S U N DAY, MAR C H 8, 2 0 1 5
OMAN
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C O M M E N TA RY
Society need to support HIV sufferers and not stigmatise them
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obody wants to talk about HIV in Oman and this is the reason why many victims continue to suffer in silence which makes it difficult for health authorities to compile accurate data of how many people need immediate help. Removing the stigma of the deadly virus will help control the spread and improve the lives of many sufferers. In Oman, people don’t want to be associated with members of the families who have HIV. Those who get to know that they have the virus keep quiet and never go back to hospitals to get treatment. What many people in the country do not realise is that sexual contact is not the only cause of HIV. There is not enough awareness to tell the nation that
C U LT U R A L D I P L O M A C Y
Japanese embassy screens five short films Times News Service MUSCAT: Japanese embassy hosted a screening of ‘Japanese Short Films’ at the Oman Film Society (OFS) and the Scientific College of Design respectively recently. Both events were attended by George Hisaeda, ambassador of Japan. Around 100 students from different faculties attended the event at the Scientific College of Design. Five Japanese short films were shown with an introductory lecture by Japanese director Seigo Tono, who came especially for the event from Japan. Tono is a founding member and festival director of the ‘Short Shorts Film Festival Asia’, which is the largest film festival in Asia. Tono has also worked on two Hollywood productions. Ambassador Hisaeda said: “My favourite role as ambassador of Japan is to bring Japanese culture to the friendly people of Oman. Since being posted here, I have strived to present contemporary Japan and its vibrant pop culture in addition to traditional, ancient Japan.” He went on to reflect, “These short films explore universal values such as family, friendship and love, which we can all relate to as global citizens, while also depicting everyday life in Japan.” During Tono’s lecture, the Japanese director presented the short film environment and modern techniques in Japan, citing the example of one of the films screened, titled Frog in the Well which is a sequence of thousands of still photographs. The lecture also covered commercial angles, such as the growing trend in Japan for corporate usage of short films as an effective form of advertising, such as In the Tree House by Tobu Group, which the audience later enjoyed.
many sufferers get it from blood transfusion and sharing hypodermic needles. As a result, HIV patients, once diagnosed, do not tell their families because they know they will be treated as sinners for having illegal relationships with unmarried partners even though they knew nothing about it when they got infected. The pressure, in some cases, leads to suicide. Young people who know they cannot get accepted by their families choose what they think the easiest way out by taking their lives. For them, what really ends their lives prematurely is not the disease but the stigma. To fight the stigma in a country that is fiercely controlled by a culture that avoids shame to the families, is not easy. But it is never too late to start now. It is also not against
SUNDAY BEAT
SALEH AL SHAIBANY Islamic virtues to talk about HIV or provide help. Islam is a very compassionate religion and it is a misconception for HIV sufferers to be treated as outcasts. In the end, it does not matter how they get infected. They all need help and de-stigmatising HIV must be a top priority. There must be a national campaign to create awareness that people with HIV pose no threat to the public. The campaign must also be
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directed outside Muscat where information dissemination is mostly needed. Current statistics show less than 2,000 people are infected with HIV in Oman but doctors know the number is much bigger than that. Many people don’t know they have it because they have not got themselves checked-up. They spread it after marriage and tragically the babies are born with the virus passed on from parents. With new medical breakthrough and medications, HIV is now considered a chronic disease
and not a killer. However, since the first victim was reported in 1984 in Oman, the country has not yet managed to conduct successful campaigns to combat the disease in an effective way. For thirty years since then, we still put the problem under wraps. Doctors have to pronounce previously unknown HIV patients dead knowing that if they had a test much earlier their death could have been prevented. Unicef reports in its website (www.unicef. org/infobycountry/oman_29866. html) of two Omani sisters who got diagnosed very early on. They got it from blood transfusion when they were five and four-years-old. Now in their mid-thirties, they live problem free because they got the help they needed very early on. Though they live a good
life, thanks to excellent medical care, they now find they have to fight the battle of stigma. They cannot find suitors for marriage. Obviously, it is worse for women than men. HIV-infected Omani men marry non-Omanis and they get on with their lives. Women in similar situations are destined for a life of spinsterhood. But it is not only a social problem. It is a professional one as well. HIV-infected people find it hard to find jobs in the Sultanate. When the medical check reveals the virus, they get rejected. A national awareness campaign of HIV and AIDS is needed from grass roots, in every school, college and university, as also posters on the roads and shopping malls. Victims of HIV are not monsters and need to be treated with compassion and understanding.