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Health is on no one's agenda, & women's health is even less so: said Shabana Azmi

"Health is on no one's agenda (in Indian Parliament), and women's health, is even less so" said noted parliamentarian-activist and a renowned film actress Shabana Azmi, at Sixth International Congress on AIDS in Asia Pacific, Melbourne, Australia. Commenting on the apathetic plastic concerns of present-day policy makers, where public health concerns have to struggle fiercely with personal interests to come in the forefront, Shabana Azmi said that how paradoxical it is that on June 25-27, 2001, Indian parliamentarians participate in UNGASS proceedings and TEN DAYS after that NGOs working on HIV/AIDS were imprisoned in Lucknow by the police administration and Government remained dumb. It was only the grassroot organizations that rescued the NGO volunteers and not the government authorities. Shabana Azmi, is also the Goodwill Ambassador of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

        Over 50% of the marriages in India happen when the girl is about 13-17 years, 70% by the age 19, and 99% by the age 29. (Source : 5th ICAAP session reports). And do we provide enough education and reproductive health information to these women? The reality is, a large majority of these girls continue to remain uneducated and struggle to seek even primary health services, what to talk about reproductive health!

        Shabana Azmi categorically added that 'more women die during childbirth every week in India than those who die during childbirth in the entire year in Europe'.

        Kalpana Jain, a noted journalist from The Times of India, remarked during her presentation "FACES BEHIND THE NUMBERS" that when she visits those affected with HIV/AIDS, their 'rights and issues are very different from what is discussed in metropolitan cities by HIV/AIDS support groups'. In these places it is about getting the basics, access to treatment of opportunistic infections, centers where they can be tested at minimum costs, schooling for their children who can no longer afford education once their parents fall ill with HIV/AIDS, and most of all, a clean and dignified place to die. People in these places are dieing of untreated oral thrush, continued diarrhoea, tuberculosis or undiagnosed cryptococcal meningitis. Not only death in some cases is without dignity, but even funeral becomes a problem. In one case, a HIV positive person was put in the dumping ground SEVEN DAYS before he actually died.

        Subhash Challa, a researcher at University of Melbourne, said that in his district of Salem, Tamil Nadu, there are hundreds of HIV/AIDS positive people who do not know 'anything about HIV'. 'Serious Illness' is what they refer this to. And the cause is, the region has many truck drivers and truck repair workshops who bring in the HIV from all over the India. The NGOs who did visit this village, did their surveys and reports, but in terms of HIV education or prevention, 'nothing has been done' so far. Those infected with HIV, when become unable to earn their livelihood due to their falling health status, die in abject poverty and indignity.

        Shabana Azmi quoted a study where prevalence of reproductive tract infections in India was estimated to be 70-80%. And a large contributing factor was that majority of Indian women in villages do not use sanitary napkins, said Shabana Azmi. Neither can they afford sanitary napkins, nor they have access to disposable systems. So most often, they use pieces of clothes, and re-use them after washing. To avoid stigma attached to menstruation, these women cannot even dry these pieces of clothes in bright sunlight after washing and most often, they dry it under their cot or under other clothes. Therefore these pieces of clothes become the breeding grounds of so many RTIs. Even a small area of sunlight is denied to Indian women, said she.

        Women who were tested as HIV positive, were closed inside rooms within women's hostels in Uttar Pradesh, and their HIV positive status was not told to them. This women's hostel, was run by State Government, and had the State AIDS Control Society in it's neighbourhood.

        Denial is looming large over women in the India. The problem of HIV/AIDS is further fuelled up by enormous stigma and discrimination that remains attached to this issue. A mosaic of cultural and religious barriers and hypocritical social norms, further compound the epidemic.

        Does it raise any question on the level of counselling (pre-test or post-test) and support groups for HIV positive people?

        47% of new HIV infections occur in women. What can be the missing link, in understanding the real issues plaguing HIV/AIDS control initiatives targeted at women in India?

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