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AIDS has no religion, it`s human - this was the unanimous message conveyed at the Art of Living ashram on Monday and Tuesday. A two-day inter-faith summit organized by the foundation on HIV and AIDS was attended by religious leaders from across the country and abroad. ‘Even today, in rural India, religious leaders have a say. If it comes from them, people meticulously follow it. If they remain ignorant about it and keep condemning the HIV-positive people, there will be more stigma,’ said Sri Sri Ravishankar.

The Indonesian government on Tuesday dismissed a provincial lawmaker’s proposal to force teenage schoolgirls to undergo virginity tests before they can enter state schools. Women’s Affairs Ministry official Wahyu Hartomo said such tests would violate basic human rights and potentially harm the health of young women. ‘That kind of test violates human rights and will have serious psychological impacts on students,’ he said.

The Philippine Government will provide contraceptives to poor couples who request them despite strong opposition from the dominant Roman Catholic Church, President Benigno Aquino 3rd said on Monday. Speaking during a satellite television interview from the United States where he is on a seven-day visit, President Aquino stressed that the number of children a couple had was a matter of personal choice.

More than 100 members of the Islamic Defenders Front launched protests against foreign-run venues participating in Indonesia’s gay and lesbian film festival on Tuesday. The representative said the hard-line group, also known as the FPI, was demanding the center abandon its participation in the film festival.

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) is actively seeking to bridge a funding gap of $17 million to re-establish the basic and comprehensive reproductive health services and set up safe spaces for women and young girls as part of the recovery phase.