV, and treatment started for HIV positive mothers, the risk of the baby having AIDS would be reduced from 25 percent to 2 percent," said Balaji Sadasivan, senior minister of state for health, at the fourth Singapore AIDS Conference.

Although Singapore has one of the lowest levels of HIV infection in Asia, the number of new infections hit a record high with 257 cases reported in the first 10 months of this year, more than the 242 new cases reported for all of 2003.

Sadasivan said his ministry would focus on educating the public on HIV/AIDS prevention.

The campaign will focus on four areas: encouraging monogamy, the importance of condom use in casual sex, frequent testing for HIV for individuals with multiple sex partners and highlighting that it is a criminal offence to spread AIDS deliberately.

While most of the new HIV cases involved heterosexual men, the Health Ministry said HIV infection among gays has seen a surge over the last year, with 77 cases diagnosed in the first 10 months of this year against 54 for all of last year.

A gay group said a law banning gay sex in Singapore harmed efforts to educate gays about the dangers of unsafe sex.

"Since gay sex is illegal, how then can any agency or organization in Singapore promote safe sex among men ... without being complicit in abetting illegal activity?" Stuart Koe, chief executive officer of Asian gay group Fridae said in a statement on the group's Web site fridae.com.

The United Nations warned earlier this month that Asia-Pacific risks an AIDS crisis similar in scale to Africa's unless governments across the region step up efforts to control the relentless spread of the killer disease.

Singapore has recorded a total of 2,332 HIV infections to date, of whom 874 have died, 564 have full-blown AIDS and 894 show no symptoms.

Report: North Korea expels 27 foreigners carrying HIV virus

North Korea has expelled 27 HIV-positive foreigners and claimed that the isolated communist state remains free of AIDS, a news report said Saturday.

North Korea "is the sole country on the earth that has no AIDS-related patients so far," said the Dec. 4 edition of the Pyongyang Times, a state-run English weekly in North Korea.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency on Saturday reported excerpts of the weekly's interview with Han Kyong Ho, director of Pyongyang's Central Hygienic and Anti-Epizootic Center.

"If any, there were 27 foreigners who turned out to be positive in the test and they were sent home at their request," Han was quoted as saying. It didn't give any details about the foreigners or say when they were expelled.

Han said North Korea has tested more than 400,000 people for AIDS since 1989, and none tested positive except the 27 foreigners.

North Koreans' "sound and moral" lifestyle is a factor keeping them safe from the global epidemic, Han said.

Many of the North Korean statements are impossible to confirm independently. The country remains isolated, although poverty has driven many North Koreans to travel to China to seek food and work in recent years.

Myanmar: Update on HIV/AIDS Policy,* the latest report from the International Crisis Group, describes the country's rate of HIV infection, one of the highest in Asia, as more than an issue of public health. The epidemic has security implications for the country's neighbours, and it also offers an opportunity for the strengthening of civil society inside Myanmar.

"Fighting HIV/AIDS involves intensive ground-level work, so it entails fostering small NGOs and grassroots organisations, the kind of groups that might eventually help prepare for any democratic transition", says Robert Templer, Director of Crisis Group's Asia Program.

For the past two years, the international community has boosted funding and shown more willingness to find ways to help victims and counter the pandemic. While this engagement has not had a transforming impact on either the epidemic or the country's politics, it is possible to point to some positive developments, at least with respect to the former.

The regime remains closed, but some government obstacles have been removed: most critically, the military decided to address the problems of HIV. Also, in a change of heart, the opposition National League for Democracy has supported outside assistance for HIV/AIDS programs.

The international humanitarian response is beginning to help the people of Myanmar develop social structures independent of the regime. Several hundred Myanmar professionals and thousands of community volunteers on HIV are being supported technically and financially by international organisations to conduct grassroots education, counselling and treatment. The transparency, accountability and effectiveness of HIV/AIDS programs in local organisations play a vital role in building an open society. International engagement could also provide benefits in other fields of development such as education, agriculture and reproductive health.

Grave problems remain, however. Government spending on health and education is still perilously low, with the military seriously mismanaging the economy. The recent shake-up in the regime leaves the political future more uncertain than ever.

International assistance must be expanded to border areas, where the HIV problem is particularly intense, and it must boost the country's capacity to tackle HIV, including more technical aid and training. This additional support should be targeted at local and community-based organisations.

Swaziland Army to Reject HIV-Positive Recruits

Thu Dec 16, 2004 09:46 AM ET

MBABANE (Reuters) - The army will not accept HIV-positive recruits in the small southern African kingdom of Swaziland, one of the countries worst hit by the AIDS pandemic, officials said on Thursday.

"The army is experiencing a rise in HIV/AIDS-related illnesses and deaths, and this has adverse effects on the overall mission and preparedness, and may eventually lead to insecurity in the country," the Royal (Swaziland) Defense Force said in a policy statement.

An army spokesman said all army personnel -- including the country's air controllers that are part of the military -- would undergo blood testing in order to enforce the new policy.

Activists slammed the move as discriminatory and also said it would lead to a staffing crisis in the military.

"Army recruitment is likely to suffer, because HIV testing is unpopular, and in Swaziland it is taboo to acknowledge that you are HIV-positive. The army will face a manpower crisis," AIDS activist Thulani Simelane told Reuters.

AIDS denial is still prevalent in Swaziland where nearly 40 percent of the sexually active population between 15 and 49 years of age are HIV positive.

Because of the secrecy surrounding AIDS, no data is available on the number of AIDS-related deaths in 2004, though Swazi health organizations say these have grown substantially.

UNICEF, the United Nations agency that deals with children's affairs, says Swaziland has 69,000 AIDS orphans, a figure that is forecast to double by 2010. Swaziland has a population of just 1 million people.

LONDON - Andy Bell, lead singer of synth-pop duo Erasure, said Wednesday he was feeling fine six years after being diagnosed with HIV.

Bell and former Depeche Mode and Yazoo keyboardist Vince Clarke formed Erasure in 1985 and have had hits including "A Little Respect," "Sometimes" and "Ship of Fools."