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CONTENT:

1 - ZIMBABWE: Alarm over HIV prevalence in armed forces

1 - ZIMBABWE: Alarm over HIV prevalence in armed forces

HARARE, 24 June (PLUSNEWS) - Health workers in Zimbabwe have called for

increased efforts to stem the high number of AIDS-related deaths in the

armed forces.

The recently released 2003 Zimbabwe Human Development Report claimed that

HIV prevalence in the armed forces far exceeded the general population

infection rate of 24.6 percent in the general population, and

three-quarters of soldiers died of AIDS within a year of leaving the army.

A UNAIDS survey undertaken in 1999 showed that 55 percent of the then

36,000-strong army were HIV-positive.

" In the military, young and socially inexperienced people are recruited

and trained to be fearless and aggressive. While this is good for war

situations, research shows that the youthful soldiers carry this approach

into civilian life and into their private sexual interactions, " the report

noted.

The study was compiled by the Poverty Reduction Forum and the Institute of

Development Studies, with support from the UN Development Programme.

Sostain Moyo, director of the Pan-African Treatment Access Movement

(PATAM), told PlusNews the high incidence of HIV/AIDS in the army could be

attributed to how the military functioned.

" Even though there is no concrete research done to prove it, the military

would tend to be [more] vulnerable [to HIV infection] because of the

manner in which soldiers operate, " said Moyo. " They are highly mobile, and

this exposes them a lot [to possible infection]. "

The situation was compounded by a lack of HIV/AIDS intervention programmes

in the army structure. " The army needs voluntary counselling and testing

centres. [soldiers] would be counselled on how to live positively and what

they can do to avoid passing the virus on to other people, " Moyo

suggested.

" Recruits can be screened if the practice is guided by the goal to fight

HIV/AIDS in the army. It [testing] should be regular [and] extended even

to those who have served for some time. Screening, however, becomes

meaningless if it is meant to stop some people from joining in the

military, since this promotes discrimination and stigmatisation, " he said.

Civil rights groups have opposed compulsory testing, citing the

infringement of privacy.

The health ministry has pointed out that soldiers were put at greater risk

of contracting the virus by the very nature of military operations:

military camps, where soldiers are posted on missions or for training, are

often situated in remote and poor areas; and the camps are seen as

high-income areas by the local communities, particularly female sex

workers.

A military base can have as many as 1,000 soldiers, of which most reside

in single quarters or are placed with civilian families in neighbouring

villages.

" Research suggests that members of the military [guarding borders] are

offered sex in return for allowing vendors and other traders to pass

through [customs] without paying duty, " the report added.

Twenty-three year old Guyo (not his real name), a Lance Corporal

with the Zimbabwe National Army, told PlusNews that frequent posting away

from the base was one of the major factors contributing to the high HIV

infection rate among soldiers.

Soon after graduating four years ago, Guyo was posted to the Democratic

Republic of Congo (DRC), when Zimbabwe was part of a Southern Africa

Development Community effort helping the besieged DRC government repel a

rebel takeover.

" As you can imagine, like hundreds of my colleagues, I was excited to be

in the bush for the first time - more so because I had never ventured

outside our borders, " he said.

" The war experience was horrible, but we found our solace in the brothels

of Kinshasa [DRC's capital]. Also, it was my first time employed, [and] I

found it gratifying to spend my money on women of the DRC, maybe also as a

way of beating homesickness, " Guyo told PlusNews.

He admitted that he had unprotected sex and contracted a sexually

transmitted disease while in the DRC, but thought it unlikely that he had

contracted HIV, as he had not experienced any symptoms of infection since

returning home.

Although more than 10 of his friends have died of AIDS-related illnesses

over past two years, Guyo was reluctant to undergo an HIV test.

" Even if the army would set up its own testing centres, I do not see

myself going there. Being tested or not, what difference does it make when

you are going to die? After all, as a soldier, I was taught not to fear

death, " he told PlusNews.

[ENDS]

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