AIDS: Persistent Policies Will Keep The Promise

This news updete by www.thearynews.com



By Muhammad Khalid Shuja

KARACHI: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) Day is observed every year to create awareness among the people across the globe, the day provides an opportunity to governments, national AIDS programs, organizations and individuals to raise awareness and draw attention of the vulnerable segments of the society and regions towards this menace.

The theme for this year’s AIDS day is "Leadership” promoted with the campaigning slogan, "Stop AIDS, Keep the Promise."

Pakistan, the second most populous Muslim nation in the world, has started to finally experience and confront the HIV/AIDS epidemic as according to officials in National AIDS Programme, there are some 80,000 people suffering in HIV/AIDS.

But according to international institutions the number stands at 1,25,000, as they claimed the number of registered HIV/AIDS patients in Pakistan is quite low.

Unfortunately the virus finally seems to have found a home-base in Pakistan which rang the siren for authorities concerned and also for the organizations working to stop HIV spread, as evidenced by the recent HIV outbreaks among the injection drug user community.

Extremely high-risk behavior has also been documented among Hijras (sex workers) and long-distance truck drivers.

Pakistan, as compared to its neighbors, has remained relatively safe from any indigenously acquired cases of HIV for about two decades. The first full-fledged HIV outbreak happened in the remote desert town of Larkana, the HIV bubble-burst took place amongst the injection drug user (IDU) community.

The weak government response coupled with the extremely distressing social demographics will also helps to compound the problem and if not properly treated and taken care off on time we could lose war against this epidemic like many other countries in the world already has after which they trying to fight back, but in our we case fortunately we still have some time at our hands.

The World AIDS day is an opportunity to highlight need for continued development of education and prevention initiatives. On the other hand, Pakistan despite utilizing billion of rupees for eradication of AIDS could not assertion the exact number of people suffering in the deadly disease.

The national AIDS Programme rather then utilizing money to eradicate this menace in Pakistan is wasting money on different dramas and ceremonies in five star hotels. Experts fear that if the situation continues then HIV/AIDS would be uncontrolled in Pakistan, so this attitude of Government, organizations and intellectuals should change now.

The time is ripe now to prepare in advance, to take the appropriate measures to curtail further spread of the disease. If this opportunity is not utilized right now, little if at all could be done later.

In 1988, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the first World AIDS Day in an effort to raise public awareness about HIV/AIDS issues, including the need for support and understanding for people living with HIV, while the first reports of HIV in Pakistan in 1987 implicate contaminated blood transfusions as one of the culprits.

The virus had finally found a home-base, as evidenced later by outbreaks all over the nation so in the wake of the grave situation Pakistan Government should take step which are more appropriate and steady while common public should also joins hands to counter this danger and only then Pakistan would be able to curtail the rate of HIV in Pakistan and would be able to give better and safe future for generations to come.



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