IFMSA
was founded in May 1951 and is run by medical students, for medical students, on a non-profit basis. IFMSA is officially recognised as a nongovernmental organisation within the United Nations’ system and has official relations with the World Health Organisation. It is the international forum for medical students, and one of the largest student organisations in the world.
Imprint Editor in Chief Joško Miše, Croatia Content Editors Grete Hirvesoo, Estonia Luisa Pirsko , Estonia Merilin Vaher, Estonia Anna Szczegielniak, Poland Michalina Drejza, Poland Shihab Arefin Chowdhury, Bangladesh Marie Abel, Estonia
The mission of IFMSA
Design/Layout Ibrahim Kandeel, Egypt Omar H. Safa, Egypt
is to offer future physicians a comprehensive introduction to global health issues. Through our programs and opportunities, we develop culturally sensitive students of medicine, intent on influencing the transnational inequalities that shape the health of our planet.
Publisher International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations General Secretariat: IFMSA c/o WMA B.P. 63 01212 Ferney-Voltaire, France Phone: +33 450 404 759 Fax: +33 450 405 937 Email: gs@ifmsa.org Homepage: www.ifmsa.org Contacts publications@ifmsa.org Printed in India.
Contents - The SCORA quickie ................................................................... - Sail away from the safe harbor (an interview with Joško) ..... - Peer Education (Sex Education in Switzerland) ...................... - SHAPE – your life, your decisions, your sexuality .................. - IPET 12 ........................................................................................ - Women’s Health ........................................................................ - International Women’s Day ...................................................... - Homophobia (What were you wearing on April 11th?) ......... - For a Homophobia Free World! ............................................... - Homophobia in Mexico ............................................................ - Homophobia in Brazil ............................................................... - HIV/AIDS (AIDS PREVENTION PROJECT) ............................. - Since the HIV diagnosis nothing is the same ........................... - HIV in Our Society ..................................................................... - Promoting Health and Dignity Together.................................... - The perfect Cooperation! (MTV Staying Alive Foundation & IFMSA-Poland) .............................................................................
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SCORAlicious, August 2012
The SCORA quickie The very beginning SCORA projects 1992 – SCOAS was formed as a committee of IFMSA. SCOAS = Standing committee on AIDS and STIs. 1998 – SCOAS was changed to SCORA. The name change was made to show that SCORA advocated not only for safe sex but also for a range of reproductive health matters.
SCORA Directors 2007/2008 SCORA-D Samer Abi Chaker 2008/2009 SCORA-D Imene Ben Ameur 2009/2010 SCORA-D Branislav Cherenka 2010/2011 SCORA-D Joško Miše
SCORA related policy statements Declaration on Breastfeeding Declaration on the Socioeconomic and Psychosocial Impact of HIV/AIDS on African countries Policy Paper on Medical Student and Gender Equality Resolution on AIDS Orphans Statement on the Advancement of Young Women Reproductive Health Declaration Statement on the Trials of Bulgarian Medics in Libya Policy Statement on Female Genital Mutilation Policy Statement on Greater Involvement of People Living with HIV/AIDS
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• Mr & Ms Breastestis • NECSE • SCORA Twinning • SCORA Xchange • Workshops on Peer education for medical students in Lebanon and Poland • First Gynecological Consultation • For a Homophobia Free World • Sexperience • Illuminaids: Zero Stigma and Discrimination towards PLWHA • Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation • Daphne • Sexual Education for Sex Workers • Red Party
Our event Calendar • Zero Tolerance to FGM day – February 6th • IWD – International Women’s Day – March 8th • IDAHO – International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia – May 17th • Candlelight Memorial – 3rd Saturday of May • Breastcancer Awareness month (October) + Breast cancer awareness day (4th Monday of October) • International Day of Elimination of Violence against Women – November 25th • World AIDS day – December 1st • Human Rights day – December 10th
www.ifmsa.org
Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
Sail away from the safe harbor An interview with Joško Marie Abel, Estonia Have you been wondering why is that Joško-guy always spamming your mailbox? Here’s why. At the beginning of July I had the chance to persuade him to answer a few questions about SCORA and leadership. What do you consider to be your biggest achievement as SCORA-D? I think they are yet to come (given that I am writing this prior to AM). We will propose a 2-year SCORA strategic plan that I hope will be adopted by all the SCORAngels. Also, we are proposing the Policy Statement on Equal Access to Health Care Regardless of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity. Knowing how controversial this topic still is in IFMSA, it will be SCORA’s great accomplishment that many generations before us wanted to achieve. Apart from that, I think that one of my biggest accomplishments was creating a group of SCORAngels that felt motivated and inspired after every GA to work and involve in different activities on international and national level. And many of them kept coming back to GAs. I always counted on them and I think that this is something I would wish to every Standing Committee Director. What do you dream SCORA to be like on his/her 30th birthday? What about the 40th? It is hard to say that! The field of reproductive health and HIV/AIDS is evolving very fast. We are moving forward globally. It is hard to say which topics SCORA will cover in 30-40 years time. We all hope to put an end to AIDS. Probably we will have to modify our name a bit :) But if I use my crystal ball that I have :) - I would say we will be focusing more on sexual health and rights. What is the best piece of advice you ever got? (For life or about leadership or whatever) When I was talking to Brano (SCORA-D 09/10) during our handover time, he told me that no medical students worldwide
matter what, I should never neglect and forget my non-IFMSA friends during my term as the Director. And it is one of the things I will say to the new Director as well. The fact is that you can’t stay in IFMSA forever, it is an episode in your life and a wonderful one for that matter, but reality will struck afterwards. Your funniest/ most rewarding SCORA moment? Oh boy - where do I start. There are many of those. But here is one – after MM 11 in Jakarta I was travelling from Jakarta to Bali by plane. I had with me a conference bag full of condoms that were left after the GA (as I didn’t want to leave them there). Everything went perfectly fine until the security check point at the airport where my bags needed to be scanned. As soon as I put my conference bag on the thing for scanning the bags, I knew there will be s**it (dear SCORAngels, google “Indonesia and condoms“ to understand why). Of course, three policemen came and started opening the bag stuffed only with 200 condoms their reaction was....hard to describe with words - but let’s say they were SHOCKED. What was even funnier was my reaction - I said: “No, no, I am in business”. Realizing what I had said - I started saying: “No, no. no, not in THAT business!!” And then I explained to them everything about the GA in Jakarta and IFMSA and they let me go. And they asked me if I could give them some condoms. After that they were so happy and thankful! SCORA priority for 2012/2013 in your opinion? According to the first ever SCORA Strategic Plan we created! (YAY). What is your wish to the SCORAngels of the world? SCORAngels of 2012 - wear sunscreen! What/who has inspired you the most in your work?
