Fridae.com: Health Authorities and MSM Community must co-operate to combat HIV in Singapore: Minister Balaji (Dec 15)

Health Authorities and MSM Community must co-operate to combat HIV in Singapore: Minister Balaji
By Sylvia Tan

Citing Sydney's success in reducing HIV prevalence rates among MSM, Dr Balaji Sadasivan urged for greater co-operation among health authorities, the NGOs and the MSM community to reduce HIV infection rates.

Dr Balaji Sadasivan, Chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on HIV/AIDS, urged for greater co-operation among health authorities, the NGOs and the MSM community to reduce HIV infection rates.

The Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Information, Communications and the Arts was the guest of honour at the HOPE (HIV Outreach: Prevention & Empowerment) concert held at the Kreta Ayer People's Theatre on Thursday night.

[PIC]According to organisers, the event which featured Los Angeles-based gay Christian pop duo and real life couple Jason and deMarco, and local performers including John Lee, Hossan Leong, Selena Tan, nominated Member of Parliament Eunice Olsen, and hosts Chua Enlai and Mistevious.

"We have waited two years for this," quipped Jason, one-half of the duo who was barred by the Singapore authorities from performing in 2005. Concert organisers Safehaven, a ministry of gay-affirmative Free Community Church, had tried to organise a similar event with the duo but had their application turned down by the Media Development Authority.

The number of new HIV infections is on rise with an estimated 30 percent of the 356 newly detected cases of HIV cases between January and October this year contracted through male-to-male contact. The number will surpass last year's record of 357 of which 26 per cent were MSM.

The former Senior Minister of State for Health told the audience that there has been a resurgence in the prevalence rates of HIV among MSM communities in the west while in some Asian cities, one in four MSM are testing positive for HIV. He cited Sydney as an example of a city which has bucked the trend and which Singapore can take lessons from.

"In Australia... particularly the city of Sydney, the prevalence of HIV has been low and what is more remarkable it has been going down in the MSM community over the last decade," he said.

"The way they seem to have achieved this is through co-operation between the health authorities, the NGOs and the MSM community working together to create a culture of safer sex and regular HIV testing. If we can follow the Sydney model in Singapore and work together – the health officials, the NGOs and the MSM community – there's no reason why we cannot achieve what they have done in Sydney – low prevalence rate, in fact, decreasing prevalence rate."

In July this year, Dr Balaji had gone on a study trip to Sydney, accompanied by health officials and representatives from AFA, Fridae and Oogachaga, a gay and lesbian affirmative counselling agency.

Although it was not advertised in the programme, People Like Us – a group dedicated to public education and equal treatment for gay and lesbian citizens – took the opportunity to honour Reverend Dr Yap Kim Hao with the inaugural PLU (People Like Us) Dignity Award.

Reverend Yap, who currently serves as Pastoral Advisor to the Free Community Church, is known to be an outspoken supporter of the LGBT community - speaking publicly and writing frequently to the press.

The 78-year-old told Fridae in an interview: "I have been doing what comes 'naturally' in my continuing concern for the minorities who are being discriminated because of their race, religion, economic condition, gender and sexual orientation. It is my conviction that God loves and cares for such people more because they are being 'sinned against' by those who are politically powerful and economically dominating."

"The gathering of over 900 predominantly LGBT people at the Hope concert with (mostly) gay talented artistes is a significant milestone in the struggles for gay acceptance in what has often been regarded as a conservative Singapore society. It is to pledge to combat HIV/AIDS and to engage in safe and responsible sex. To be safe is to be responsible for we have to do what we believe to be morally right for ourselves, partners and human community."

Buy tickets to the HOPE Concert (Dec 13)

TodayOnline: Once-banned gay pop duo given green light for concert here (Nov 22)

Once-banned gay pop duo given green light for concert here

Thursday • November 22, 2007

Alicia Wong
alicia@mediacorp.com.sg

IN A sign that authorities are prepared to work with civil society groups to tackle the HIV problem, a once-banned gay pop duo has been given the green light to take part in a concert here next month.

And the HIV Outreach, Prevention and Empowerment (Hope) Concert will have as its guest of honour, Dr Balaji Sadasivan, Senior Minister of State (Foreign Affairs and Information, Communications and the Arts).

The gay duo, Jason and deMarco, had a planned performance here cancelled two years ago after the Media Development Authority (MDA) rejected an application by the organiser, Safehaven, a gay-affirmative Christian support group, for an Arts and Entertainment Licence.

The MDA had then cited "alternative lifestyles are against the public interest" as its ground for rejection.

Explaining its change of heart, the MDA said that the organisers had assured the authority that the aim of the Dec 13 concert is Aids education and HIV prevention.

"The organiser for this concert has rated the performance R18 and has given the assurance to MDA that the concert is targeted at the high-risk group," said Ms Amy Tsang, MDA's Deputy Director (Arts & Licensing) of the Media Content Division in an email reply to Today.

Dr Balaji's scheduled attendance at the concert is not surprising since he had earlier touched on the need for the authorities and non-governmental organisations to work together in tackling the spread of HIV.

Out of the 357 new HIV cases reported in Singapore last year, 26 per cent were contracted through homosexual sex.

In an interview with this newspaper in August, Dr Balaji noted that in the Australian state of New South Wales, the number of HIV cases reported each year had, on the whole, been dropping over the past decade.

Dr Balaji had earlier went on a study trip to Sydney, accompanied by Ministry of Health (MOH) officials and representatives from Action for Aids (AFA), gay web site Fridae.com and Oogachaga, a local gay and lesbian affirmative counselling agency.

Referring to the Sydney trip, Mr Paul Toh, AFA's Director for fund-raising and programmes, said yesterday: " I guess the Government has learnt from other developed Western countries how they can cope in terms of managing the epidemics within the alternative lifestyle community."

Mr Toh said while everyone has a role to play in addressing the HIV problem, the Government "bears more weight" because it has the "political will to move things at a faster pace".

Jointly organised by AFA and Safehaven, the HOPE Concert aims to raise awareness on HIV and Aids in the gay community, said Mr Alphonsus Lee, the chairman of Safehaven.

The concert will be held at the Kreta Ayer People's Theatre, which can house a 1,100-strong audience. The one-night only performance will also involve local artists such as Chua Enlai as MC, Hossan Leong and Selena Tan.

Concert tickets are available only through AFA and restricted channels, such as nightclubs, saunas and gay website Fridae.com.

"We are very conscious of the mainstream view of such a concert and we would like to be respectful of their views ... So, we are willing to restrict ourselves," said Mr Lee.

Although this is a "once-off event the official nod for the HOPE concert is "good news" since it will help increase local Aids and HIV awareness, said Mr Bryan Choong of Oogachaga.

Come to the HOPE Concert (Dec 13)

The HOPE Concert (short for HIV Outreach: Prevention and Empowerment) represents Safehaven and FCC's greatest outreach event to date, simply because of the audience number (Kreta Ayer can hold a maximum of 1100 pax), and the involvement of so many different performers (Hossan Leong, Selena Tan, Jason and deMarco, and others).

The purpose of the concert is simple. To raise HIV Awareness and to get people talking. Which is also the theme of the concert: Conversations. To raise awareness, we need to get everyone talking about this strange, and often taboo, creature called HIV. We sweep the topic under the carpet so much so that no one dares to admit they are HIV positive to friends and family, when what they need most is support and encouragement. Even the officials from MOH advise you to keep quiet about your status, to avoid prejudice and bias.

To buy tickets, please email information@oursafehaven.com