RIYADH: A meeting of the Saudi Initiative to Combat AIDS in GCC countries has said that legislation is required to protect the rights of persons living with the HIV/AIDS virus. The meeting, held in Riyadh under the aegis of Minister of Health, also recommended greater support for advisory programs, voluntary testing and tests for sexually transmitted diseases, as well as improved joint work between ministries and other health, legal and social bodies for public awareness programs and training courses. Further recommendations included programs to prevent transmission from mother to child, greater support and access to treatment for persons living with HIV/AIDS, and efforts to inform the sections of society most vulnerable to infection. “The GCC countries need thorough research into how the HIV virus is being transmitted and which sections of society are most vulnerable,” participants at the meeting said. “Civil society and the private sector need to get involved and support protection programs aimed at young people, and GCC countries need to all be involved in a unified strategy to work together and with regional and international organizations,” the participants said. The meeting also called for the relevant bodies to work together and produce a “media charter” on how to report and analyze AIDS-related issues. Saudi Gazette reported last week Abdullah Al-Rabeah, Minister of Health, as saying that the last three months have seen a fall of nine percent in the rate of HIV/AIDS in the Kingdom compared to last year. Al-Rabeah said fall was the result of “opening centers across the country offering modern treatment, consultation and voluntary tests “. “AIDS and the challenges it poses to society require everyone to work seriously to increase their efforts through awareness programs, encourage prevention in a properly studied fashion and learn from the teachings of Islam, which contain the best ways of protecting the family and society,” he said.
