Intravenous drug use raises AIDS spectre in Maldives

Thirty years since the first reported cases of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in 1981, the response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic has been unprecedented, especially in terms of global and national initiatives. Substantial progress has been made, such as a 31 percent reduction in the number of new infections between 2001 and 2009 in South-East Asia. A revolutionary new approach to treatment endorsed by UNAIDS and WHO, which includes improved, lower-cost drugs, simplified HIV diagnostic technologies, improved delivery systems, and innovations  in prevention of HIV infection, give hope for achieving universal access to prevention, care and treatment of HIV/AIDS, even in resource-constrained settings. Yet, the challenge is far from over. HIV still remains a formidable...

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Posted in: Health / HIV

“Don’t give in to fanatical minority”, Reporters Without Borders urges government

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) have issued a statement urging the government “not to give in to the fanatical minority” and to do “all it can to ensure the media are free to tackle any subjects they choose.” The statement came in response to the Islamic Ministry’s ordering of the Communications Authority of the Maldives (CAM) to block the website of controversial blogger, Ismail Khilath “Hilath” Rasheed, on the grounds that it contained anti-Islamic material. “The increase in acts of religious intolerance is a threat to the Maldives’ young democracy”, RSF said its statement, requesting the “immediate reopening of [Hilath’s] blog.” RSF...

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Posted in: News,Society

Blog crack-down “is just the beginning”, warns censored blogger

The website of controversial Maldivian blogger Ismail ‘Hilath’ Rasheed has been shut down by Communications Authority of the Maldives (CAM) on the order of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs. The Ministry made the request on the grounds that the site contained anti-Islamic material, a CAM statement read. CAM Director Abdulla Nafeeg Pasha told Minivan News the Islamic Ministry has the power to regulate website content. Pasha did not wish to comment on the procedures for closing down a website, but said “if the ministry tells us to shut it down, that’s what we do. We do not make the decision.” Once closed, Pasha explained, a website can only...

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Posted in: Politics / Religion

IDLO Co-hosts the First Regional Roundtable Dialogue on HIV and Law in South Asia

Kathmandu, Nepal - In collaboration with the legal apex body for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARCLAW), UNDP, UNAIDS and the World Bank, IDLO co-hosted a South Asian Regional Roundtable Dialogue on HIV and the Law at the Yak and Yeti Hotel, Kathmandu from 8 - 10 November 2011. The Roundtable was a direct follow up to the Asia Pacific Regional Dialogue of the Global Commission on HIV and Law convened by the UNDP in February 2011 in Bangkok. It supported commitments to advance human rights to reduce stigma, discrimination and violence related to HIV as well as the region-specific commitments, which were...

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Posted in: Health / HIV