May 2006

Around the World

France: Late in December the French Parliament passed a measure that will add a tax of about $47 to airline tickets for travelers departing from French airports. The proceeds will be used to fund HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis programs. The tax will be implemented in July. Algeria, Brazil, Britain, Chile, and Norway may implement similar programs.

Mexico: The city of Tijuana has passed a law that requires commercial sex workers to be screened each month for HIV and other STDs. To verify that they have been screened, the city is issuing licenses that resemble a credit card with a photo. A magnetic strip on the back allows health workers to scan the card with a hand-held device that reads the card-holder’s medical status instantly. The regulation also forces brothel owners to operate under more sanitary conditions. Violators face large fines and risk losing their licenses. Although Tijuana has laws against commercial sex work, City Council member Martha Montejano says Tijuana essentially has legalized the industry to combat the spread of disease.

South Africa: Traditional healers in South Africa are being trained to encourage people to get tested for HIV. Traditional healers, called sangomas, act as counselors and supply traditional medicine to four out of five South Africans, according to BBC News. A group of them attended a six-week training workshop at Cape Town’s Tygerberg Hospital, which was organized to combat the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS and “break down barriers of distrust” between traditional healers and Western medical systems.

Swaziland: A nonscientific count of condoms found in the filters at the Ngwane Park sewage pumping facility suggests that condom use has gone up 50% in the past year. Swaziland has one of the world’s highest HIV prevalence rates. However, “there is one caveat,” the director of an HIV/AIDS support group said. “Who uses the sewer system? I would think it would be middle-class and wealthier individuals.”

Uganda: Samite, a popular singer and instrumentalist, is using his music to encourage former child soldiers in Uganda to be tested for HIV. In a report on NPR’s “Day to Day (March 23), Samite said that he is using his music to reach child soldiers and refugees, many of whom are HIV-positive, by gaining their trust and encouraging them to talk with him. He described how by speaking with three young girls, he learned of more than 125 girls who wanted to be tested because of their experiences with rape and abuse.