I know it might sound as a cliche - but the work of SCORAngels in their countries has been giving me so much inspiration and motivation. Seeing the beautiful work SCORA members were doing, always gave me more strength to do my job as the Director. You gave me your trust by voting for me (twice!) and I always felt I couldn’t let you down. Best time-management tip you ever got? ”Always do one thing at a time“ and I never followed it. I wonder if there is any one liner tip for multitasking? Will find that out for my successor. Any novel ideas for SCORA cooperation with other parts of the IFMSA? We are currently in the planning of the no-discrimination campaign for the August Meeting 2012. It is a campaign made by all Standing Committees in order to raise awareness around different types of discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, race, religion, ethnicity, age etc. It is a great example of cooperation between different SCs in IFMSA. Your greatest role model/supporter? To be honest - I have never had a role model. Or if I have to say, I would say that I had role modelS. Those are the people that I respect and admire for their work and for what they have accomplished in their life. Anything else you feel like sharing? ”Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” A quote by Mark Twain - the only reason why I am the one answering these questions and not someone else. 5
SCORAlicious, August 2012
PEER EDUCATION Sex Education in Switzerland Lenia von Hammerstein, swimsa
Once upon a time there was a secondary school class somewhere in the middle of Switzerland. They kids were very excited about the upcoming day because they had learned that they would be visited by medical students who would talk about sex to them. Talk about sex with strangers? Wouldn’t it be totally weird and embarrassing? When the medical students, a man and a woman, entered the classroom there was a burst of giggling and whispering among the kids. The students smiled, they knew what to do with giggling teenagers: Play the synonym game! The kids had to split up into two teams and then had to find as quickly a possible synonyms to penis, vagina, sex and love. After five seconds the initial hesitation was gone and the classroom was filled with laughter and every imaginable words for male and female genitals. The ice was broken, the kids recognized that this morning wouldn’t be a normal lesson at all – the morning was filled with anatomy, theatre based education on contraceptives, sexually transmitted infections, interactive role-play on relationship issues, homosexuality and porn. And they got the opportunity to ask all the questions they ever wondered about and received honest answers.
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This is what a normal lesson on sexual education of “Achtung Liebe Switzerland” looks like. We usually visit classes for four hours, if possible we extend our program as there is always more to talk about. The kids are mostly between 12 and 16 years old, which is exactly the age where sex and love are one of the most discussed topics. In times of Internet and media there are so many rumors, wrong facts or false interpreted information going around that we really feel the need of good basic sex education to help the kids make up their mind self reliant, express their opinion and, of course, lower the risk of unplanned pregnancies and STIs. Although we get very good feedback from schools we visited, there are parents complaining about their children being sexualized by sex education. That’s why we find it very important to take a firm stand on the principles of our program in public and explain parents and teachers the contents and methods of our lectures. We need to assure them that we are capable of designing individual lessons fitted on their children’s state of development. For more information check out www.achtungliebe.ch !
www.ifmsa.org
Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
SHAPE!
your life, your decisions, your sexuality Anne-Sophie & Anne, shape.ifmsa@gmail.com
In the past years, have you heard questions like: ‘Why do women scream when they have sex?’ ‘If you have children, are you then too old for sex?’ ‘What is dry sex?’ ‘In a chatbox, a boy has showed me his penis. I didn’t like it, but I don’t dare to tell. What should I do?’ ‘Where do you actually lick when you’re ‘licking’ a girl?’ If yes, then this article is interesting for you! If no, read it anyway, it might become interesting for you!
to start their own project. So, what does SHAPE actually do? Is it any different from Sexperience? A few weeks ago, we defined our Vision, Mission and Aims. These will help us carry out what we stand for, what we strive for and how we are going to achieve that. Find the full version at our booth at the Project Fair!
For a few years, you all have been familiar with Sexperience as the umbrella for all the sexuality education projects. We might have been a little quiet, but we are still there. We’re here more than ever! The project is nowadays run by an amazing International Team of Joy (SCORA will be SCORA!). Let us introduce ourselves: Laura Herrman (bvmd Germany), Desirée Lichtenstein (IFMSASweden), Susanne Ehn (IFMSA-Sweden), Anne-Sophie Homoe (IMCC Denmark), Silvan Hämmerli (SwiMSA Switzerland), Hollie Kluczewski (Medsin UK) and Anne Driessen (IFMSA- the Netherlands). This team has worked very hard since the MM’12 to get back on track!
For every youth to be sexually healthy and make well thought out choices on the subject of sexuality and relationships, for people to be confident of their own sexual choices and tolerant towards the sexual choices of others.
The project underwent a lot of changes: the first of them is the change of our name. What? How? Why? We went from Sexperience to SHAPE. SHAPE is the abbreviation for Sexual Health And Peer Education. This name captures exactly what we do and how we do it: sexual health for everybody through peer education. At the same time, through peer education, we aim for you to shape your life, your decisions and your sexuality. If you have found a way to achieve these three things, a sexually happy life will be waiting for you! There is one other reason why we changed our name. We want this project to be suitable for all NMO’s. We figured that in countries where sexuality is still a taboo, it wouldn’t help to adopt a project that has ‘sex’ directly in its name. This way it should be easier for the NMO’s where sex.ed. is needed mostly, medical students worldwide
Vision
Aims
• To make teenagers aware of their choices with respect to sexuality, love and puberty • To make before mentioned subjects discussible with teenagers. – ask Hollie for nicer words • To decrease the prevalence of STI’s by promoting safe sex and correct usage of condoms • To provide a platform for peer-educators to exhange and improve methods • To help new NMO’s start their sexuality education projects As peer educators, it is important that we develop our teaching skills in order to stay up to date with the sexual changes world wide. A broad knowledge about sexual health is important to everyone. No matter the sex, age, ethnicity or cultural background. Throughout the world, sexual health needs promotion. Different countries have very different views on defining sexual health. Is sexual health exposing yourself to STI’s and using abortion as protection against pregnancy? Is sexual health relying on luck, taking a chance not to get pregnant, while forgetting, that there are many sexually transmitted infections to which you expose yourself by not using a condom? Is sexual health using abstinence as the only 7
SCORAlicious, August 2012
» The project underwent a lot of changes: the first of them is the change of our name. What? How? Why? We went from Sexperience to SHAPE. SHAPE is the abbreviation for Sexual Health And Peer Education. » As peer educators, it is important that we develop our teaching skills in order to stay up to date with the sexual changes world wide. A broad knowledge about sexual health is important to everyone. No matter the sex, age, ethnicity or cultural background.
information about sex? How can we promote sexual health in a world, where the cultural barriers are so different from country to country? By encouraging our educational systems and relying on the competence of peer educators, our hope is that providing information will help break down these barriers and give teenagers a better way of understanding how to take care of themselves. How are teenagers to learn about sexual health, if the educational systems do not recognize that they have a responsibility to encourage sexual education and thereby increase knowledge about sexual health. By forming a worldwide platform of peer education the SHAPE project will be able to break down cultural barriers, focusing on what is important: your life, your decisions and your sexuality.
