Coalition and key stakeholders chart a roadmap to stemming the HIV epidemic among men who have sex with men and transgender people in Asia and the Pacific

(Busan, South Korea)  A call for activism to combat stigma and discrimination, the sharing of new research on HIV, and a blueprint for renewed action to address the epidemic in the most vulnerable populations in the world’s most populous region.  These led the agenda at “Beyond Numbers”, the day-long forum organized by the Asia-Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health (APCOM) as a curtain-raiser to the 10th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific.

The meeting was subtitled “Getting to Zero: The forces driving HIV among men who have sex with men and transgender people in Asia Pacific” reflecting the theme of one of the day’s major presentations in which the various concurrent epidemics, or “syndemics”, that contribute to the challenges of these vulnerable populations were examined in terms of their impact on individuals and the epidemic itself.

“We cannot view HIV in isolation,” explained Shivananda Khan, APCOM Chairperson and Chief Executive of Naz Foundation International.  “There are so many factors at play -- self-stigma and depression, alcohol and drug abuse, sexual exploitation.  All of these contribute to an individual’s risk to HIV infection, and must be taken into account when designing effective outreach and intervention strategies.”

That point was driven home in an extensive presentation of research carried out by Dr. Frits van Griensven of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control’s office within the Ministry of Public Health of Thailand. “Syndemics are quite simply a set of multiple epidemics acting synergistically or together, producing an extra burden of morbidity and mortality in a population,” Dr. Griensven said. “Our research focuses on the nexus of these epidemics, where they meet to interact with and reinforce each other.  A study carried out among MSM in Bangkok clearly shows a direct correlation between these factors and increased risk of HIV infection.  It may sound obvious, but you’ve got to provide solid data to substantiate what’s long been suspected.  MSM and transgendered persons are vulnerable on so many fronts, right from childhood through sexual maturity.  We’re only at the beginning of what is already proving to be a vital approach in understanding what really drives the HIV epidemic in these populations who for so long have been denied health as a human right.”

More...the full press release (PDF).

See the APCOM Busan Declaration (PDF).