The International AIDS Memorial Day theme this year ‘Leading the Way to a World Without AIDS’ calls for decisive action to protect the next generation against HIV/AIDS. And the world must act now if it is to reverse the spread of the disease by 2015. Unicef’s INDRA NADCHATRAM gives us the sad facts. TWENTY-one-year-old Tasha (not her real name) is excited about her future. Like her friends, she has dreams of being the best she can, of finding love and having her own family. Tasha is also HIV-positive. The psychology undergraduate is one of 1,705 young people in Malaysia who was infected with HIV before the age of 19. Like many others, Tasha’s scanty knowledge of HIV/ AIDS was liberally peppered with myths. "I thought you could only get HIV from a drug addict or prostitute because those were the messages I got," she says. "My ex-boyfriend comes from a good family, like me. He was pursuing a law degree in the UK. I didn’t even think of HIV when we decided to have sex." Despite almost 30 years of lessons learnt in the history of HIV/ AIDS, tragically, it seems as if the virus is winning on all fronts. With each passing year, HIV is becoming a disease of the young and those most vulnerable. According to the United Nations’ lead agency on HIV/AIDS, UNAIDS, one young person between the age of 15 and 25 gets infected with HIV every 15 seconds. Of the 40 million people living with HIV today, at least a third are young people below 25.

Sex education

The picture is no less grim in Malaysia. Like in most parts of the world, young people here account for an increasing number of HIV infections every year. Health Ministry statistics in June last year revealed that almost 38 per cent of the 73,427 HIV cases involve youngsters between the ages 13 and 29. A lack of knowledge is a major contributing factor in the spread of HIV and the related stigma, with cultural sensitivities often preventing an open discussion. "There was hardly any sex education in school. We learnt a little during biology classes but my teacher was so embarrassed to talk about it and this made my friends and I really uncomfortable," Tasha says sadly. "I wish my teacher had taught me the facts. I probably would not be HIV-positive today if I knew more."

Understanding teens

Tasha’s story should be a lesson to all those involved in the prevention of HIV. To do right by our young, we must first understand the reasons as to why they are especially vulnerable. Adolescence is a time marked by emerging feelings, discovery and exploration of new behaviours and relationships. It is a time when youngsters feel the need to test boundaries. Expectations "imposed" by family, peers and society and the need for acceptance can lead them astray. The experiences of the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) prove that prevention programmes targeting young people could significantly help curtail the AIDS epidemic. Establishing a healthy lifestyle during adolescence is critical in keeping the young safe and much easier than having to change risky behaviour later on. In Malaysia, Unicef is working with the Education Ministry to introduce HIV Life Skills-Based Education into the school system. In a pilot programme in 2005 and last year, teachers from 20 schools in Kedah were trained in personal and social development as well as prevention of health and social problems such as drug abuse and HIV/AIDS to benefit an estimated 5,000 schoolchildren. By demonstrating the effectiveness of the pilot project in Kedah, Unicef will support the expansion of HIV/AIDS prevention programmes to other states.

Beating the virus

It is hoped that the government’s commitment, with the support of non-governmental organisations, religious bodies, the private sector and the media, will change the trend of HIV in the country. But while it may seem as if it’s too late for Tasha, the young woman is determined to rise above her condition. "I won’t let this virus beat me. I was depressed when I found out that I was HIV-positive. But I have the best parents in the world and they have helped me find new hope," she says passionately. "I’ve learnt that my self-esteem is precious, so are my dreams. I’m going to have the best time possible and be the best that I can be."

Change behaviour and protect lives

HIV is threatening our young people and children like never before. Globally, an estimated 2.3 million children below 15 are now living with HIV. Last year alone, an estimated 530,000 children below 15 were infected with the virus and som 380,000 have died from AIDS-related causes. Statistics show that children below 15 and young people between 15 and 24 account for half of all new HIV infections. In Malaysia, the mother-to-child transmission rate has increased six-fold since 1991, from 0.2 per cent to 1.2 per cent in 2005. That means nearly 900 out of the 73,427 known HIV infections occur among newborn babies here — an arguably negligible figure? Definitely not, says Dr Sharad Sapra, the Unicef communications director from New York. "Asia is a group of countries which spends more time arguing about numbers. Like ‘oh, it’s not 5 million, it’s 4.9 million.’ What difference does it make? Is 4.9 million good? "By the time you finish arguing, the number would have grown exponentially, to 6 or 7 million. It is time to act." He says the only way to stop the spread of AIDS is by changing the behaviour of people and to do that, the right information has to be given to them and the best window of opportunity to do so is at schools. "Children spend about eight hours at school on school days. They spend more time at school with their teachers and friends than at home with their parents. "Schools give the longest exposure for any kind of education or behaviour that has to be cultivated." After years of discussion about the pros and cons of introducing sex education in schools, the Malaysian cabinet gave the green light for all schooling levels. The move was heralded as a milestone in the fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS among the younger generation. Unicef communications executive Indra Nadchatram says Malaysia is beginning to recognise the issue of HIV/AIDS among its young as a problem. And the Education Ministry is now working closely with Unicef on various programmes to be introduced as part of efforts to raise awareness. One of them is a pilot programme to set up youth centres in Kedah and Perlis — run for the young by the young — where young people can seek information, take part in games, attend counselling and also go for HIV tests. "We need to start addressing issues faced by young people before risk behaviour happens," she adds.

* International AIDS Memorial Day, observed on the third Sunday of May, is among the largest and oldest grassroots mobilisation campaigns for HIV/AIDS awareness in the world. In its 24th year, it does more than just commemorate the lives lost to AIDS. Visit www.unicef.org/malaysia

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