Everyday 16,000 people are becoming infected with HIV/AIDS. Among them over 7000 are young people. One child dies of AIDS related illness every minute in the world. Approximately 60 million people are living with HIV throughout the world and the number is increasing every day. HIV/AIDS has become a catastrophe and it is the fourth largest cause of death globally. It is feared that HIV/AIDS many reduce average life expectancy to around 30 years in some South African countries by 2010.

Since 1981, when the first cases of AIDS were diagnosed, the world has been facing the deadliest epidemic in modern history. AIDS remains an incurable disease and coupled with malnutrition. AIDS has negative impact on households, demography, agriculture, education, health sector, economic growth etc. GNP could decrease by more than 1 percent for every 10 percent of HIV prevalence.

What is AIDS
The human immunodeficiency virus or HIV infects cells those are part of body's immune system. As the virus infects more cells, the immune system becomes less able to fight off diseases. The virus kills the cells it infects and also kills uninfected bystander cells. If left untreated, HIV will almost always deplete the immune system. This leaves the body vulnerable to one or more life-threatening disease. This stage of HIV infection is called AIDS: A(cquired) I(mmuno) D(eficiency) S(yndrome).

25 million people have already died of HIV/AIDS related illness in the world. AIDS is an obstacle and threat to human civilization. Honest living, staying faithful to beloved one, positive thinking, preventing trafficking of women and children, eradicating poverty, combating malnutrition especially of women and children, causing gender equality, increasing education avoiding taboos/ superstitions and ignorance, loving our valuable lives, saying 'No' to drugs, holding to traditional family bondage, religious and moral values, social awareness/ mobilization through behavior change communication, proper knowledge of HIV/ AIDS, free or low- cost testing of HIV can prevent HIV/AIDS.

Lack of awareness, poverty, social stigma and absence of initiative by public agencies and health professionals to publicise information on prevention and treatment of such diseases have made the people in our country apparently more vulnerable to STDs/STIs and HIV/ AIDS. The official figure is that there are 20,000 HIV/ AIDS patients in Bangladesh. But it may be much lower than the actual figure. STDs are a group of communicable diseases transferred predominantly by sexual contact which helps to get HIV/ AIDS.

Sex workers and HIV/ AIDS
"We have voting rights. So, we are the citizens of this country and logically we should have equal rights like others. And the harassment/ eviction should have an end in the name of so-called repatriation by some of the muscle men of the society". Some sex workers of Kandapara brothel in Tangail stated their views and demands as above when I visited and talked to them early last month. The sex workers also informed me that the rate of condom use to prevent STDs and HIV/ AIDS had increased than before, but was not satisfactory. So, to build more awareness among both the customers and sex workers is an urgent need. They also added that trafficking of women and children was increasing remarkably. As a result, number of sex workers is increasing also. That is why to stop trafficking and to punish the traffickers should be the highest priority of law enforcing authority to reduce the number of sex workers gradually and to end brutality/ violence against women.

M. A. Latif Miah, Deputy Director of Society for Social Service (SSS) of Tangail said, "Without proper rehabilitation/ repatriation the sex workers of the brothel should not be evicted. If evicted, the sex workers will be around the city, which will help dangerously the people to get the fatal diseases like STDs and HIV/ AIDS. So, the concerned authorities should keep it in mind before taking any destructive decision like eviction of any brothel".

In fact, sex work is an oldest profession and sex workers are human beings too. They suffer from illness and experience real pain from circumstances often forced on them. So, any group of people should not illegally harass them. On the other hand, sex workers in Bangladesh are deprived of their rights socially, and politically. Violence is very common in brothels and our national data indicates sex workers as most vulnerable group for violence. To promote safety of this highly vulnerable group, immediate programme should be undertaken by the policy makers.

Women at greater risk
Women are more at risk of HIV infection during unprotected sex -- two to four times higher than men. Socio-culturally women are more susceptible to HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The norm of virginity restricts adolescent girls' access to information about sex and increases risk of sexual coercion. Women's economic vulnerability increases pressures for them to exchange sex for food or money.

Consequently many women would die of AIDS related illnesses at younger ages than men. Adolescent girls are at greater risk than adult women. Gender-based violence is closely linked to HIV/AIDS. In our country, rate of early marriage is so high. So, when girls are married at an early age to older men, they can be vulnerable to HIV infection, because their husbands usually already had a number of sexual partners. Younger widows/ divorcees are also at risk because they are more likely to seek and be sought by other sexual partners. Also if donated blood (especially women require during child delivery) is not always tested for HIV, blood transfusions can transmit HIV.

HIV/ AIDS, poverty and deprivation
Research shows that HIV/ AIDS spread fast where there is poverty, powerlessness and social instability. Poverty has been recognised as a "disease" by itself. So, we should realize the link between development and healthy population, between poverty and ill health. Economic hardship and civil unrest have been pushing more and more young women/men away from home into town/cities for work. Many of them enter in multiple sexual relationships, risks for HIV and thus transmitting the virus from one person/place to another. Female migrant workers, in domestic or seasonal work, are often sexually exploited. Poverty and lack of alternatives are the major causes for many children becoming sex workers.

Therefore, the time is 'now' to eradicate poverty, employment creation, provide necessary information about HIV/AIDS for the adolescents, young women/men and adult people all over the country. People of grassroots level should be included in this social revolution on HIV/AIDS awareness. United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS noted that, "strong leadership at all levels of society is essential for an effective response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic".

Prevention is better than cure
UNICEF highlighted in its report that 96 percent of girls and 88 percent boys do not know how to protect them form HIV. Social mobilisation, interpersonal communication, counseling/ advocacy, government mobilisation, organisational/ institutional knowledge-based approaches to the stakeholders, communication for behaviour change to prevent HIV are definitely helpful.

We should also develop a concrete advocacy plan for raising awareness, improving knowledge and changing behaviour of adolescents and youths so that they can keep them free from HIV and join for mass campaign. The political leaders, health professionals, journalists, teachers, students, religious leaders, leaders of indigenous people and community, elite persons, i.e., all of us should change ourselves first to play the role of changing others to make them aware about HIV/AIDS for a better life. HIV/AIDS epidemic is the major challenge facing developing countries today. HIV/AIDS is directly threatening the achievement of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Parvez Babul is a development activist.