[hre-asiapacific] Regional meeting on HIV/AIDS (Dhaka, 12 July 2005)

Press release:  Regional Meeting to Reduce Stigma on HIV+ People

Nari Unnayan Shakti a national NGO organized a "Regional Advocacy Meeting
to Reduce Stigma & Discrimination on HIV+ People" in Bangladesh jointly
with Commonwealth Asia Center, Malaysian AIDS Council and Positive Women
Network, India. The venue of the program was NUS Training Center,
Banashree, Rampura, Dhaka on July 12 2005.

The Honorable special guest of the event was Mr. Mr. Kamal Uddin Ahmed,
Director General Department of Narcotics Control (DNC) Bangladesh. The
Special Guests were Ms. Raka Rashid, Regional Director, Commonwealth Asia
Center, A. Rajaretnam, Malaysian AIDS Council, Mr. Hassan Mahmud, Malaysia,
Program Manager, National AIDS HIV Program, P. Kouselya, Positive Women
Network, India. The meeting was presided over by Afroja Parvin, Executive
Director, Nari Unnayan Shakti.

Speakers of event mentioned again and again, "The HIV positive people are
not harmful to any body of the society. The HIV is only spreading through
unsafe sexual contact, blood transfusion and organ transplantation.
Therefore, the cause behind stigmatizing HIV+ People is ignorance at  the
mass level. To reduce stigma there is no alternative of media campaign to
aware and educate the people.  Mr. Mr. Kamal Uddin Ahmed, DG, DNC requested
to the journalists for introducing a separate and regular column of the
Daily News Papers on HIV/AIDS.

Ms. Raka Rashid, Regional Director, Commonwealth Asia Center call for the
Celebrities of the country to contribute to reduce stigma on HIV+ people
from their respective field. P. Kouselya, Chairperson of Positive Women
Network, India said, since 10 years I am HIV+ and leading a normal life and
till to date I am an active contributor to the national economy. If we
discriminate the Positive People, the problem will be worsen and the
family, society as well as the country will loose their contribution in
development sector.

Afroja Parvin,  Executive Director, Nari Unnayan Shakti and the chair of
the event gave importance to the Governments role to combat stigma on the
issue. She said, to face the emergency of the positive stigmatized people a
special support service should be ensured by the government.
                                               -------------------------

" NUS has been running HIV Prevention and STI Treatment program since 1993
in Bangladesh and at present providing services for 1500000 families.
Recently we have started human rights and other supports for the
stigmatized and poor HIV + Women of Bangladesh.

If there is such women in vulnerable situation, Please contact 

Nari Unnayan Shakti (NUS)
(Women's Power for Development)
823/A, Khilgaon, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Phone: 880 2 7216270
Fax: 880 2 7217033
Email: NUS <afrojnus@bdmail.net>

Regional meeting on HIV/AIDS of NUS, Commonwealth, PWN + India & MYC,
Malaysia, in Dhaka


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