But! There is always a ‘but’ for very nice, promising plans. We need your help! Our database is small at the moment, we’ve only recieved a few methods from a few countries. In order to help the new NMO’s, to exchange information, to improve our methods, we need you to send us your methods! Please do not hesitate to contact us to ask anything, to send us your methods, to give ideas, for information or just for a nice chat.
And finally, the last two aims are especially interesting for your local (or national) sex. ed. project. Our platform will be a huge database all LORA’s and NORA’s can access, where we save all the methods we have, from all the countries that we have recieved them from. If everything goes the way we want, we will have methods in all languages from all parts of the world. This way, you can choose your language, and choose a method that suits for your country!
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www.ifmsa.org
Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
IPET 12
International Peer Education Training 12 Michalina Drejza, IFMSA-Poland
Are you interested in reproductive health, gender equality or HIV stigma and discrimination ? Do you enjoy peer education projects and working with young people? Would you like to meet crazy people from all over the world who share the same interests with you? If your answer is YES for at least one question - IPET is definitely for you! IPET took place for the twelth time during the pre-GA March Meeting 2012 workshops in Accra, the capital of Ghana. A group of 15 wonderful SCORAngels from all over the world took part in a 4 day session, full of energizers, teambuilding activities, and presentation and public speaking developing skills. The focus was on theatrebased peer education concerning empowering young medical students to provide youth-for-youth programs at the national level. Topics of gender equality, people coping with HIV/AIDS stigmatisation and all the important issues connected with peer education were stressed during the really fruitful discussions.
medical students worldwide
Our wonderful trainers – Josko Mise (SCORA-D) and Federica Magne (Regional Assistant for SCORA in Europe) along with the invaluable assistance of Joe Cherabie (LeMSIC Lebanon) worked really hard, sharing their experience and motivating us all the time. But these wonderful sessions would not have been possible without the IPET 12 Organizing Committee – Benoit Meunier (SCORA Training Assistant), Anna Rebeka Szczegielniak and Michalina Drejza (both IFMSAPoland) who had really outdone themselves in making the IPET 12 the most memorable event of our lives! IPET is really special! Those four days in beautiful Ghana made our little group into a very SCORAlicious family! The admixture of broad-minded creative people in a room makes it so special that it makes it irresistable to attend the next time you here about it! If you are a peer educator or want to become one or if you want to develop your educator skills and also have a great time with the SCORA people from all over the world - IPET is something you just have to experience! See you soon in pre-GA AM 2012 in India on IPET 13!
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SCORAlicious, August 2012
WOMEN’S HEALTH!
A Vaccine Today could Keep the Cancer Away Fadi Halabi, LeMSIC Lebanon
“Of Course I know that January is the month of cervical cancer,” I lied. I couldn’t tell my friend that I had no idea what she was talking about. Especially since I had been active in the field of sexual health for 3 years via medical school and SCORA! But it really wasn’t totally my fault since in past years this month used to receive very little publicity even though cervical cancer is quite common – that’s such a shame! So what is this cervical cancer? Probably many of us started hearing about cervical cancer a few years ago, in association with the HPV vaccine or to the “Pap smear” test. If you want to know how these are related to cervical cancer you just need to continue reading. But first, I shall bore you with some anatomy. The cervix is a tiny organ in the female reproductive system lying between the vagina and the uterus. It is of outmost importance as it provides protection to the uterus from the outside environment and is essential for carrying a pregnancy. The renewal of cells in the cervix is frequent, thus it is more susceptible to developing cancer that areas in the body with less turnover. Cervical cancer has become common. In Lebanon, it ranks as the 11th most common cancer. Worldwide, every minute, one woman gets affected by cervical cancer. Every 2 minutes, one woman dies because of cervical cancer. These are some pretty high statistics. However, there are 3 sets of good news when talking about cervical cancer: • First of all, we now know that most of the cases of cervical cancer are actually caused by HPV(the human papilloma virus). This means that if we are immune to the virus, the chances of getting cervical cancer diminish. • Second, cells in the cervix start showing changes many years before they become cancerous. And the rule with cancer is that the earlier it is found and treated, the better are chances of a positive outcome . 10
• Third, you can take preventive measures that diminish the risk of cervical cancer. We have vaccines against strains of HPV that can be injected. The PAP-smear which is a diagnostical test that helps to detect the changes. Who should take this HPV vaccine? Up to 80% of sexually active women run the risk of getting HPV infection. The vaccine is recommended to girls between the age of 9 – 26, 3 injections during 6 months. The vaccines is the most effective given before the person has had sexual intercourse. If the person is already sexually active or above 26, one may want to ask for advice from the doctor if the vaccine would be effective or not. There are two types of HPV vaccines. Cervarix protects against HPV 16 and 18, the strains that are most related to cervical cancer. Gardasil protects against 4 strains. In addition to the strains above, it also protects against HPV 6 and 11 which cause genital warts. The vaccines are considered effective not only for women but also for men, it protects them against 90% of genital warts and preventing them for passing HPV to their partners. What is the PAP-smear? The PAP-smear is a screening test that women start doing after the age of 21 or 3 years after starting sexual activity. The test is done at the doctor’s office and is quick. The doctor uses a speculum to widen the vagina, cells are swabbed off the cervix, smeared on a glass side and sent to the lab. The test shows if there are any abnormal cells. If there are, further tests are done to detect the character of them. If nothing abnormal is found, the test is repeated during the following year or 2 years afterwards. Visiting the gynecologist is an essential part of preventional behavior!
