Stories

India: Social protection for people living with HIV

Thirty-five year old Harihar Babu had a comfortable job as a taxi driver earning Rupees 10,000-12,000 every month. He travelled frequently, driving passengers all over his home state of Chhattisgarh in central India. But all this changed in 2007 when he and his wife tested HIV positive. “I thought t more

Kyrgyzstan: Protecting the privacy and dignity of people living with HIV and AIDS

By Larisa Bashmakova and Jyldyz Kuvatova Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan – When he learned that he had acquired HIV from injecting drugs, 35-year-old Mirlan (not his real name) sought help from the Regional AIDS Prevention Centre in Jalalabad, Kyrgyzstan. One day in 2005, television reporters showed up with a r more

Nepal census recognizes third gender for the first time

Nepal has just completed its first national census that officially includes a third option in the gender categories that citizens can select, opening the way for stronger recognition of sexual and gender minority rights in provision of public services. Official recognition of third gender rights fol more

In Burkina Faso women help stop the spread of HIV/AIDS

27-year old Assiétou was pregnant with her third child when she discovered that she is HIV positive. “I thought it was the end of the world,” she recalls. “I immediately thought about my husband and I was very worried about his reaction. In the end, I summoned up all my courage and went to talk to more

HIV-positive women weavers team up with fashion designer

Internationally renowned fashion designer and former supermodel Bibi Russell has joined hands with the ethnic Bodo women of the northeastern Indian state of Assam. Together they are creating a new line of lifestyle products that will blend traditional Bodo culture with high fashion. The collaborativ more

Fozia fights back against HIV

Weak and unable to walk, Fozia Bullen, from Nagbaka village in South Sudan, had lost all hope when she reached Maridi Hospital, one of the few antiretroviral therapy centers in the country for people living with HIV. Her doctor said she had reached an acute level of the disease, with severe body ras more