Back to basics

Bangalore shows the wisdom of addressing education and healthcare issues before talking about HIV prevention

WANT to talk about HIV? Talk about healthcare, education and empowerment first. That8217;s the message an organisation in Bangalore is sending out8212;and seeing its success other cities may well take it up.

The strategy of Pragati, an umbrella organisation for sex workers, is well-thought out. Latest NACO figures show that there8217;s a 21 per cent prevalence of the disease among sex workers. Experts believe that taking about prevention and condom promotion is actually quite a hurdle in communicating the message of HIV/AIDS. Pragati has figured out that talking about basic issues establishes a certain familiarity with the people. So members called jeevika and Janani visit areas where sex workers operate. They meet up with key informants8212;like paanwalas or even police personnel8212;to assess the scope of functioning in the area.

Field workers visit the areas during the busy hours, try to strike up a rapport with sex workers and get them to the recreation centre or the 8216;hub8217; which has condom vending machines, television sets and restrooms.

8216;8216;We counsel them, ask about their families, assess the healthcare needs and even take literacy classes and provide legal aid if needed, before distributing condoms and talking about HIV/AIDS prevention,8217;8217; says Pushpa, a member.

8216;8216;Issues related to HIV/AIDS cannot be addressed till we look at each person individually. If the individual problems are not tackled then it is hard to tackle the issue of vulnerability. We can8217;t keep on distributing condoms without knowing whether the sex worker is in a position to use them,8217;8217; says Pushpa.

8216;8216;If their minds are always pre-occupied with the main problem of harassment and exploitation at the hands of police, goondas and network operators like pimps, how will they think about HIV/AIDS prevention,8217;8217; asks Shekhar Gowda, Project Coordinator of Pragati.

The NGO also has a Rapid Response Team that works for the victims of harassment or exploitation. The protocol for the team is that it should reach the spot within 30 minutes of the incident being reported to them. The team reports to the field manager who in turns talks to a lawyer. 8216;8216;The complaints filed can be anything from police harassment to being forced into prostitution,8217;8217; says 50-year-old Padmawati, incharge of the Rapid Response Team.

Story continues below this ad

It8217;s not a smooth drive all the way though. A major obstacle in the way of the campaign is that most of the sex workers about 75 per cent don8217;t operate from brothels, unlike Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Katnataka.

But the initiative8217;s importance is not lost in a state where about 1.5 per cent general population is affected with the virus according to state figures NACO puts it at 1.25. Karnataka has attained the 8216;epidemic status8217; since it8217;s one of the six states with over 1 percent of general population estimated to be affected with the disease, the prevalence is as high as 3 to 4 per cent in some areas.

A survey conducted by the Karnataka State AIDS Prevention Society in the high prevalence district of Bagalkot showed that about 17 per cent of married men and 9 per cent of unmarried men claimed to have visited sex workers. The figures also show that each of the sex workers has about eight partners a week.

The district would do well to follow the Bangalore model to combat the disease.