A recent survey released by the Indian Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh, exposes the lack of awareness, incorrect beliefs, and misinformation amongst India's Members of Parliament on the critical issue of HIV/AIDS. The Indian Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development surveyed 157 lawmakers from the Lok Sabha (Lower house of Parliament) and 93 from the Rajya Sabha (Upper house of Parliament) on their knowledge of the spread and prevention of HIV/AIDS.
Some of the results of the survey are as follows:
- 64 percent believed the disease could be passed on by sharing clothes with an infected person
- 56 percent said the HIV virus could be transmitted by sharing food and cooking utensils with someone with the disease
- 40 percent said that there was a risk of transmission among people working alongside each other
- 22.8 percent thought the disease could be spread through toilets
- 25 percent of the politicians were unaware that sex with multiple partners increased the risk of transmitting the disease
- 25 percent were unaware that using a condom would decrease the risk of transmission
- Less than half knew that HIV could be transmitted through blood transfusion
While these figures are alarming when it comes to the very people in charge of policy making in the country, I admire the PMO for conducting this survey given the "taboo" topic of sex in the country. It critically highlights and underlines the need to educate our lawmakers about the realities surrounding HIV/AIDS. Given the high prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the country, it is downright disgraceful to note that the members of Parliament are unaware of the basic characteristics of the virus and the resulting illness in such large numbers.
Dr.Singh in his speech, when releasing the report, said "I believe this brings together some very interesting and provocative material on the perceptions and approach of our elected representatives in a vital area of national policy." I agree!
You can read his speech at http://pmindia.nic.in/lspeech.asp?id=377
It is interesting that these results come in the wake of remarkable AIDS awareness campaigns through constructive use of posters, billboards, radio and television programming, newspapers, and hotlines.
News articles covering the story can be read at:
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/08/24/news/aids.php
http://news.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=1251342006
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