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India: stigma and fear
The stigma of the disease is still huge in India: fear and discrimination are rife - with a very basic level of ignorance about the disease and how it is spread. Vija's story: " At thirteen years old I was a boy, but with a girl's walk and voice. It is not easy being a transsexual in society. We are a high-risk group, because we are subjected to abuse and violence. I was distraught when I found out. I stayed in bed and didn't tell anyone. I had been working with people advising about testing, about safe sex and STDs, who was to help me now?".
Hong Kong: how the virus travels
Trade between Hong Kong and China is big business, much of it delivered through the road system. Drivers have to wait at the border while their papers and cargo are processed. They take this opportunity to relax and eat before the long drive ahead. Many of the drivers who visit sex workers on the Chinese side of the border become the transmitters of the virus back into Hong Kong. Fifty percent of them say they did not use a condom. Now these cross border truck drivers are given condoms and information about safe sex, in an attempt to change.
India: the lost generation
Manipur has the highest percentage of AIDS in India. In the 1990s, the AIDS crisis stemmed from intravenous drug use. Soon many of the addicts started testing positive. Grandparents take over the childcare when the parents have died - an entire missing generation. Having lost her son and daughter-in-law to AIDS, 74 years old Tombi Macha cares for her four grandchildren.
Philippines: the migrant worker
Noora left the Philippines to find work in Abu Dhabi as a sales girl: she married and soon was pregnant. She returned home and then tested HIV positive, having been infected by her husband. Her daughter is not positive. A single parent, she supports herself by making baskets which she sells for 40 cents a piece. She prays for help in the mosque to be able to raise her daughter.
Cambodia: the burden of care
Phirun and Phirak's father, mother and younger brother all died of AIDS. Responsibility for them has fallen to their father's niece. "I will never marry," says Touch, 31. "There isn't enough with looking after them and paying the medical bills. We had to sell most of our land and our house, but this is our karma."
China: the price of blood
A blood buying scheme developed by the Henan, China provincial health department in the late 1980s attracted much interest amongst rural people desperate to raise small amounts of money. Poor collection methods and bad hygiene quickly led to widespread infection in donors: unscreened blood also spread the transmission. This woman and her child have come for treatment to a small AIDS clinic which treats 80-100 patients daily.
Thailand: being positive and speaking out
Battling against the barriers of stigma, discrimination and fear is one of the fundamental weapons in the fight against AIDS. It is vital that figures of authority within communities stand up and talk openly about the need for prevention and care. As representatives of the Buddhist values of compassion and understanding, the temples ('wats') and monks of Thailand have taken a lead in the fight against HIV & AIDS, educating rural populations and caring for the dying. Choo Chart Sinna, a monk who is HIV positive, throws open his arms and says "O Lord Buddha save me". He works with AIDS patients in his wat, giving support and care.
Malawi: the risk of cross-infection
Small, isolated hospitals have too many in-and out-patients. A high percentage of patient illness is AIDS related and there is a high risk of cross-infection for all the patients because of overcrowded conditions. These TB patients are queuing for treatment: TB is one of the most serious co-factors within the epidemic.
Bangladesh: creating awareness
Sex workers in Dhaka also have peer educators who distribute condoms and give advice. For Peyara, a new, young sex worker, the peer educators provide a support line - a joke and comforting chat as well as advice about treatment or how to dodge the police or aggressive men.
Mozambique: getting the message on stage
Raising awareness within the community is essential to avoid stigma and also to spread information about risk, prevention and what to do when diagnosed as positive. Members of the Muleid theatre group, who are also campaigners for safer sex and AIDS educators, work and sing to get their message across to the community.
Mozambique: the challenge of disclosure
Mozambique has suffered from a culture of silence about HIV & AIDS so it is important that activists have encouraged people to come forward and be tested. Eliseu visits secondary schools to talk to young people about HIV & AIDS: "Some of them know everything while others are very naive".