www.ifmsa.org
Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
International Women’s Day LeMSIC-SCORA Reflects on Harassment Mona Haj, LeMSIC Lebanon
The month of March in Lebanon is filled with reasons for excitement – warm weather knocking on our doors, the mountains providing beautiful slopes for skiing, and the frequent rains breathing life into our gardens and orchards. However, the month of March also marks an important date in history representing a struggle going back to the early 1900s. Despite the fact that men and women have lived side by side from the dawn of time, the balance has long tipped in favor of those bearing the Y chromosome. Women have fought their way through testosterone-laden tapes to attain a position of respect and equality in the world. These struggles are celebrated each year on 8th of March as International Women’s Day (IWD). Things have really changed since the early 1900s when the Western World concepts like holding offices in government, working white-collar jobs, and even casting a vote, were privileges reserved for men. The right for voting was an issue that at the end of the 1800s, for the first time, made black and white women fight together. It wouldn’t be until 1920 that they would achieve that goal. On February 28, 1909, thanks to the Socialist Party of America, National Women’s Day, was created. The purpose of this day of recognition was to serve as a time when women in every country would press for their demands and pursue future endeavors on the same day. It was a way to band women across the globe to protest and work toward gaining equality with the benefit of numbers. Although the movement for women’s rights was lit in the United States, it was not long before the fire spread throughout the world. In 1910, an International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen made idea of an International Women’s Day a reality. It was celebrated on the last Sunday of February until 1913, when March 8th was officially chosen as IWD. It continues to be celebrated as a way of honoring the past struggles and inspiring women to continue to press and maintain the rights gained so far. Fast forward 99 years and this brings us to the International Women’s Day events in Lebanon 2012. Women’s rights medical students worldwide
go hand in hand with social, mental, and physical well being, via the ability to access healthcare, to feel protected and safe in one’s environment, and to feel empowered to seek change. As such, our club, LeMSIC-SCORA, celebrates IWD with the community each year. This year, the global theme for IWD was “connecting girls, inspiring futures.” We chose to focus this theme on an issue we felt quite relevant to our society – harassment. Our intention with this is based on the belief that one of the best ways to inspire girls is to first ensure a safe and protected society for them to come together and grow up in. What exactly do we mean by harassment? Harassment is any improper and unwelcomed conduct that causes offence or humiliation towards another person. It comes in many forms - through words, gestures, or actions intended to demean or intimidate the victim. Common types of harassment include bullying, stalking, sexual harassment, and workplace harassment. It doesn’t only affect the victim, but all those who are related or associated, even those watching the encounter. An observer may feel discomfort after a woman becomes the center of cat-calls and whistles, while the woman’s family and friends might feel indignation that her name is being smeared. Yet, all of these emotions do not come close to the anguish endured by the victim, with little to do in response to such unwelcomed interactions. In Lebanon, there are no real laws against harassment, and even sexual harassment is not properly penalized. Only specific forms of rape are against the law. We wanted people to understand how encompassing of a topic this was. University students are at an awkward age where they want to shift away from the simple rules and regulations set forth by family and try to understand the world in their own way. So, we had our IWD events focus on getting students to discover the downsides of harassment on their own. Both AUB and USJ medical students from SCORA produced stands where students could come up and post either an experience they had with harassment, or send a message to others about harassment’s many downsides. At the AUB stand, students came up and posted their 11
SCORAlicious, August 2012
handprints with paint on a giant cardboard cutout of the word “NO” with a message on it. By the end of the week, the cardboard “NO” was covered with hundreds of handprints – each a different size, shape, and bearing a different message, representing that when it comes to harassment all can be affected and all should stand against it. We also distributed pamphlets about what harassment is, whether it is acknowledged in Lebanese law and where to seek help if one needs it. AUB also hosted an Aikido session, which is a Japanese martial art that teaches simple, effective methods of self defense that require little physical strength. Practicing it can help protect against surprise attacks even from larger individuals. At USJ, the approach to illustrating the antiharassment message entailed the creation of a mural of a crowded street complete with coffee shops, clothing stores, as well as a road filled with leering cab drivers, whistling men, and the women exposed to it all. It was an outlet for people to write messages about the types of harassment they witness on the streets of Lebanon. The messages ranged from sassy and sarcastic replies from the com-
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ic women to the cab driver whose eyes were definitely not focused on the road, to serious notes of warning for our future. Members also hosted an open-cinema screening of North Country, a film that depicted the sexual harassment and abuse a woman endured when she worked as a miner in the early 1900s, as well as the strength a woman has to stand up to her adversaries. Harassment affects all members of society and unfortunately, many tend to hold onto the mindset that if we don’t acknowledge it, it doesn’t exist, thus fueling the power harassment has in tormenting individuals. We must acknowledge the fact that harassment affects all members of our society and it takes a community to stop it. Just as women throughout history have banded together and fought for their basic rights, it will take a community of pooling together and standing up for one another to get rid of harassment from our society.
www.ifmsa.org
Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
HOMOPHOBIA
What were you wearing on April 11th? Joshua Dias, CFMS
2011 withheld many highs to LGBTQ rights. US Secretary of State gave a speech to the UN, stating it should never be a crime to be gay. Zimbabwe’s Prime Minister said he hoped for a new constitution with freedom of sexual orientation. Argentina passed a comprehensive law on transsexual equality. Yet for LGBTQ people living in 1 of 76 countries where homosexuality is criminalized, the situation is not improving. In Cameroon, there was a new wave of arrests and convictions for being gay, political leaders in Ghana threatened to get rid of gays from society, executions in Iran related to sexual orientation. There were reports of arrests and detention of LGBTQ individuals in Iraq, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Tanzania. In Canada, we are proud to be a leading country, when it comes to gay rights. We have made a lot of progress when it comes to legislations, yet the discrimination against sexual minorities still exists. The results from the first national climate survey on LGBTQ discrimination in Canadian schools were shocking: 55% of sexual minority students reported verbal harassment, 21% physical harassment because of their sexual orientation and almost 2/3 felt unsafe at school. According to Statistics Canada, hate crimes based on sexual orientation more than doubled in 2008 and increased another 18% in 2009. ¾ of these crimes were violent and most resulted in physical injury of the victim.
to global health. Thus, this year we teamed up with a leader in anti-bullying and anti-discrimination charity Jer’s Vision, to host events for the International Day of Pink. The Day of Pink was created after a Nova Scotia high school student was bullied for his sexual orientation and for wearing pink. Two of his straight peers intervened to show support. They purchased pink t-shirts and encouraged everyone at their school to wear pink-showing solidarity in stopping homophobic and transphobic bullying. This year, the CFMS team of Local Officers of Reproductive and Sexual Health(LORSH) brought that message to medical schools across Canada, showing their support by simply wearing pink on April 11th. Also the LORSH put together various presentations and events to celebrate the International Day Against Homo- and Transphobia. The CFMS looks forward to playing their role in promoting equality and improving the health of LGBTQ people locally as well as globally.
