TEHRAN, Dec 1 (AFP) - With television spots focussed on a young AIDS victim, radio warnings and increasing press coverage, Iran has been steadily waking up to the threat of AIDS and pushing aside taboos associated with the disease.
According to official figures, there are 4,237 AIDS sufferers in the Islamic republic, of which 4,028 are men. People with the HIV virus number between 20-30,000.
"It is mainly in prisons, which are full of addicts, that AIDS is being spread," said health ministry official Ali Mansouri.
An estimated 65 percent of people carrying HIV are amoung Iran's estimated two million drug addicts -- in particular the more than 130,000 who inject cheaply and easily-available heroin and morphine.
One of the problems, however, is the absence of a thorough testing regime -- the only section of the population which has undergone strict testing for AIDS are prisoners.
Of Iran's 180,000 prisoners, at least 100,000 are drug users or drug dealers. Officials have now decided to freely distribute clean needles.
But while the threat of an AIDS epidemic via drug use is openly discussed, sexual relations and sexually transmitted diseases are still a taboo topic, despite an explosion in prostitution across the country.
Heterosexual relations are banned outside marriage, while homosexuality is illegal and hardly ever talked about publicly. The result has been a policy of general silence when it comes to tackling other ways that HIV is spread.
"The other at-risk categories, such as street women (a euphemism for prostitutes), have hidden activities and cannot be tested," Mansouri told IRNA.
According to official figures, there are roughly 30,000 prostitutes (some officials have said there are more than 300,000), few of whom are versed in safe-sex techniques given the total absence of sex education for all but would-be brides and grooms prior to recieving their wedding certificates.
Prostitutes also receive no formal medical controls, and any initiative to change stirs opposition from religious hardliners.
Privately, however, officials admit that drastic measures will need to be taken if an AIDS epidemic is to be avoided -- especially given the recent growth of extra-marital relations between Iran's burgeoning youth population.
In a sign of official concern, media programmes on AIDS and interviews with specialists have begun to appear on a more regular basis.
And several months ago, Deputy Health Minister Hossein Malek-Afzali, criticised official inaction.
"Today we must not repeat past errors, but launch an information campaign on the risks of the disease -- inform the youth and the media. The subject should not be taboo," he said.
Officials also recently announced that half-a-million state officials would be informed on the dangers of AIDS to mark World AIDS Day.
Condoms are also beginning to appear in more and more shops. Their sale was totally banned in the early days of the Islamic revolution.
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