Women Against AIDS
Armenia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine
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Introduction
The AIDS epidemic poses a major threat to the stability of the CIS region. Because it is the youth, entering the most productive years of their lives, who are the hardest hit, it will affect the region’s socio-economic development. By the end of 2005, the total number of HIV infections in Eastern Europe and Central Asia had reached 1.7 million[1].This is an increase of more than nine times in less than ten years. The epidemic has been one of the fastest-growing in the world, and it is continuing to expand. More than 80% of the region’s HIV cases are registered in the below-30 age group.
Experts have noted an alarming trend: Increasingly HIV infections are appearing among not only risk groups, but also the general population, as the number of heterosexual transmissions rise.
Women in the region are at high risk of contracting HIV because of social, economic and biological factors. Recent research showed that unprotected sexual intercourse is two to four times more risky for a woman than a man. Women are also more vulnerable to other sexually transmitted infections (STIs)[2].
Deeply rooted social factors also increase a woman’s vulnerability to HIV, including:
- patriarchal traditions
- double standards in sexual beliefs — women are expected to remain faithful and be virgins until marriage, while male promiscuity is deemed quite acceptable
- the traditional designation of a woman as caretaker of the sick, incapacitated and chronically ill
- the assumption that a woman's body may be sold as a commodity
- women’s economic dependence on men
- women’s emotional dependence on men (they have a fear of abandonment and condemnation)
- gender discrimination in employment
- social taboos on reproductive health
- limited provisions for family planning that are open to women
- the stigma associated with HIV and discrimination against people living with HIV, which is projected to other family members, most importantly children born to HIV positive mothers.
Discrimination has a typical 'female' feature: since in many cases women are the first in seeking medical services they are the first to be diagnosed with HIV they bare the blame of being HIV transmitters.
While biological vulnerability may be reduced by using condoms (male or female), it is much more difficult to fight social and economic factors, especially in societies where women are equal to men in theory, but in reality face a situation that is far from ideal.
If women have access to information on their rights, they will be better equipped to protect themselves from HIV. This brochure summarises the Women Against AIDS project that was implemented in five former Soviet countries: Armenia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine. The project advocated for implementation of gender-specific approach in development of programmes on HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support. Gender-specific approach means using different prevention methods while addressing to male and female audiences since men and women face different risk factors. This project raised awareness about vulnerability of women, bringing attention to the weakest link.
Brief Project Description
Project Goals:
- to advocate for gender specific approaches to the development and implementation of the response to HIV/AIDS
- to establish special programmes for primary prevention among women
- to ensure access to HIV treatment, care and support for women
A team formed by female activists working on HIV prevention visited the capitals of former Soviet Republics – Moscow, Kiev, Chisinau, Almaty and Yerevan – to meet with decision makers, representatives from local initiatives of People Living with HIV, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other key stakeholders to discuss the need for a gender – sensitive response to the epidemic.
Women Against AIDS was primarily an awareness-raising project and did not aim to solve all problems that women in this region face. For that reason, two journalists joined the team to report on the outcome of the project.
Based on this project, the team made recommendations that are expressed in the statement below:
Tour Itinerary
28 May, 2007 Almaty
29-31 May, 2007 Yerevan
31 May - 1 June, 2007 Chisinau
2- 5 June, 2007 Kiev
5-6 June, 2007 Moscow
Statement
Women against AIDS
Armenia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine
A Joint Project of AIDS Infoshare and UNAIDS
Supported by the Global Coalition of Women on AIDS and UNDP
We, the participants of the ‘Women Against AIDS’ project have visited five CIS countries to hold consultations with key stakeholders working in the field of HIV prevention, treatment and care. As a result of these consultations the project participants have developed the recommendations below. We believe that urgent measures should be taken to ensure women’s access to primary HIV prevention as well as access to treatment, care and support.
We would like to highlight a set of recommendations that we feel are of the greatest importance in each of our countries, regardless of differences in the stages of the epidemic or in social and economic development. We urge all interested parties to take these recommendations into consideration when developing national strategies to fight HIV/AIDS.
Specifically, we recommend:
1. Implementation of information and education campaigns on primary HIV prevention targeted specifically at women, along with increased efforts to fight stigma and discrimination.
2. Further development of programmes aimed at improving the quality of life of HIV-positive women, including programmes to ensure access to medical services not related to ARV treatment and reproductive health.
3. Acceleration of programmes to ensure the social protection of HIV positive women.
4. Increased research on the gender aspects of the HIV epidemic in Armenia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine.
5. Expanded efforts to guarantee the active involvement of women in decision-making processes at all levels.
6. Additional state support for women’s initiatives to improve the quality of life of HIV positive women.
7. Development of voluntary testing and pre- and post HIV test counselling services.
8. Enhanced cooperation between various sectors, government and state organizations and civil society groups including those which are not yet directly involved in HIV prevention activities.
9. Increased efforts to ensure respect for a woman’s choice related to reproductive health issues.
10. Implementation of further needs assessments on HIV prevention, treatment, care and support for women.
11. Support for the introduction of gender specific programmes, including support for the greater development of leadership and activism among women.
Participants of the Women against AIDS project:
- Grekova Anna – ‘All-Ukrainian Network of PLHIV’, Kiev, Ukraine
- Dubrovskaya Anna – NGO ‘Golos-anti-SPID’, Ufa, Russia
- Zavalko Natalia – ‘AIDS infoshare’, Moscow, Russia
- Ivannikova Maria - ‘AIDS infoshare’, Moscow, Russia
- Polozkova Vera – Correspondent for ‘Cosmopolitan’ Magazine, Moscow, Russia
- Skibnevskaya Nina- ‘AIDS infoshare’, Moscow, Russia
- Slepneva Asya – Correspondent of Mayak Radio Station, Moscow, Russia
- Stupak Tatiana – NGO ‘Victoria’, Pavlodar, Kazakhstan
- Tamazova Elena – UNAIDS, Moscow, Russia
- Untura Lyudmila – NGO ‘Childhood for All’, Chisinau, Moldova
- Golovach Sergei – Photographer, Moscow, Russia