Due to the correlation between health and human rights, the impact of homophobia and transphobia has been studied. Some LGBTQ individuals avoid seeking healthcare or withhold personal information in fear of discrimination. Many develop emotional, psychological and substance abuse problems due to prejudice and violence. Increased rates of some STIs, cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer have been reported. Sexual minorities are also 2½more likely than heterosexuals to attempt suicide. These statistics took a human face last year - 15 year old Jamie Hubley from Ottawa who after years of battling depression and bullying due to his sexual orientation, took his own life. While the picture may appear bleak, many organizations are stepping in to fight discrimination. The Canadian Federation of Medical Students (CFMS) Global Health Program is proud to count themselves as one of the organizations who believe it’s essential to promote human rights for all people, in order to solidify our commitment medical students worldwide
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SCORAlicious, August 2012
For a Homophobia Free World! Keith Pace, Thelma Xerri, MMSA-Malta; Joka Reichel, TNP “For a homophobia free world”
They say that love is blind, but people are not. Bullying and Homophobia are issues plaguing our societies day in day out. These issues have always been a hot topic not only in Europe, but worldwide and although mentalities are changing, society is still judgmental. In January 2012, the Maltese news reported an attack on two sixteen year old lesbians by two fifteen year old boys. One of the girls ended up with a broken nose and a grazed face. Although hate crimes are reported worldwide, this was the first full-blown reported homophobia attack in Malta. Unfortunately, the attackers were only left with a warning as the only laws regarding hate crimes in Malta are restricted to racial attacks.
set out inform medical students on the topic through a seminar organized in February regarding Gender and Sexuality. This seminar aimed at bringing the right to equality into perspective through discussions with sexual health therapists and members of the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality (NCPE). Various issues were brought up including various legal issues. In Malta transsexual people are not protected within any of the social spheres and the NCPE still does not have any legal power to process cases of alleged discrimination in their regard. Same sex marriage is still not recognized legally, and there are still no opportunities for adoption or IVF by same sex couples.
Some facts: • One in every 10 gay people is subjected to some form of violence because of their sexual orientation, according to a 2003 study carried out by the Malta Gay Rights Movement. • This was backed by a 2008 study that showed that eight per cent of gay people had been attacked in the previous two years and half of these said it happened more than once. Two-thirds were young women. • The only legal protection gay people have refers to discrimination in terms of harassment. The law protects anyone from actions that amount to threats, violence and harassment. • The part of the law that speaks about hate crime is limited to racial hatred. Last year the Justice Minister announced there were plans to extend this to include homophobia. • Malta was given a 0 rating in the ILGA report on LGBT rights released on 17th May 2012 - International Day against Homosexuality. This was the worst rating from all the European Union member states.
MMSA-SCORA also launched its new SRH Peer Education Syllabus this year. By working on the new format for our peer education sessions, the team ensured that the topic of sexual orientation was well covered and emphasized with youths. This was done with the help of psychologists specialized in the field. Peer education helps in the development of young people’s knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and skills and enables them to be responsible for their own health, rights and social development. What better way to tackle future generations and instill a sense of interest than through Peer Education!
Following this incident, Malta Gay Right’s Movement organized a “Right to Feel Safe: Demonstration for Hate Crime Legislation” together with other non-governmental organizations. Violence on LGBT individuals is not an uncommon occurrence although usually attacks are not reported and are covered up. This incident further reinforced the motivation for the MMSA – SCORA Antihomophobia Campaign. MMSA 14
Outreach campaigns were also organized to reach the rest of University students and the general public. During the month of March MMSA organized its annual Healthfest. This campaign involves two days of activities and outreaches on and off our university campus. All the MMSA SCs work together during this campaign, presenting the opportunity for the general public to be informed on various health topics. MMSA-SCORA focused greatly on the issue of LGBT rights during this campaign. Working together with WeAre – the LBGT Association at the University of Malta, we worked on educating the public through distributing rainbow ribbons, leaflets, booklets and postcards. We also prepared a large handprint rainbow! Last September the UK modified a ban prohibiting men who have sex with men from donating blood, this had been introduced in the 1980s to prevent the risk of HIV contamination. Britain’s decision followed that of South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and other counwww.ifmsa.org
Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
tries in doing away with the controversial lifetime ban. It seems Malta will not be joining soon – at least not until medical studies reassure health authorities of the contrary. MMSA is working together with the Malta Gay Rights movement in an effort to ensure this ban is modified as has been done in other countries worldwide. This was the first year that MMSA-SCORA formally focused on the topic of LGBT Rights, and we are now looking to expand on this project. To ensure this we will soon be joining in the IFMSA Transnational Project - For a Homophobia Free World. This project keeps track of all actions against homophobia, transphobia and interphobia organized by NMOs worldwide. Various campaigns were organized by the team this year, and here are some examples: • Internationally a video (http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=NyWtEq-rzR8) and a poster campaign (http://savetimefor.me/IDAHO/) were prepared for the International Day against Homophobia (17th of May) • Mexico prepared informations stands, organized workshops and film series, held conferences at school and distributed two-and-a-half thousand condoms amongst various otherr great activities! They also had a Twitter campaign with the hashtag #DiaVsHomofobia • In Freiburg, Germany a sculpture was painted overnight with the colours of the rainbow medical students worldwide
• Italy (http://www.sendspace.com/ file/0dt68v) and Brazil (http://www.mediafire. com/?h1uhukpgxutbl99) prepared poster campaigns • Barcelona also made a video (http://www.youtube. com/watch?v=nrbygY67d_A) • Lebanon and Ecuador made flyers and a lot of countries also made T-shirts I would like to thank everyone for having great IDAHO campaigns this year! Looking forward to the next AM 2012 where the new policy statement regarding homophobia in healthcare will be discussed and hopefully introduced!
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HOMOPHOBIA IN MEXICO What were you wearing on April 11th?
