HIV/AIDS in the Muslim world
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http://www.aei.org/docLib/20050608_eberstadtNBRreport.pdf (PDF File - 828KB)
This report from the US-based National Bureau of Asian Research takes an unusual look at the HIV/AIDS situation in the Muslim world, highlighting the poor surveillance and inadequate knowledge of the extent of HIV/AIDS.
Excerpt:
What is especially troubling to behold is the reluctance to admit that Muslims engage in exactly those same dangerous behaviors that support the transmission and spread of HIV/AIDS elsewhere. This attitude of denial is deeply rooted in the cultural and religious attitudes of Islam and supported by the many authoritarian regimes that populate the Muslim world. This reluctance even to recognize the problem will only accelerate the epidemic and make it more difficult for the international community to provide meaningful support and treatment. Another sobering implication is that HIV/AIDS is now truly a global crisis in terms of both geography and impact.
In North African, Middle Eastern, and Asian Muslim societies, as in many other places affected by HIV, the disease first became common among IVDUs, homosexuals, and prostitutes and their clientele before spreading into the wider community. In 1999 14% of intravenous drug users in Bogor,Indonesia were infected, and 4.5% of people under treatment for a sexually transmitted infection in Qatar were also found to be HIV-positive. In 2000, twenty percent of female commercial sex workers tested in Dhaka, Bangladesh were found to be HIV positive. Most alarmingly perhaps, in that same year one percent of women reporting to a prenatal health clinic in Tamanrasset, Aalgeria for routine checkups tested HIV positive. This indicates that HIV has already become established enough in the community to infect married women with no known risk factors.
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8 Comments on “HIV/AIDS in the Muslim world”
AIDS is scary, I have AIDS, many of my friends do too, we live in North America where HIV/AIDS is supposedly under control (LOL, HaHa).
http://www.HIVsearch.com is the HIV/AIDS search engine of POZ links only.
http://www.HIVforum.com is the online HIV/AIDS message boards where anyone can post a question and get an answer
http://www.13km.com is the free live HIV/AIDS chat support network (usually always someone logged in to chat with, great way to meet other HIV positive people).
Muslim World are not isolated island in this small World and this World is becoming a small village now. The member of Muslim community is also migrating everyday as like other communities do. So, we should not isolated Muslim community from the World Community. I believe there is only one God and he has created all the human being. Therefore, HIV virus is dangerous for the whole human Community. Better we can say it is harmful for the poor countries than the rich. Because due to poverty people practice many Evil activities and this evil activities including unprocted natural sexual activities are spreading HIV virus. The poor unemployed youth are taking drugs through needle sharing also due to frustration (mainly).
The Muslim majority counties are equally vulnerable concerning AIDS epidemic. Almost all social high –risk groups exist in Muslim community. The CSWs, MSM, Transgender, Drug Users including IDUs, Migrant Workers within countries and Abroad, Moveable professional people, Low paid male & female workers, Religious People (Rate of MSM is higher among this group), Gay goup all are exist in Muslim countries like other non –Muslim counties.
Rather I should say Muslim community is more vulnerable with existing of all these high-risk groups and lack of sexual education in the school or in the society. The absence of proper sexual education among the youth will make the Muslim Community more vulnerable and next AIDS epidemic will be the big problem for Muslim World if they fail to prevent it.