LONDON, Nov 29, 2007 (AFP) - Indigenous communities around the world have been hit by rising HIV/AIDS rates to increased contact with outsiders and social upheaval, a report by Survival International said on Thursday.
The report, which comes two days before World AIDS Day, cited as examples of tribes in Indonesia's West Papua province, the Central Kalahari in Botswana and the Yanomani Indians in Brazil.
"Tribal people die because their land is invaded and taken and because they succumb to outside diseases they never knew before," said the London-based group's Director Stephen Corry in a statement.
"Increasingly now we can add HIV/AIDS to the list of killers. It is striking the most vulnerable peoples of all: those who have no grasp of the risks of unprotected sex; no access to condoms; no appropriate treatment; and whose numbers are already small.
"The first solution is the simplest -- governments must ensure tribal lands are properly protected."
According to Survival, the HIV/AIDS rate in West Papua -- home to 312 different tribes -- are 15 times as higher than Indonesia as a whole.
It said some tribespeople believe that the Indonesian military, which occupies the province, is introducing the virus to wipe out entire communities.
In Botswana, the disease was "virtually unknown" among tribespeople in the Central Kalahari before the country's government evicted them from their ancestral desert homeland, Survival's report, "Progress Can Kill", said.
"But in New Xade resettlement camp in 2002, at least 40 percent of Bushman deaths were due to AIDS," the organisation said.
Meanwhile, in Brazil, Survival says that Yanomani Indians claim soldiers "stationed on their land have brought gonorrhoea and syphilis to their communities through sexual exploitation of tribal women."
"They fear that the soldiers will also transmit HIV/AIDS."
071129
AF071161
Copyright ©AFP 2007. All Rights Reserved. AFP articles contained on the AEGiS web site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without AFP's prior written permission. You may make one copy of each article for your personal, non-commercial use only; more copies would require AFP's prior written permission obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP photos or materials. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP stories, photos or graphics. http://www.afp.com/
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, Bridgestone/Firestone Charitable Trust, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Elton John AIDS Foundation, John M. Lloyd Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, Roche and Trimeris, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2007. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1980, 2007. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content.