Jeazul Ponce Hernández, José Antonio Becerra Chávez, Rocio Concepcion Albores Arguijo, IFMSA-Mexico
Human sexuality according to the World Health Organization (WHO) is defined as: ”A central aspect of being human, present throughout his life. Encompasses sex, gender identities and gender roles, eroticism, pleasure, intimacy, reproduction and sexual orientation”. Homophobia is the hatred, contempt and intolerance toward homosexual conduct, this manifests as abuse, discrimination, physical and verbal assaults and murders. This term applies not only to the gay community but to the entire group Lesbian-Gay-Gay-Transgender-Bisexual Transgender, Intersex. Hate crimes are the kind of crimes that manifest evidence of prejudice against people for a physical trait, cultural or identity. The Federal Bureau of Investigation United States (better known as the FBI), defined as follows. Homosexuality is criminalized as a crime in more than seventy countries, mostly in Africa, Middle East, Asia and Oceania, to a lesser extent in Latin America. It is important to mention that is punishable by law in many Islamic countries of the near and Middle East, many countries in Africa and some in Central Asia, including India, as well as in Panama, Nicaragua, Guyana, Papua New Guinea and Malaysia. According to the Annual Report of the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA for its acronym in English), in 2007 there were still “85 Member States of the United Nations still criminalize sexual acts between adults of the same sex with mutual consent, promoting Institutionally with it a culture of hatred”.
vices inclusive. • Promote self-acceptance and acceptance of others. • Create awareness among students and the general public to realize that being gay is not necessary to combat homophobia. Strategies for awareness We propose to improve the quality of life of people in general: • Promote a culture of respect and tolerance, both gay and straight. • To respect public spaces where they can gather and not marginalize or stigmatize places. • To stop stigmatizing them as sick, homosexuality is not a disease, is a sexual orientation and homophobia if it could be a medical condition in some cases. To which we will do courses, workshops, lectures, forums and printed material
Violence: Hate Crimes in Mexico in the 21st Century In Latin America a homosexual is killed every two days. The country that tops the list is Brazil, where in 2007 alone there were 122 homicides of this nature. Half of them were transsexuals. What solution can we offer? The International Federation of Medical Students, IFMSA, and the National Federation of Medical Students Associations in Mexico AC have created a transnational project called FOR A FREE WORLD HOMOPHOBIA (“A World Free of Homophobia”), which has the following objectives: • Measuring levels of homophobia in each country. • Reduce homophobia among the general public. • Having a line of support for LGBT people, health ser16
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Homophobia in Brazil André Manoel, Gregório W. Pereira, IFMSA Brazil
Homophobia started in 2000 B.C., by the Christian manifestations – The actions imposed by the Court of Holy Office, known as “Inquisition” – The definition of homosexuality by World Health Organization that would classify relationship between people from the same gender as a nosological entity, & the International Code of Diseases on its tenth version (ICD-10) has the code F66.2 denominating the Disorder of Sexual Relationship.
embarrassed to look at me, I was shy at him, I was regretful of have asked that to him, I wanted to run out from that room. He gave me a medicine to be used, I think I did not even use it, it was feeling better and healed”. This is just one drop in an ocean of discriminatory violations of the physicians to deal with non-heterosexuals patients. This is unethical and plausible to be punished by the Brazilian Federal Council of Medicine.
Even after 50 years of the universal declaration of human rights there are still homophobic manifestations in the whole World and including Brazil.
These attitudes have as a consequence, that is, a very low adherence to the treatment and the increase of morbidity and mortality. Homophobia can very well be the etiology of low adherence and its future consequences.
Although this country has by several ethnicities and is known for its different cultural heritages which get to mix with each other, but the differences regarding “sexual orientation” are not so well-defined. It became clearer when we evaluated the data supplied by Movimento Homossexual Brasileiro (Brazilian Homosexual Movement – MHM) which estimated that in Brazil one homosexual is killed every two days, and this brutality was encouraged by homophobia. In some articles there are statements of the Brazilian police and other authorities, “The order is gunning the transsexuals!” A religious authority from Rio de Janeiro published on the press that “homosexuality is against God law, and against human nature. A lesbian mom must lose the right to rear her child. The justice must not allow a lesbian to rear a kid.” In Brazil a huge number of physicians refrain from treating the LGBT community. This incapacitation does not only involve psychosocial limitations, but also questions the integrity of the physician. Brazilian health professionals are not prepared to deal with patients with different sexual orientations.
At the 39th General Assembly (2011, April), of IFMSABrazil, we started off a national project that could work for a homophobia free Brazil. At the 40th General Assembly of IFMSA-Brazil (2011, November), we set for the 2012 IDAHO. These would be scientific researches involving medicine students to better understand homophobia amongst them. T-shirts were distributed in all the Local Committees participating of this project and a photo exhibition was arranged. The photos were authored during our 41th General Assembly by a professional photographer, and the “models” in the pictures were the Local Coordinators of IFMSA-Brazil, who braved to stand against homophobia. We had a huge participation and the project is still going on, our photos are exhibited in many regions of our country where there are large influx of people.
Modesto E. evaluated anonymous statements from Brazilian homosexuals that reaffirms that Brazilian physicians are not prepared to render service to the LGBT community: “ (…) I said: ‘Well, I am gay and I have anal sex, I wanted to know if there is any kind of protection…’ He said: ‘No, no, I can not help you that much’… He said basically nothing… He kept looking to the paper, he was medical students worldwide
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HIV/AIDS
AIDS PREVENTION PROJECT (APP) Arslan Inayat and Abbas Ali Khan, IFMSA-Pakistan
Summary As a part of the AIDS Prevention Project, an initiative by IFMSA-Pakistan created to raise awareness about AIDS, we organized an essay writing competition and a poster designing competition. We identified the unwillingness of our society to openly discuss sexual issues as a major hindrance to the widespread knowledge of information such as prevention measures or available treatment options. This is why the topic for the essay writing competition was ‘AIDS in our Society’ and that for the poster designing competition was ‘AIDS Awareness.’ The essays we received were interesting as a gauge of public sentiment, running the entire spectrum of opinions from conservative and religious in nature to outspoken and scientifically critical. The poster designing competition was orchestrated as a fun, interactive way to get people thinking about AIDS issues. Participants were provided with paints, A2 sheets of paper and were given free rein to conjure up creative images invoking ‘AIDS Awareness.” Goals and Objectives: • To raise awareness about AIDS among the youth. • To assess the opinions of participants regarding AIDS issues. Target Group: The essay writing competition was open to everyone,
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regardless of age or location. The poster designing competition was aimed at students. Logistics and Finance: The essay writing competition was held online. Entrants were required to submit their work by a given deadline. As such, there was no financial constraint. All that was required to make this competition happen was the dedicated effort of volunteers who performed tasks including publicizing the event, judging etc. The poster designing competition was held on the premises of Khyber Medical College, Peshawar. Tools for making the posters, i.e. paints, paintbrushes and sheets, were supplied to participants. Certificates of participation were given to all entrants and three winners were given certificates of excellence along with vouchers for a free buffet at a local restaurant. All activities were funded by IFMSA-Pakistan, Peshawar LC. Outcomes: • We received an overwhelming number of entries for the essay writing competition, from people from all ages. The work submitted, as mentioned, showed polar opinions with everything in between, and spoke of research on the topic. • More than 50 people participated in the poster designing competition along with 35 Team members of APP. The posters produced were as colorful and attractive as they were meaningful.
