Protect Our Children From Prostitution, Sexual Abuse And HIV

Issues: Child prostitution is showing dangerously increasing trend in South-East Asia.

Project: Poverty, economic recession, unemployment, migration, human trafficking continuously push children between 11 – 17 years, mostly girls, into sex trade within an environment where increasing need for virgin sex objects and growing fear of contracting HIV through sex with adults creates strong demand for young children in South-East Asia.  Escalating demand for children in porn industries is an important observation. Child labor and sexual abuse are common phenomenon in unorganized job sectors. Voluntary entry to sex trade by ambitious children for easy ‘pocket money’ is also noted.

Results: There are no recognized evidences to know about the extent of HIV problem among children in prostitution but field experiences and media reports strongly suggest increasing frequency of unprotected sexual activities with children, making them extremely vulnerable to HIV and STI transmission as they are much prone to genital/anal injuries during forceful and violent sexual acts by adult partners.

Lessons learnt: Innocence, helplessness, lack of negotiation capability and adventourism of children is being constantly utilized in making hugely profitable business through extreme level of human right violation by a section of sinful people. We, together, must stop them from continuing this dehumanizing act.

Sugata Mukhopadhyay

(This abstract is submitted to the forthcoming ICAAP'10 Conference)

"I am infected by HIV and I am stopping TB"

Issue: It looks like large number of TB/HIV co-infected cases are being continuously missed in the South-East Asia Region due to inadequacies in TB/HIV collaborative operations.

Project: Community DOTS and home based care programs are not sufficiently linked, hampering early TB case detection in PLWHA. PLWHA networks have overall poor TB orientation. Their representation in TB/HIV coordination bodies is limited. HIV C & T of TB cases is insufficient. TB case detection in HIV high risk groups (sex workers, IDUs) is inadequate. Private providers are not adequately sensitized to strategies and programs of TB/HIV collaboration.

Results: In 2009, only 14% of notified TB cases tested for HIV (N=316,000), 13% of tested was HIV infected. 75% and 52% HIV-infected TB patients started CPT and ART respectively. Only 9% of 3.5 million PLWHA of the region (N=310,000) were screened for TB and 5000 PLWHA put on IPT. HIV prevalence in new TB cases in South-East Asia ranges from less than 0 .1% in Bhutan to 17% in Thailand with average regional prevalence 5.7%.  

Lessons learnt: TB/HIV collaboration must actively involve networks of PLWHA, sex workers, MSM/Transgender and IDUs, private providers and Community DOTS program to timely reach and support adequate number of co-infected cases within unified initiative.

Sugata Mukhopadhyay

(This abstract is submitted to ICAAP' 10 on behalf of UNIVERSAL Health)