Global AIDS - Papua New Guinea
11,000 PNG kids have AIDS -Post Courier, January 26, 2005
by Maureen Gerewa
PORT MORESBY.- More than 11,000 children in Papua New Guinea have been infected with HIV/AIDS while another 9,400 have been orphaned by the disease, according to a shock survey finding by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
The Post-Courier newspaper reported that a draft of the survey's findings was delivered at a government meeting in Port Moresby this week.
The survey also revealed that the situation of PNG's orphans and infected children is critical and will worsen in the years ahead.
The report says orphans and vunerable children, such as the dozens of ragged urchins begging on Port Moresby's crime-ridden streets, are getting less support from the traditional social system.
However children who are cared for by their extended family members are often forced to be domestic slaves or forced to have sex with them.
UNICEF's Dr Susan Hunter, in presenting the report to PNG journalists, said the country's HIV/AIDS epidemic would be one of the most severe in the Asian region.
This was because PNG already had a high HIV infection rate, high sexually transmitted infection rates, high rates of multiple partner behaviour, high commercial sex, low condom use and little effective progress to address HIV/AIDS.
Other factors include family violence in PNG being regarded as "private" and continued tolerance of relatives and police to family violence and their refusal to intervene.
The report, conducted in consultation with 50 groups in PNG, will be presented at a workshop on Thursday.
Dr Hunter said the World Bank analysis indicated that 70 percent of HIV/AIDS cases were occurring in rural areas due to factors including frequent movement of people to urban areas, lack of knowledge about the disease and lack of basic services such as water.
She said there were few services available from the national purse available because of the loss of professional workers due to HIV/AIDS.
Earlier this month the Chinese Ambassador to PNG announced China was giving 2.1 million kina (A$800,000) to PNG to help fight the country's AIDS epidemic. China also announced it was sending doctors who specialised in infectious diseases to Port Moresby General Hospital.
The hospital is averaging 14 AIDS-related deaths daily and its morgue has been overflowing with unclaimed corpses.
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