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Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
Nothing is the same Since the HIV diagnosis
Velazquez Cortes, Jimena Rivera Gutierrez Xaira, Kevin Pilgrim Giuseppe Enriquez, Lazcano Mayra Quintero Marble, Rocío Concepción Albores Arguijo, IFMSA Mexico
Many people have told us about their lives. Speaking about theirselves and reading about others is a way to rebuild the identity, an exercise in narrative that allows us to understand, understand and accept. But what happens when this story is a person who becomes a warrior who faces a constant battle for life. For example: Roberto 53 years, diagnosed with HIV in 1990. I did the test after my partner had died because of the virus on December 24, 1989, since the result was positive nothing is has been the same.The beginning was very difficult. Doctors didn’t want to meet or even approach me, and the treatments were too expensive, I remember I had to pay 1,500 pesos for my medicine being imported from the Bahamas the drugs were also highly toxic- it turned my nails, eyes, ears and fingers purpl. Some medications were too strong and caused me hallucinations. So, in order to keep my treatment, I had to go to San Francisco.In Mexico i suffered from discrimination from the hospital staff- they didn’t want me near them and even desinfected the chair i was sitting on. I witnessed no such thing in the US. I think Mexico and the world are ready for a pandemic disease, mainly spread among homosexual people and LGBT. The situation is similar to when Christ was in lepers or a tuberculosis pandemia a few years ago. But the worst of them all is the fear and ignorance towards the people with HIV.
The answer is Yes, yes we are. We get the zero arises from the 2011-2015 strategy of the joint United Nations (UNAIDS) called “Getting to Zero”. Seeks to involve all actors and all the answer: governments, international agencies, civil society organizations, academia, people with HIV and those affected to take a responsible role in the pursuit of these goals. ‘I will never tire of spreading the message ‘said Fernando, a young man of 24 who is a victim of the most cruel monster ever faced mankind. Fer, every day rises from his bed, goes to work. In his spare time he is devoted to distribute conoms to young people, who hang around near the shop he works in. And i cannot understand the rest of it. Every year over 35.7 millon people get infected by HIV, but is it the human immunodefficiency virus that attacks the reality? Or is it the lack of culture and knowledge that leads to it. It is a questsion we must ask ourselves daily, before we leave our houses, think a little, am I being cautious?
In 2008, youth accounted for 40% of all new HIV infections in people between 15 and 49 years throughout the world. Almost 3,000 young people become infected with HIV every day, and the figure is maintained. According to the National Center for Prevention and Control of HIV / AIDS and its survey June 30 this year, Mexico has 26.721 cases reported in women and 123 men reported 162 cases, ie a total of 149 883 cases in Mexico. What does this mean? While the rate of cases in Veracruz has decreased by almost 43% since last year and this has diminished over the years since 2004 are still in first place in mortality of AIDS cases nationally, then based on these cups. Are we ready to achieve the goal of getting zero in 2015? medical students worldwide
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HIV in Our Society Zafar Ullah, IFMSA-Pakistan
HIV was first detected in Pakistan 1987. Since then the number of cases has been increasing dramatically. Pakistan whish is a developing country and has problems of rapid urbanization, modernization and a health profile. That makes it more difficult to bear the burden of such a deadly disease. When we talk about HIV and how it spreads, we cannot overlook the risk factors for HIV infection. Pakistan has high rates of internal and external migration. The internal migration, from rural to urban area among unmarried or married men who work as bus/truck drivers, increases HIV through commercial sex workers. External migration, from Pakistan to other parts of the world also shows increased incidence of paid sexual encounters again increasing the rates of HIV infection. The risk of HIV transmission via sexual encounter is increased by the rarity of condom use. Protection during sexual intercourse is unfamiliar to the vast majority of the Pakistani population. Due to the fact that Pakistanis’ successive governments have discouraged public campaigns that raise awareness about protection. Those previously discussed risk factors are magnified by the general low level of knowledge within the population about HIV/AIDS and its transmittion routes. The contributing factor to this knowledge gap is the fact that, as a conservative Muslim society, Pakistan has social and cultural constraints about discussing and addressing the problems concerning HIV/AIDS.
basis of efficient prevention of the disease and a correct treatment for the persons who are infected. The overall impact of the epidemic encorporates the effects to the lives of numerous Pakistanis living with HIV/AIDS and to the demised. In order to develop appropriate means for protecting children, as well as adults, against HIV infection and the influence of the virus on their lives, appropriate attention needs to be drawn to the rights of children. Poverty is a major factor connected to spreading of HIV/ AIDS. The struggle for survivial overshadows the attention and concern about a virus that does not demonstrate any immediate harm. HIV/AIDS seems a distant threat until it manifests visibly as an illness or death. It is assumed that the residents of Pakistan are protected from HIV because they belong to an Islamic society with tradition and conservative behavioral moral. The prohibitions in Islam that forbids sex outside the marriage and homosexuality, are thought to be an effective defence against HIV by many politicians, educational and religious leaders in Pakistan. Although some features of Pakistanian culture may hinder HIV transmission, such as the practice of male circumcision, high-risk behavior is still prevalent suggesting that complacency is inappropriate. The recognition of HIV as an epidemic is a recent public and governmental discovery. Thus the implementation of preventional and educational programs targeted at HIV/ AIDS are not meeting the needs for Pakistanian society.
Socioecomic circumstances contribute to vulnerability to HIV infection and intensify its impact while HIV/AIDS generates and amplifies the very conditions that enable for the epidemic to thrive. Just as the virus depletes the human body of its natural defense, it depletes families and communities in our society from the assets that form the
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Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS
Promoting Health and Dignity Together Loreto Valenzuela, Etienne Chantal Mostajo Valdivieso, IFMSA Bolivia
The International AIDS Candlelight Memorial serves as a community mobilization campaign to raise social consciousness about HIV and AIDS.
