Nguyen AN, Le HA, Do TA; International Conference on AIDS.
Int Conf AIDS. 2002 Jul 7-12; 14: abstract no. G12637.
Mobility Research and Support Centre, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
ISSUE: There is a strong link between mobility and occupation and HIV/AIDS vulnerability for young women. DESCRIPTION: The Mobility Research and Support Centre (MRSC), following on CARAM research into migrant workers and mobile domestic workers, over two years funded by the Netherlands Government through the CARAM network (Malaysia), has carried out action research in mobile communities: young girls in the street, young women in the factories and those working as sex workers. All had moved from their home cities as internal migrants. The research has shown that they are all vulnerable to HIV/AIDS infection because of the following: alienation and lack of support networks; lack of any basic knowledge of STDs/HIV/AIDS; lack of services because of their mobile status and their lack of knowledge; supervision or control by authoritative or revered order persons (police, factory manager, house owner, pimps etc.); fear of returning and being"not a success" (loss of face for self and family); family pressure to send back money (remittances); love of family and desire to do anything that will physically improve their standard of living; belief that women burden to be selfless is a normal part of her identity; LESSONS LEARNED: Targeted support needs to include: HIV/AIDS real education (not what is commonly termed IEC); skills for protection training and societal gender analysis; information on coping in the city given to girls, women and families to their places of origin; social marketing of concepts of equality of gender and behaviours for men; health and safety issues raised in places of mobile women's work; awareness of mobility issues with police, factory managers and nurses, and workers with street children. RECOMMENDATIONS: Strong networking between groups that work on mobility and HIV/AIDS issues is essential to continue to research and act to minimize human misery.
Publication Types:
Keywords:
- Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
- Child
- Communicable Diseases
- Emigration and Immigration
- Female
- HIV Infections
- HIV Seropositivity
- Humans
- Malaysia
- Male
- Netherlands
- Occupations
- Research
- Transients and Migrants
- Vietnam
- organization & administration
Other ID:
UI: 102254593
From Meeting Abstracts