Gay network asks P-Noy, other gov’t officials to get tested for AIDS

MANILA, Philippines - A network of gay, bisexual and transgender groups yesterday asked President Aquino, Health Secretary Enrique Ona and other members of the Cabinet to get tested for the AIDS virus to minimize the stigma associated with HIV testing.

According to Dangal National Network president and The Library Foundation executive director Jonas Bagas, the country’s HIV services are severely undermined by the climate of stigma that surrounds the HIV epidemic.

But Bagas believes that if President Aquino and his Cabinet would have themselves examined for the AIDS virus, people would realize there is nothing wrong with the procedure.

“We urge Pres. Aquino, Health Secretary Ona, and other members of the Cabinet to take an HIV test, not because we think that they are at risk of HIV infection, but because they can help correct misconceptions around HIV testing and HIV itself,” he said.

Bagas added that having government officials voluntarily take an HIV test “is a more effective strategy than mandatory testing.”

In a statement, Dangal also said that if these government leaders take the test, they could lend their influence to change the hearts and minds of those who dismiss HIV as a gay disease, and show that HIV infection is nothing but a chronic condition that can be managed and treated.

“It is no death sentence, and it is not a punishment for homosexuals. If President Noynoy and Secretary Ona could speak up against these prejudices by taking the test to show that it is a clinical procedure that can save lives, then that would already be a crucial contribution to our efforts to dismantle stigma and discrimination around HIV and AIDS,” the group said.

Based on the Department of Health (DOH)’s Philippine HIV and AIDS Registry, there have been 11,125 HIV cases in the country from 1984 to October 2012. The figure includes 1,130 AIDS cases and 353 deaths.

Of the 11,125 cases, 10,235 were infected through sexual contact while 433 were injecting drug users who shared infected needles; 59 through mother-to-child transmission; 20 through blood transfusion and three through needle prick injury.

And of the 10,235 sexual contacts, 4,288 were through homosexual contacts; 3,254 were through heterosexual contact and 2,693 were through bisexual contacts.

The DOH had observed a shift in the “predominant trend of sexual transmission from heterosexual to men having sex with men (MSM) since 2007.”

Teresita Marie Bagasao, of the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), said taking an HIV test “is not something that people should be worried about” and that in other countries, it is supported by political leaders by setting a “national day for testing.”

“It’s normal if you want to know if you’re healthy...So it’s more symbolic coming from leaders to do that,” Bagasao said.

It is estimated that only around 30 percent of those at risk for HIV get themselves tested. One fourth of those who underwent examination also no longer go back to get the results.

“It is a good call to action. Take the test at the highest level, not so much because they may be at risk but to dispel (the stigma). When you have decided to take the test, it is already an action whether the society is discriminating or not,” she said.

Bagas said stigma has made it difficult to encourage HIV testing – “a crucial aspect of HIV prevention” – among MSM.

Dangal stressed that it is opposed to the idea of making HIV testing mandatory.

“Mandatory testing is not only illegal, but more importantly, it is ineffective and will only worsen stigma around HIV. If you force gays, bisexuals, and transgender people to undergo HIV testing, you will only push the community underground and will expose them to graver forms of abuse,” the group said.