Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2007. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Bangkok Post - December 2, 2007
Apiradee Treerutkuarkul
The stigma of being an Aids victim is a barrier in itself as it discourages Muslim sufferers all the more from seeking treatment.
"The condom use campaign for Aids prevention should not be promoted in Muslim communities since it is against Islamic beliefs of abstinence and faithfulness to one's marriage partner," said Amporn Marddent, an academic of the Walailuck University's Cultural Studies Programme School of Liberal Arts.
The research also shows that running Aids prevention and treatment campaigns in Muslim communities was a tough challenge for both the government and non-governmental organisations as most Thai Muslims still believe that only those having casual sex, and men having sex with men, could be at risk of HIV/Aids and that Muslims who strictly follow Islamic teachings had only a slim chance of contracting the virus.
Muslim women mostly contract the virus from their drug-addicted husbands.
There was also a higher infection risk among babies as most Muslim mothers gave birth at home and could not receive the necessary medication to prevent the transmission of HIV/Aids from mother to child, said Lawan Sarovat, deputy medical coordinator of Doctors Without Borders Thailand.
Of the total 13,936 new cases found in Thailand this year, 36% were housewives and female teenagers, followed by homosexual men at 24%, according to the latest report of the Public Health Ministry.
"It is evident that sex and intravenous drug use are still major problems contributing to the spread of Aids in Muslim communities," said Jirachote Sajjakul, coordinator of the Aids prevention campaign in southern provinces run by the Association of Thai Muslim Youth. "We have to accept this fact and seek appropriate solutions to deal with it."
Heroin, kratom leaves (Mitragyna Speciosa), ecstasy and codeine, a controlled substance made from opium used in cough mixtures, were also widely abused by young people in the South and more or less contributed to the spread of the virus.
Muslim men contract the virus from using injecting drugs during their teenage years and pass on the virus to their wives after marriage, Mr Jirachote said.
A survey in the three southernmost provinces by the Bureau of Epidemiology also showed that married couples were the most vulnerable group.
Schools in Muslim communities are downplaying the Aids threat by treating it as a taboo topic.
The national report also shows that as many as 77% of Thai teenagers had little knowledge of the disease, reflecting why about half of the 321,650 cases in the country were now between 25 and 34 years of age. Over half a million Thais are still living with HIV/Aids.
To solve Aids problems in Muslim communities, Mr Jirachote believes it was important for the government to come up with different projects for raising Aids awareness in the South.
Provincial Islamic committees in the South are considering whether mandatory pre-marital Aids tests are feasible. Such a practice is already in place in Malaysia's Johor state since 2001. The test results will go to the religious authorities.
If medically fit, the couple is allowed to get married. But otherwise, it is left to them to decide whether they should go ahead with the wedding and are not prevented from doing so.
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