Experts gather in Bali to discuss fight against AIDS

NUSA DUA, INDONESIA — Experts from 65 nations gather in Indonesia Sunday to assess progress in the battle against HIV (human immunovirus)/AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) amid concern only a quarter of those in need in Asia and the Pacific are getting treatment.

The International Congress on AIDS in the region, which will be opened by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on the resort island of Bali, will look at how to ensure "universal access" to anti-retroviral treatment, congress chairman Zubairi Djoerban said.

He said that only 25% of the 1.7 million of people with HIV/AIDS in the Asia-Pacific who need the treatment are receiving it.

"We’re still far away from our target," he said. "We’re not talking 100%, which is the ideal. If Latin America can treat 62% of sufferers there, we should strive towards that."

An estimated five million Asians are living with HIV, especially in southeastern countries such as Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines and Indonesia, according to a UN report released last year.

The congress, which runs until Thursday, will also serve to demand commitment from governments to tackle the disease that killed 380,000 people across Asia in 2007, Mr. Djoerban said.

"We ask for commitment from the countries to achieve the targets they have set and if they say they can’t, we’ll discuss new efforts to help them reach their goals," he added. "We can discuss prevention and treatment but with no leadership and commitment from countries and the community, we won’t achieve much."

While there are some bright spots in the region, such as Cambodia, where HIV prevalence has declined through condom use, new infections are growing steadily in populous countries such as Bangladesh and China, the UN report said. — AFP