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INTERVIEW - Mr. Sheldon
Shaeffer, Director, Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for
Education, UNESCO, Bangkok |
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| "Stigma and discrimination often lead to
children being denied their right to education" |
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| How serious is the epidemic
in Asia Pacific? There are projections that Asia Pacific is
going to be worst hit. Is the comparison with Africa real? |
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| I think it is very serious. The HIV infection
rate in most countries of the region is not likely to become
as high as in some African countries, but even low rates can
translate into large numbers of the infected, ill, and dying
in high population countries such as India, China, and Indonesia.
Thus, the comparison with Africa in absolute numbers is real. |
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| How have culture and existing educational
systems played a role in the campaign against HIV/AIDS in Asia
Pacific? |
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| They have played an important role - and should play an even
more important one. Several countries have developed relatively
coherent HIV/AIDS prevention materials, for both teachers and
students. Getting systems and teachers to use these materials
effectively, however, remains a problem. Given the relatively
high rate of enrolment in primary and even secondary schools
in many countries of the region, such materials used in the
formal school system can reach large numbers of young people.
Other materials have been developed, probably less successfully,
for out-of-school populations. |
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| UNESCO Bangkok has worked with other partners to develop a
manual on HIV/AIDS for teachers to be used in pre-service and
in-service teacher education programmes. It is now being updated
and a final version, ready early next year, will be available
for further adaptation, translation, and use in the region. |
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| We have also developed what we think is a culturally appropriate
approach to AIDS education among hill tribe, ethnic minority
groups in the Mekong region through radio soap operas created
in ethnic languages and broadcast to remote villages in the
region with stories that focus on concerns related to HIV/AIDS,
drug abuse, and human trafficking. We also work to decrease
stigma and discrimination and improve access to HIV prevention
and health care services for men having sex with men in the
Mekong region. |
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| How can the epidemic shape the education
systems of affected countries in the region? |
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| Again, the direct impact on systems as a whole will likely
be limited in Asia, but in heavily affected areas there has
been and will be an impact on educational demand (as more students
drop out of school), supply (as there is less money from parents
and the community to support education), and quality, as education
systems find it difficult to adapt to the needs of larger numbers
of HIV/AIDS affected and infected learners. One particular problem
is the stigma and discrimination suffered by such learners and
their families which often lead to them being denied their right
to education. |
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| What populations in your view are more
vulnerable in the Asia Pacific region? |
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| Intravenous drug users propel the epidemic in many parts
of the region, among their own communities and then out into
the general population in which they live. Sex workers remain
an important vulnerable group, as are men having sex with men.
And, of course, youth in general, living in a context of growing
risk and vulnerability - especially those who move away from
their families to study or work in cities. |
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| How do you think the epidemic is linked
with human rights, particularly child rights in the region?
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| It is closely linked to human rights. As mentioned above,
many children are being denied their right to education because
they are infected or come from HIV/AIDS-affected families. Education
systems must ensure this does not occur both through national
policies and local practice. |
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| What do you think are urgently needed
in the region? |
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| Less denial among governments; more resources,
especially for ministries of education; more comprehensive plans
from these ministries to respond to the growing impact and complexity
of the epidemic, and greater awareness of the needs of PLWHA
and minority groups. |
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| About
Mr. Sheldon Shaeffer |
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| Previous Interviews |
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