Fight denial to fight the spread of Aids

It might seem counter-intuitive, but in many respects Saudi Arabia and Iran are ahead of the UAE when it comes to tackling HIV/AIDS, as The National reported yesterday.

And for the entire region, a reliance on so-called "religious immunity" often stands in the way of efforts to fight the spread of HIV/Aids, as Dr Khadija Moalla, a regional coordinator for the United Nations Development Programme, said on Tuesday in Dubai.

Relying on moral beliefs alone will not prevent the spread of the disease among women in the region.

While people in a society with stronger traditional and religious mores may be at less risk in general, ignoring the problem because of "immunity" can worsen the dilemma. After all, 80 per cent of women contract the illness from their husbands; these women are not to blamed for their predicament.

But the challenge of confronting widespread denial of the disease cannot be a one-woman struggle: "We need to accept what is happening and stop the denial, not to denounce people but to help them," said Dr Moalla. "We need to accept who is doing what, with whom, and how."

Dr Moalla's warnings about how denial increases risk, backed by statistics, are cause for concern. The Middle East and North Africa is the "only region where knowledge of the epidemic continues to be very limited, inaccessible, and subject to much controversy", according to Akiko Maeda, a manager working on human development at the World Bank.

By 2008, an estimated 412,000 in the region were HIV-positive or suffering from Aids, up from 270,000 in 2001. According to a UAE report to the UN, there were 636 UAE nationals with the disease last year, 476 of whom were men. Though expatriates are tested upon arrival, there are no statistics for how many contract the illness while in residence.

An end to denial is an important first step in combatting HIV/Aids. A greater commitment to providing anti-retroviral treatment and care for all in need is also overdue. Saudi Arabia has built 20 voluntary sexually transmitted disease testing and counselling clinics. Iran's harm-reduction programme includes needle exchanges and condom distribution points.

There have been signs of resistance: countries were asked by the UN to provide data on the percentage of adults who had "more than one sexual partner in the last 12 months who report the use of a condom during their last intercourse". The UAE said this information was "not relevant". For the UAE's response to be effective, obtaining such information is vital.