Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1997. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The Associated Press; Monday, December 1, 1997; 9:49 a.m. EST
Even observances of World AIDS Day on Monday were toned down in Thailand because of economic problems. Elsewhere, there were rallies, speeches and seminars. This year's theme is the plight of HIV-infected children.
In India, the country with the most HIV cases in the world, demonstrators carried a wooden effigy of a snake strangling the country through the streets of Bombay.
"Education should begin in the workplace by informing factory workers about the do's and don'ts on AIDS prevention," said Maharashjtra state Labor Minister Raj Purohit.
The United Nations has estimated that among India's 1 billion people, 3 million to 5 million are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Despite the efforts to spread awareness, children who witnessed the march seemed unconcerned about the dangers of the disease.
"AIDS? I don't know anything about it. I just came to see the snake," said Sarveshvar Morya, 15, with a shrug.
A U.N. official in Beijing denounced India's response to its burgeoning AIDS epidemic.
"The government remains gripped in a denial mentality in India," said Arthur Holcombe, chief representative for the United Nations Development Program.
Amid Thailand's economic troubles, the government budget for condoms for prostitutes has been slashed to $375,000 from a proposed $1.6 million, said Chawalit Tantinimitkul, head of planning at the Public Health Ministry's AIDS division.
Prostitutes and their clients account for most of some 750,000 infected people in the country.
As for observing AIDS Day, "there are hardly any activities," said Hurang Janyam, head of the Empower Foundation, a group that educates prostitutes about AIDS.
The largest event was held Sunday, when children unfurled an enormous anti-AIDS quilt at an elementary school.
In Beijing, China's health minister said that drug use among minors was causing a surge in the number of HIV-infected children.
Ten percent of the 8,277 Chinese known to be carrying the virus are children or teen-agers, Chen Minzhang said in a speech.
"Out of ignorance or curiosity, they took drugs," he said.
To try to curb ignorance, China plans to start broadcasting anti-AIDS messages on the nation's trains, considered the most likely place to reach the more than 100 million farmers who have left their villages to find city jobs and are considered relatively high risks for contracting HIV.
In Tokyo, hundreds gathered in a rain-swept square to sing songs and appeal for support and understanding for AIDS victims.
"It is our responsibility to create a world in which nobody suffers from AIDS for the sake of the next generation," said Health and Welfare Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
A huge tree covered with some 17,000 red ribbons sent in from around the country was set up in the square and illuminated with electric lights.
"Every day is AIDS day," said Chizuko Ikegami, a spokesman for PLACE Tokyo, an AIDS prevention group. "But as the media pay less attention to AIDS, people are beginning to think the problem has gone away."
Malaysia's Minister of Health, Chua Jui Meng, announced Monday that the government will step up its war against AIDS by allocating $1.4 million for screening tests for expectant mothers.
In Australia, a prominent politician opened an AIDS photo exhibition with an emotional speech about his brother's death from the disease.
"I can only say to you that I had one brother, a brother whom I loved, and he died of AIDS," said Brenden Nelson, speaking at the launch of a photograph exhibition of Australians who had become personally involved in the struggle against AIDS.
In Athens, 12 radio stations joined Monday morning in an hour-long program on AIDS. Universities also held conferences.
On Sunday, the AIDS Day campaign kicked off in New York with a U.N. appeal to young people to educate themselves about the danger of AIDS.
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