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Mohammad Khairul Alam
The over all HIV/AIDS
epidemics situation is low in Bangladesh. But it is
increasing very high in some heterogeneous group who are actually vulnerable of
HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS spread out very quickly in all over the population. There are
many ways in Bangladesh to HIV/AIDS increasing issue.
Certainly, adolescent girls’ prostitution is booming in Bangladesh. Adolescent
girls engage or are forced into prostitution for trafficking or socio-economic
reasons. But in addition to sexual exploitation, they face all sorts of
violence. Rainbow Nari O Shishu Kallyan Foundation carried out a recent field
investigation, the research confirmed that adolescents girls’ prostitution is
widespread in Bangladesh, although hidden at first sight from foreigners,
especially in Dhaka city. Adolescent girls involved in prostitution are to be
found in residence homes converted into brothels or in hotels. The majority are
aged 15-18.
The cause of poverty,
gender discrimination, low prevalence of health facility, lack of reproductively
knowledge, illiteracy and high risky behavior may be called epidemic in future
of Bangladesh. The atmosphere, which is needed to spread HIV as epidemic of
HIV/AIDS, those are present in Bangladesh.
It seems that there are
three issues that are appearing to play a crucial position in HIV transmission
in Bangladesh:
female sex work substance use, Intravenous drug use, professional blood donor
and mobility. Female sex workers and their clients have been a major factor in
the heterosexual transmission of HIV. Separate but unstable epidemics have been
seen in some IDU populations in Dhaka city. And mobile populations, particularly
at national borders are at higher risk of HIV acquisition due to the fact of
being away from home, community and the anonymity and loneliness of traveling.
The following three segments focus on the monitoring of the HIV epidemic in
these vulnerable populations.
Commercial/Professional sex
workers operate in all over the country. But it is important to know how large
the sex-worker population may be to adequately interpret surveillance results.
It is hypothetical that in some region, rapid increases in the absolute numbers
of sex workers have resulted from significant political, social or economic
changes. The nature of sex work and the profile of sex workers vary enormously
within and between countries. There are most female sex workers, and those that
work full-time, part-time or seasonally. Sex workers may operate in variety of
settings such as brothels, riverbanks, bars, parks, under contraction buildings,
street corners, hotels, etc. Sex work does not consider in Bangladesh, expect 14
reported brothels. Some HIV/AIDS or social workers suspected that brothel sex
worker in Bangladesh is limited, near about 35,000 to 45,000, but other category
sex workers is no countable, it is suspected more then 1,00,000. Dhaka city,
for example, has approximately 5,000-15,000 female sex workers--an estimate
(Source: Rainbow Nari O Shishu Kallyan Foundation). In most Cities, however,
validated estimates of the numbers of sex workers are almost non-existent.
Frequency of exposure to
HIV infection through sexual intercourse is the key factor for transmission of
HIV among sex workers. For example, there are many countries; a significant
proportion of sex workers is infected with HIV. The rates might vary from less
than 1 percent to 40 percent or higher in some settings.
Even where HIV infection
has not yet increase extensively, STD infection is often very high among sex
workers. For example, in one brothel area in Bangladesh, 95 percent of 466 sex
workers tested positive to antibodies for genital herpes virus and 60 percent
for syphilis, although HIV was not detected among any of them. With the sequence
of the epidemic, HIV tends to increase where other STDs are present.
There are many aspects to
the nexus of drug use and HIV infection, In most of Bangladesh, people who
choose to use drugs (Smoking-drug, morphia, heroin, hashish, Medicare-drug some
kinds of sleeping pill, cold syrup, injections etc) that are not all socially
sanctioned are treated as entirely outside society, enemies even of the social
structure. The factor of Injection/ intravenous Drug Users (IDUs), which is
directly can influence of HIV/AIDS, STDs/STI. For the majority of injecting drug
users (IDUs), it means that lip-service is paid to the principles supposedly
learned through the course of the epidemic: in relation to IDUs and the risks of
HIV transmission, issues such as human rights, peer education, community
participation, and legal and social change are unachievable fictions. Besides,
better estimation of populations at risk (i.e., those currently injecting drugs,
or sex partners of IDUs and populations coming to be at risk), and a better
understanding of the dynamics of drug utilization and social association of drug
use are all necessary for targeting interventions efficiently.
Populations in Bangladesh
are moving across land and sea borders in increasing numbers. International
trade supports this growth in population mobility, international border between
India and Bangladesh, more than 500 trucks come daily. A recent survey in
Bangladeshi track drivers by Rainbow Nari O Shishu Kallyan Foundation, found
that 80% track driver in Bangladesh have no clear concept of HIV or AIDS. But
90% respond it is a deadly disease. Also occurring in Bangladesh are high levels
of maritime trade, and seamen on fishing vessels travel widely in the region,
enabling the transmission of HIV to populations in areas where the virus was
previously unfamiliar.
Crossing land or sea
borders often requires overnight stays, leaving the individual with idle time
and opportunities to visit drinking and gambling establishments and brothels.
HIV surveillance data for female sex workers, male STD clinic patients and young
males at two sea ports – Cittagong & Mongla --show a clustering of high
prevalence sites.
Source: Rainbow Nari O Shishu
Kallyan Foundation
tag: female, male,
commercial, floating, street, sex workers, aids, hiv, csws, idus, fsws, girls,
women, consensual, premarital, exmarital, sexuality, empowerment, gender,
education, prevention, dhaka, india, pakistan, bangladesh, adolescent, teen,
teenage, truck drivers. trafficking, epidemic, street girls, knowledge, young
people, discrimination, nonconsensual, coerced sex, sexual partners, safe sex,
sexually transmitted diseases, stds, stis, sexual abuse, forced sex, risky
sexual behaviour, business, multi partner sex, heterosexual, injection,
intravenous drugs users,
prostitution,
men who have sex with men, msm, harassment, sugar daddies, relationships,
condom, polygamy, homosexuality, extra marital, relations, truckers, migrant
workers, gay, hijras, hermaphrodites, professional blood donors, heroin smokers,
hotel, brothel, street based commercial sex workers, casual sex workers, so
called sex workers, violence, exploitation, Rainbow Nari O Shishu Kallyan
Foundation, Mohammad Khairul Alam
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