Aftermath of HIV Infection: Women’s Struggles – Expert Perspectives

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Dr. Shirin Shikalgar, Dr. Satish Shirsath

Abstract

Background: Women and girls accounted for about 48% of all new HIV infections in 2019. Women are
still seen as the vectors or reason for the HIV infection and are blamed for their family’s sickness.
Subsequently they suffer stigma, rejection and expulsion from family and community. The crisis deepens
not only because of legal and economic differences but also because of limited access to health, education
and social security services.
Methods: This paper has been informed by ten completed interviews with the experts in the field of HIV
and AIDS. The interviews, which were unstructured, took the form of guided conversations. They were
conducted at a location and time nominated by the experts and lasted between two to three hours. The
topics covered in the interviews included: woman empowerment, stigma discrimination, rights of woman,
gender equality, awareness and government policies. The interviews were tape recorded and transcribed.
Experts were selected in the study by taking into consideration their experience in HIV/AIDS practice for
10 or more years and those who have actively worked for women’s rights. Methodology adopted was
snowballing where networking relationships of these experts helped identify another expert providing
services in HIV and AIDS domain.
Findings: Study findings suggest that HIV/AIDS awareness should lead to gender equality,
empowerment and no stigma and discrimination. If HIV positive woman need to lead a dignified life in
developing country like India, i) She needs to empower herself-economically, educationally and legally,
ii) Women need to fight for gender equality. She needs to improve her knowledge about her rights and the
disease itself, iii) Women need to utilize available policies and acts which can help them to fight with all
the stigma and discrimination and give them what is their right; and IV) Families of infected women need
to provide support to her which can make her moral high and also systems such as legal services need to
be sensitized and be supportive to women who need legal services; also, opportunities must be created by
government directly or through civil society organisations to make these women financially independent.

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