DOH, DepEd Nix Condom Distribution in Schools
The Manila Bulletin, Philippines, 1/31/2017
Both the Department of Health and Department of Education agreed not to push through with the condom distribution in schools. Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Ubial said on January 31 that the distribution of condoms in schools is no longer the primary consideration of her department. ‘The recommendation to involve schools to provide services to improve condom access is not anymore a primary consideration after DOH and DepEd agreed to take a different path but which shall still complement each other’s prerogatives. The DepEd will focus on HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) information and education where appropriate while DOH will work with other partners to ensure information is linked to service provision including but not limited to condom access,’ Ubial noted.
India’s Largest LGBT Pride March Held in Mumbai
The Indian Express - Mumbai, India, 1/30/2017
Queer Azaadi Mumbai organised India’s largest LGBT pride parade in Mumbai on January 28. Approximately 10,000 people walked from August Kranti Maidan as part of the parade. ‘The gay Pride is an occasion to celebrate the freedom to be who you are and feel proud of the sexual orientation you are born with. The Mumbai Gay Pride started almost a decade ago is the largest pride in India by the name of Queer Azadi March and has become like an international festival attracting lots of foreigners across the globe. It started from the August Kranti Maidan where the Quit India Movement started in 1942 signifying the freedom for the LGBT rights movement of India,’ said Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil, Brand Ambassador of AHF India Cares. AHF India was one of many organisations to participate in this year’s parade.
Top Solon Seeks Repeal of AIDS Prevention Act
The Manila Standard, Philippines, 1/29/2017
A House leader has raised concern over the World Health Organization report that 70 million people have been infected with HIV since the beginning of the epidemic and about 35 million have died because of it. House deputy speaker and AAMBIS-Owa Rep. Sharon Garin said there is a need for Congress to take a drastic action to address the problem. Garin called for a repeal of Republic Act 8504 or the Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act that was passed in 1998. Under RA 8504, minors are prohibited from accessing HIV testing and other related services without written parental or guardian consent - a legal barrier Deputy Speaker Garin wants removed.
Matibini Calls for Sustained and Contextualised Sexual Reproductive Health Response
The Lusaka Times, Zambia, 1/29/2017
Speaker of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini has called for sustained and contextualised Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) response at national level. Dr. Matibini has since implored Members of Parliament (MP) to influence change to advance sexual reproductive health, HIV and AIDS and governance issues. ‘We have to endeavour to unpack the concept of SRH and present it to MPs in plain, simple terms as it will ultimately help the general public fully appreciate the concepts involved in sexual reproductive rights as well as matters of HIV and governance,’ he said.
Punjab Home to Majority of Pakistan’s AIDS Patients
The Express Tribune - Lahore, Pakistan, 1/28/2017
Due to the government’s lack of interest and public ignorance, HIV and AIDS has become a silent killer in most parts of Punjab. The majority of people diagnosed are at the last stage of the infection and that too after coming in contact with several people, The Express Tribune has learnt. According to data compiled by the Punjab Health department, a staggering 52,000 of the total 90,000 or so people living with HIV in the country are from the province. According to a government report, certain parts of Punjab, including Lahore, Dera Ghazi Khan, Multan, Rawalpindi, Gujrat, Faisalabad and Sargodha are among the vulnerable areas.
Sex Workers Oppose Anti-Trafficking Bill
The Telegraph - New Delhi, India, 1/27/2017
Maneka Gandhi's draft anti-trafficking bill is facing stiff opposition from sex workers, who claim it has failed to consider a top court panel's recommendation that they be included in the fight against the menace. One major area of concern in the draft bill is that it has no provision for sex work done with consent or voluntary sex work. All acts listed as offences presuppose that doing sex work always entails trafficking and can never be voluntary. ‘The bill virtually equates trafficking with sex work. Despite a Supreme Court panel report recommending that sex workers be made a stakeholder in the process of inclusion and mainstreaming, the bill keeps us out,’ said Kusum, the president of the All India Network of Sex Workers at a news conference.
Group Wants Abortion Pills Approved to Cut Health Risks
The Malay Mail Online - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 1/26/2017
A reproductive rights group told the Health Ministry on January 26 to fast-track the approval and supply of abortion drugs so these may be safely prescribed to women. The Reproductive Rights Advocacy Alliance Malaysia (RRAAM) also rejected claims that abortion drugs such as mifepristone and misoprostol are banned in the UK and US, pointing out that they are widely used for early abortions and approved in 1991 and 2000 in both countries respectively. ‘We agree with the minister that, ideally, these drugs should be prescribed by a doctor who has assessed the client’s suitability for medical abortion,’ RRAAM co-chair Dr SP Choong said in a statement, referring to Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam.
Pakistani Female Lawmaker Harassed in Parliament
The Times of India - Karachi, Pakistan, 1/25/2017
A Pakistani female lawmaker threatened to self-immolate after she was harassed by male colleagues in parliament, telling AFP that the widely-publicised incident shows how laws to protect women are not being enforced. Nusrat Sahar Abbasi, an MP in Sindh province, spoke of her fury after provincial minister Imdad Pitafi invited her to his private chambers on the floor of the assembly on January 20 in comments seen as sexual harassment in conservative Pakistan. She said she protested strongly but the deputy speaker of the assembly, also a woman, refused to take any action. A frustrated Abbasi was then pictured on January 21 holding a small bottle said to be of petrol and threatening to self-immolate if action was not taken. Federal party chiefs were forced to intervene as the incident exploded on social media, with Pitafi finally caving to the pressure and apologising in the assembly while offering Abbasi a chador, or veil, as a mark of his respect.
Unsafe Abortions Kill 10 Women Every Day in India, Say Experts
The Huffington Post - Jaipur, India, 1/24/2017
Ten women die of unsafe abortions every day in India which sees nearly 68 lakh pregnancy terminations every year, with Rajasthan accounting for about 40,000 of them, experts said on January 24. Unsafe abortion is the third leading cause of maternal deaths in the country, contributing eight per cent of all such deaths annually, said Karuna Singh of state programme manager of IPAS Development Foundation (IDF), an organisation dedicated to ending preventable deaths and disabilities from unsafe abortion. It is estimated that 68 lakh abortions occur in the country every year and only a small percentage is related to sex selections, Singh said, adding that to facilitate faster decline in the overall maternal mortality, it is imperative that access to safe abortion is made available so that no woman has to die or suffer disabilities.
Trinidad to Host Consultation Aimed at Ending HIV and AIDS by 2030
Jamaica Observer - Georgetown, Guyana, 1/23/2017
On February 1-2, 2017 Trinidad and Tobago will host a consultation on ending HIV and AIDS in the Caribbean by 2030. Pan Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP) and Caribbean Faith Leaders are organising the event, which is being funded by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and AIDS HealthCare Foundation. The consultation will focus on addressing the recommendations made at the UN 2016 Political Declaration. Leaders from different religions across the Caribbean have expressed interest in attending the event. ‘It will allow us as leaders to examine how we can reach beyond our own sphere of influence and provide support to people who are not members of our community,’ said Lorna McPherson, a member of the Executive Planning Committee for the Caribbean Faith Leaders Consultation.
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