Aiza calls for revolutionizing HIV treatment. Calls for doing away with parental consent. Exhorts Congress and youth to modify practices.

HIV needs tackling on a mass scale.

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The Philippines as a poor nation has seen the worst kind of exploitation and misuse. While on one side, drugs took a stranglehold on the masses, sex also ruled the roost.

Therefore, the Philippines gained fame as a nation where you could get the services of children as young as ten. In fact, you could have sex with minor children of both sexes. The result was the unrestrained spread of sex-related diseases like HIV-AIDS.

The numbers of sexually infected people is large but there is no way to really gauge the dimensions of the problem. Moreover, social stigma prevents parents from openly allowing testing of their minor children.

That is why Aiza Seguerra, Chairman, National Youth Commission (NYC) chair exhorted the government to initiate clinical testing immediately. In doing so, we must overrule the legal clause requiring parental consent she said.

90% of the infected were in the age group between 15 and 30, the singer-turned-public official stated quoting governmental statistics.

In a news briefing at Malacanang, she declared that the youth personifies HIV in the Philippines. She went on to add that, in spite of our differences, we need to initiate some action. It is now necessary to permit youngsters to undergo treatment without seeking parental consent.

Perhaps, the time is ripe for a review of some clauses that are detrimental to the Filipino masses.

Moreover, the embarrassment factor plays a big part when children inform their parents that they have Sexually Transmitted Diseases. It just does not work that way within society. Hence, we should modify our thinking on delivering RH (reproductive health) services.

But, the proposal needed consensus on the issue particularly in Congress. In fact, the late Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago filed a bill in 2015 for just such a purpose.

In spite of the life-saving potential, the legislation did not see the light of day. She did quote the example of New York City and requested support of the youth and the system to bring in this revolutionary legislation .

Actually, the youth will also have to help in coming forward and getting tested and treated. The lack of finances also prevented the youth from getting treated, she concluded.

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Umrao Singh
umraoz.wordpress.com
Written for: Lars-Magnus Carlsson
www.thephilippinepride.com
Wednesday, 15 February 2017

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