Global Solidarity = Promoting Health and Dignity Together. Promoting Health and Dignity Together is the theme of this year’s Memorial. The theme emphasizes that the health and well-being of an individual cannot be achieved without respecting a person’s dignity and promoting and protecting the human rights of all. Promoting Health and Dignity Together is closely connected to the rights based framework, Positive Health, Dignity and Prevention, focusing on the health and well being of people living with HIV, which has been developed by UNAIDS and GNP+ and has informed national policies responding to the needs of people living with HIV around world. In Bolivia four cities took part of the memorial: La Paz, Cochabamba, Chuquisaca and Santa Cruz. SCORP, SCORA and SCOPH and various external organizations, such as Vivo Positive and Departmental Health Service in our cities, worked together towards our goal – Promoting Health and Dignity Together –, commemorated those who have lost their lives to AIDS and expressed support to those living with and affected by HIV.
medical students worldwide
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The perfect Cooperation! MTV Staying Alive Foundation & IFMSA-Poland Anna Szczegielniak, IFMSA-Poland
We have heard it many times – if you really want something, hard work will eventually bring the success. These words are beautiful and wise. Unfortunately, the reality may be a little different. We are struggling every day with financial issues when planning peer education projects in a professional, yet in an entertaining way. For many of us all around the world, the main source for funding the events are universities and different local, national and international partners that we are constantly trying to attract to contribute to our cause. Some of them offer longterm collaboration, some of them engage themselves only in one event. Yet there is still a lot to learn about working with partners and fundraising. In IFMSA we have this amazing opportunity to share our experiences and learn from other who are struggling with similar issues. This is why I have decided to share this success story about the collaboration between MTV Staying Alive Foundation and IFMSA-Poland on the famous and award-winning project “The Streetcar Called Desire”. As a global grant-making organization, the Foundation’s mission is to encourage, energize and empower young people who are involved in HIV/AIDS awareness, edu-
cation and prevention campaigns. The Foundation does this by presenting the Staying Alive Awards to young individuals and youth groups who focus on stopping the spread of HIV and who have demonstrated the potential to become future leaders. The award comes with a financial grant to assist them in continuing and expanding their work, and provides public recognition to inspire others to get involved. In Poland, talking about sex is a taboo. There is no sexual education in the school curriculum. This doesn’t mean that people are having sex and one night stands any less. In fact, it means people are more likely to be putting themselves at risk due to the lack of comprehensive and up-todate information on how to protect themselves in sexual interactions. That is where IFMSA-Poland comes in. The peer education and HIV prevention project “The Streetcar Called Desire” takes the vital information right to the youth. During this project medical students set up stands on local trams, which take students to night clubs, where they hand out condoms and tell people about safe sex and HIV/AIDS. Alongside this particular project, IFMSA-Poland also carries out HIV prevention peer education in colleges and schools, and runs safe sex parties at ice rinks and shopping malls. During the last two years the project has been organized in numerous cities all around the country, recognized by local authorities and supported by media. Only during the very first edition, that consisted of three tram actions, we reached almost 3000 young people! Thanks to the help of the MTV Staying Alive Foundation we have managed to continue our project and make “The Streetcar Called Desire” an important in the lives of Polish students. May this nice example motivate you and your committee to search for new partners. Successful collaboration can help you take your wonderful work to a whole new level. Hugs!
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Mandala means “circle“ in Sanskrit. These concentric diagrams have spiritual significance in Buddhism and Hinduism. They can be used for establishing sacred space and as an aid in meditation. May this non-traditional love mandala by Nikki Parmenter bring you all the love in the world. Thank you for the wonderful work that you do and the amazing person that you are. SCORAlicious Editorial Team
Algeria (Le Souk) Argentina (IFMSA-Argentina) Armenia (AMSP) Australia (AMSA) Austria (AMSA) Azerbaijan (AzerMDS) Bahrain (IFMSA-BH) Bangladesh (BMSS) Belgium (BeMSA) Bolivia (IFMSA Bolivia) Bosnia and Herzegovina (BoHeMSA) Bosnia and Herzegovina - Rep. of Srpska (SaMSIC) Brazil (DENEM) Brazil (IFMSA Brazil) Bulgaria (AMSB) Burkina Faso (AEM) Burundi (ABEM) Canada (CFMS) Canada-Quebec (IFMSA-Quebec) Catalonia - Spain (AECS) Chile (IFMSA-Chile) China (IFMSA-China) Colombia (ASCEMCOL) Costa Rica (ACEM) Croatia (CroMSIC) Czech Republic (IFMSA CZ) Denmark (IMCC) Ecuador (IFMSA-Ecuador) Egypt (EMSA) Egypt (IFMSA-Egypt) El Salvador (IFMSA El Salvador) Estonia (EstMSA) Ethiopia (EMSA) Finland (FiMSIC) France (ANEMF) Georgia (GYMU) Germany (BVMD) Ghana (FGMSA) Greece (HelMSIC) Grenada (IFMSA-Grenada) Haiti (AHEM) Hong Kong (AMSAHK) Hungary (HuMSIRC) Iceland (IMSIC) India (MSAI) Indonesia (CIMSA-ISMKI) Iran (IFMSA-Iran) Israel (FIMS) Italy (SISM) Jamaica (JAMSA) Japan (IFMSA-Japan) Jordan (IFMSA-Jo) Kenya (MSAKE) Korea (KMSA)
Kurdistan - Iraq (IFMSA-Kurdistan/Iraq) Kuwait (KuMSA) Kyrgyzstan (MSPA Kyrgyzstan) Latvia (LaMSA Latvia) Lebanon (LeMSIC) Libya (LMSA) Lithuania (LiMSA) Luxembourg (ALEM) Malaysia (SMAMMS) Mali (APS) Malta (MMSA) Mexico (IFMSA-Mexico) Mongolia (MMLA) Montenegro (MoMSIC Montenegro) Mozambique (IFMSA-Mozambique) Nepal (NMSS) New Zealand (NZMSA) Nigeria (NiMSA) Norway (NMSA) Oman (SQU-MSG) Pakistan (IFMSA-Pakistan) Palestine (IFMSA-Palestine) Panama (IFMSA-Panama) Paraguay (IFMSA-Paraguay) Peru (APEMH) Peru (IFMSA Peru) Philippines (AMSA-Philippines) Poland (IFMSA-Poland) Portugal (PorMSIC) Romania (FASMR) Russian Federation (HCCM) Rwanda (MEDSAR) Saudi Arabia (IFMSA-Saudi Arabia) Serbia (IFMSA-Serbia) Slovakia (SloMSA) Slovenia (SloMSIC) South Africa (SAMSA) Spain (IFMSA-Spain) Sudan (MedSIN-Sudan) Sweden (IFMSA-Sweden) Switzerland (SwiMSA) Taiwan (IFMSA-Taiwan) Tanzania (TAMSAz) Tatarstan-Russia (TaMSA-Tatarstan) Thailand (IFMSA-Thailand) The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (MMSA-Macedonia) The Netherlands (IFMSA-The Netherlands) Tunisia (ASSOCIA-MED) Turkey (TurkMSIC) Uganda (FUMSA) United Arab Emirates (EMSS) United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (Medsin-UK) United States of America (AMSA-USA) Venezuela (FEVESOCEM)
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