Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2001. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2001. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Reuters NewMedia - Tuesday November 6, 2001
The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) said on Tuesday it would campaign against the disease by promoting condom use for safe sex. Ample supplies of such condoms will be judged as a success of its campaign, an ASEAN report said. Interestingly, ASEAN members Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand grow most of the world's rubber, the raw material used to make condoms.
There are 1.6 million people with HIV/AIDS in the region and the "number is growing tremendously," said Angeline Ackermans, regional representative for the UN programme on HIV/AIDS.
Other ASEAN plans include promoting a "100 percent condom policy" at brothels, hotels and massage parlours, according to the 51-page report.
Thailand has cited increased condom use as the key to its success against AIDS. Its Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said its "100 percent condom policy" at sex outlets had helped prevent the spread of sexually transmitted disease.
"This policy prevented customers from purchasing sexual services unless they used a condom," he told his ASEAN counterparts at a Brunei summit that ended on Tuesday.
But there is a major problem threatening greater condom use across the region. "The main constraints in condom promotion are cultural and religious sensitivities and the reluctance of men to use condoms," the ASEAN report said.
ASEAN includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
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