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Cumulative reported HIV, AIDS and AIDS deaths: cases, incidence rates and gender, plus cases with missing details; All Pacific Island Countries and Territories to December 2009
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Launched in 2008, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign is a multi-year effort aimed at preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls in all parts of the world. It was developed to support and strengthen efforts in the region to end violence against women and girls. Asia-Pacific UNiTE aims to raise public awareness and to increase political will and resources for preventing and responding to violence against women and girls in the Asia-Pacific region. The campaign seeks to create a favourable and supportive environment for governments, in partnership with civil society, experts, entities of the United Nations system and other stakeholders to fulfill existing policy commitments.
Resource | Publications,
Asia has all the ingredients for a full-blown epidemic among men who have sex with men and transgenders. Evidence points to an increasing prevalence among men who have sex with men and transgenders (MSM/TGs) in many Asian countries. In many countries, evidence points to a sexual flip in the mode of transmission, with MSM/TGs becoming the face of the epidemic than heterosexuals.
As HIV prevalence rise among MSM/TGs in Developed Asia, it becomes crucial to map out existing HIV/AIDS services for MSM/TGs and scope the capabilities and engagements of existing organizations. This baseline project aims to:
1. Produce an organizational database of groups, community organizations, and institutions that provide HIV/AIDS services for MSM/TGs in their respective countries or territories, from prevention, treatment, care and support to stigma reduction advocacy work;
2. Aggregate findings on the state of preventive measures for MSM/TGs that are being implemented in the target countries and territories and identify the strengths and weaknesses of these responses, and;
3. Identify MSM/TG-related issues to present a general and qualitative analysis of situation of the community in their respective countries and cull needs for further action.
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Gender-based violence (GBV) is well recognised as a human rights violation and a public health problem with legal, social, cultural, economic and psychological dimensions. Violence against women and girls cuts across class, race, religion and ethnicity and is today no longer viewed as a private matter. Among the impacts are a wide range of health consequences including sexually transmitted infections (STIs), HIV and AIDS, unintended pregnancies, psychological disorders, deprival of sexual and reproductive rights and diminished well-being. The severe costs of violence against women incurred by children, families, communities and the state are thus well demonstrated and thoroughly documented by the data.
A multi-sectoral response is required to offer comprehensive support to women who suffer violence. In particular, it is probable that no other sector has a greater opportunity to aid women survivors of violence than the health sector.
Resource | Publications,
According to the United Nations Joint Program on HIV/AIDS, 33.2 million adults and children are living with the infection worldwide. Of these, two or three million are estimated to be in South Asia. All countries of the region have a low prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, it is important to review the current epidemiological data to identify the trends of infection as it would have implications on prevention.
This review looks into many aspects of HIV infection in South Asia including country profiles with regard to infection, economic and psychological burden of illness and treatment issues in the South Asian context.
Legal Environments, Human Rights and HIV Responses among MSM and Transgender in Asia and the Pacific
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A study was conducted of legal environments affecting HIV responses among men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender people in 48 countries and territories of the Asia and Pacific region. The study was conducted from August 2009-June 2010, and considered legislation, cases, and published research and grey literature regarding laws, and law enforcement policies and practices. The study was informed by consultations with community representatives, legal experts and UN agencies.
The study was undertaken to fill gaps in knowledge about (i) the effects of laws and law enforcement policies and practices on HIV responses among MSM and transgender people, and (ii) the role of civil society organizations, governments, donors, UN agencies and other multilateral agencies in supporting improvements to legal environments affecting MSM and transgender people. The study highlights examples of good practice.
Resource | Publications,
A significant number of men having sex with men in the Asia Pacific region do not have access to HIV prevention and care services as HIV prevalence has reached alarming levels in many countries. If countries fail to address the legal context of the epidemic, this already critical situation is likely to become worse. The implementation of effective, human rights-based national HIV responses requires governments to consider the effect of laws and law enforcement practices on the health of men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender persons.
The report's findings and follow up discussion showed that 19 of 48 countries in the Asia Pacific region criminalize male to male sex, and these laws often taken on the force of vigilantism, often leading to abuse and human rights violations. Even in the absence of criminalization, other provisions of law often violate the rights of MSM and transgender persons along with arbitrary and inappropriate enforcement, thereby obstructing HIV interventions, advocacy and outreach, and service delivery. This very debate was at the heart of the recent landmark ruling by the Delhi High Court that Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code unfairly discriminates against men who have sex with men and consenting adults in general.
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Since the first case of HIV in the region was reported in 1984, there have been various responses at regional and national levels. One major landmark was the endorsement of the Pacific Regional Strategy on HIV and AIDS (2004–2008) by the Pacific Leaders Forum in 2004. The endorsement by the region’s leaders has facilitated the mobilisation of resources to support the strategy’s implementation.
The Pacific Regional Strategy on HIV and other STIs (2009–2013) will build on the successes and strengths of previous work and address some of the challenges in supporting national efforts to prevent and control HIV. Simultaneously, because other STIs are a key risk factor for the transmission of HIV in the Pacific, the strategy will support national efforts to combat them. It will also strengthen work at the regional level through improved coordination, collaboration and partnerships between regional organisations and national programmes.
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Current statistics likely describe only a fraction of men who have sex with men (MSM) at risk for HIV. There are many more MSM than those who identify as gay or transgender. In Asia, as in many other places in the world, there are men who have sex with both men and women but do not identify as gay or do not associate any particular identity with their sexual behavior. The Asian Epidemic Model estimates that there are 10 million MSM in Asia, some of whom have sex with women or are married. It also predicts that if HIV prevention does not improve from 2007 levels, MSM will soon account for the largest proportion of people living with HIV in Asia. Despite these alarming estimates, rates of HIV infection among MSM in Asia and the Pacific have largely been hidden.
This report summarizes an assessment that was carried out in early 2009 to identify priorities for operations research to better understand effective models for HIV prevention, treatment, care, and support among MSM in Asia and the Pacific.
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This background paper reviews progress made in the Asian and Pacific region in line with international commitments, with particular attention to the Universal Access targets developed for low and concentrated epidemic countries in Asia and the Pacific through regional and civil society consultations in 2006. Based on these findings, the paper also reviews the main challenges and identifies ways forward in scaling up the response to HIV.
The paper draws on information from the 2008 country reports prepared to measure progress towards the targets set out in the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS at the United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) in 2001. The quality of available data varies and should be considered indicative of progress and trends only. Where appropriate, data is supplemented by information from the UNAIDS 2007 December Epidemic Update and other published sources.