Though Sudirman’s name is Javanese-sounding, it has
been Javanised. He’s actually a Buginese from South
Sulawesi. Sudirman was a student activist in Makassar, the
capital city of that province, during the 1990s. He has been
working on HIV prevention programs with NGOs in the city since
1992. Since 1997, Sudirman has worked as a public health researcher,
particularly in the areas of HIV/AID, reproductive health,
nutrition and drug counseling.
What is your professional/educational background?
I got my bachelor’s degree in medical science from Hasanuddin
University in Makassar and Master of Women’s Health
from The Key Centre for Women’s Health in Society at
the University of Melbourne, Australia.
I wrote a thesis on “Drug subculture and the social
context of HIV-risk behaviors among intravenous drug users
in Makassar”.
How and why did you initially take up the cause of combating
AIDS?
As a former student activist, it was natural for me to have
a concern and commitment to build a better Indonesia. There
were very few people concerned with HIV in the early 1990s
in Makassar. However, you didn’t need to be an expert
in HIV/AIDS to see the many high-risk behaviors for HIV transmission
in the city. If you just looked around, it was obvious that
many people were having sex with multiple partners without
using condoms, or else they were sharing needles when injecting
drugs. I was a student in the faculty of medicine but very
few medical students or even lecturers ever talked about HIV/AIDS.
At the time, there was a proliferation of study clubs established
by student activists, a form of resistance against Suharto’s
regime. Even though politics was the main topic of the study
groups, my friends and I tried to also discuss HIV/AIDS. We
soon found that we were discouraged from being too critical
of the government or too critical about the lack of response
of government officials towards the epidemic. We realized
that discussing HIV with people from other disciplines is
not merely a medical issue but also a social, economic and
even political issue. Risk is always political.
What is the biggest challenge you are facing in your work
fighting AIDS?
All the misunderstandings and myths about HIV are our biggest
challenge. Also discrimination towards people living with
HIV/AIDS/PLWHA. It’s very easy to stigmatize PLWHA (an
Indonesian acronym for people living with AIDS) if we don’t
have sufficient knowledge on HIV/AIDS. This kind of attitude
is a big barrier to prevention and care programs.
What do you like most about your job?
The hope that if we share awareness and knowledge we can overcome
this pandemic. We don’t have to panic. We can overcome
AIDS if all sectors of society – NGOs, government, private
individuals, the medical community, religious organizations
– work hard together.
What are the most serious causes of the spread of AIDS in
Indonesia?
Presently, the sharing of unsterilized injecting equipment
among drug users is becoming the main mode of HIV transmission
in many cities, not only in Makassar but in other important
urban centers such as Denpasar.The great thing about Bali
is that NGOs like Yakeba and Yakita are implementing harm
reduction programs like needle exchange and methadone programs.
They also organize “cleaning up” days in which
they collect discarded needles from public spaces such as
Kuta Beach. These programs are very useful for not only drug
users but also for the community.
Is the epidemic more lethal and more deep-seated in Indonesia
than in other S.E. Asian countries?
It may become so. It all depends on our responses towards
the epidemic. The AIDS scourge will definitely become more
lethal if we don’t increase the coverage and the quality
of our prevention and care programs. NGOs and particularly
the government need to work harder.
Could you give us real-life examples of how people have become
infected with the HIV virus?
I just met a young man who injects putaw (street grade heroin)
and uses unsterile needles. He told me that he is living with
HIV/AIDS. He has a wife and she is pregnant. Both of them
are worried and are trying to find information on how to prevent
their baby from contracting the disease.
Is the Indonesian government making efforts to fight the AIDS
epidemic?
Yes, both national and provincial commissions on AIDS have
been established that are trying to improve their effectiveness
and expand their coverage but we still need stronger political
and financial support. Most programs in Indonesia are still
donor driven.
What specific actions can we as individuals do to help stop
the spread of AIDS?
Be aware and be safe. Don’t have more than one sex partner.
If you do, use condoms. Don’t use drugs. If you do,
don’t inject. If you inject, use new clean needles.
It’s that simple.
For anyone interested in being considered for Siapa, please
contact : <pakbill2003@yahoo.com>
Copyright@2007 Al Hickey
You can read all past articles of Siapa
at www.BaliAdvertiser.biz
