JumpStart: building the capacity of MSM and transgender networks across Asia and the Pacific

The APCOM team, led by Joe and A, present JumpStart
findings to Khun Somchai Promsombat, Executive Director
at the Poz Home Center.

JumpStart is an AFAO/APCOM project, which aims to build the capacity of MSM and transgender national networks to effectively engage with HIV responses in the Greater Mekong and ISEAN sub-regions.

In 2015, JumpStart published a Regional Analysis Report assessing the capacity of regional, sub-regional and national MSM and transgender organisations and networks working across Asia and the Pacific.

A Cure For All: 2nd International HIV/Viral Hepatitis Co-infection Meeting

AFAO Health Promotion Officer, Ben Wilcock, reports back on the 2nd International HIV/Viral Hepatitis Co-infection Meeting, held in Vancouver.

On Friday and Saturday (17-18 July), I was fortunate to be able to attend the 2nd International HIV/Viral Hepatitis Co-infection Meeting in Vancouver. It was an official event before the IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention (#IAS2015).

There were a range of issues covered relating to HIV and viral hepatitis co-infections (both hepatitis B and C), with a particular focus on building momentum towards expanding hepatitis C treatment access globally for people co-infected with HIV and viral hepatitis, in the light of the new range of direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatments for hepatitis C now available (though often not yet accessible) and in the pipeline. (See: #ACureForAll for more info).

IAS 2015: Disclosure and HIV criminalisation advocacy

Alison Symington, Canadian
HIV/AIDS Legal Network.

The 8th IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention (IAS 2015) is on in Vancouver, Canada, this week. AFAO Policy Analyst Michael Frommer reports back on the pre-conference community forum. 

Key human rights challenges, such as criminalisation of HIV transmission, were centre stage at the IAS community forum on Saturday 18 July.

Alison Symington, co-director of Research and Policy at the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network (Legal Network), described the challenge of advocacy and policy work in Canada in the face of ongoing criminalisation.

Rights, resilience, and solidarity: Transgender Day of Remembrance

The International Transgender Day of Remembrance on 20 November offers all a chance to reflect on those who have been discriminated against, those who have had violence perpetrated against them, and the need for solidarity to stand up against violence in our region, particularly violence perpetrated against transgender people.

Due to stigma, transgender women especially are particularly vulnerable to HIV, so AFAO has over the years tried to ensure that transgender issues are addressed in our programs, policy work and resources.

To celebrate TDoR, this post shares pictures and links to articles, mainly from past editions of HIV Australia, which analyse the issues and showcase the work AFAO and our partners have been doing in Australia and the Asia Pacific region to support the health and human rights of transgender people.

Blog Action Day: Inequality and HIV

Indraveer Chatterjee

The global HIV epidemic is characterised by inequality. To name just two dimensions of this: gender inequality fuels the spread of HIV; and unequal access to treatment results in unnecessarily high rates of illness and death in many countries. 

To mark the Blog Action Day theme of inequality this year, we invited Indraveer Chatterjee, Principal Solicitor at the HIV/AIDS Legal Centre (HALC) to write about how inequality within the epidemic is entrenched by a lack of support for human rights.

This article is based on a presentation Indraveer gave at an AIDS 2014 feedback session at ACON in September.

Memorial Notice: In loving memory of our friend and human rights warrior Andrew Paul Hunter

Vale Andrew Paul Hunter
 22/01/1968 - 26/12/2014

We are still so deeply saddened by the loss of our friend and colleague Andrew Hunter who died suddenly in Bangkok on Boxing Day. 

Andrew had devoted his entire adult life to social justice for maligned and marginalised communities particularly that of sex workers and people living with HIV. His passing has not just left a hole in our hearts but has also left a giant hole in the sex worker rights movement.  

We will miss his leadership and seemingly unstoppable energy in advancing the rights of sex workers and other marginalised communities that he represented so admirably and selflessly. Known by some as the gentle mentor, Andrew was the current President of the Global Network of Sex Work Projects (NSWP), founding co-ordinator of the Scarlet Alliance and a founding member of the Asia Pacific Network of Sex Workers (APNSW).

The M-FORCE : Media, HIV and Young people

'We would like to invest in young people by increasing their capacity, so the approach should be situated  in their dynamism. 

'Developing skills in interpreting and using data, content development, media and advocacy in a fun and participatory ways is needed' - Setia Perdana, Media coordinator of GWL-INA.

On 14 -15 December 2013, 15 young gay, waria (transgender) and other MSM gathered in Jakarta for a two day workshop called 'M-FORCE, the Media for Change'.

The purpose of this workshop was to develop capacity and skills on media, HIV and human rights for the gay, waria and other MSM community in Jakarta.

Setia Perdana reports on the workshop for AFAO.

Best practice: Community Advocacy Initiative in Laos (CAI)

CAI Phase I advocacy workshops with Lao
CBO partners

The work of Community Advocacy Initiative (CAI) in Lao has been featured in the recently released 'Global AIDS Response Progress Country Report, Lao PDR, 2012', as one of five best practice examples to illustrate contributions to the national HIV response.

CAI, a capacity building project of AFAO and APCASO (Asia Pacific Coalition of AIDS Service Organisations) was implemented in Indonesia, Cambodia, China, Lao and Vietnam from 2009 - 2012.

Introducing Chris Connelly – the new Manager for AFAO International

Chris has just joined the International team at our Bangkok office.

He was recently visiting the Sydney office and we thought AFAO's friends and partners might like to know a bit more about him, so we asked him a few questions about how he came to be working for AFAO and what the International team is up to this year.

Call for reform of anti-homosexuality laws across the Commonwealth

There has been renewed debate recently about the need to reform laws that criminalise homosexuality across the Commonwealth, driven by the signing by the Queen of the Commonwealth Charter in London last week.

In the UK's House of Lords on 13 March, there was an extensive discussion about the barriers that these laws present to responding to HIV, not to mention the denial of human rights generally as a result of these laws.

Reflections about Anthony Smith

Many people have been saddened by the recent death of our colleague and friend, Professor Anthony Smith. Anthony was widely known both in Australia and internationally for his work as an outstanding researcher, and also for his passion as an HIV activist
spanning some 25 years.

Dino Hodge and Terry McClafferty were colleagues of Anthony Smith during his time on the Northern Territory AIDS Council (NTAC) Board during the late 1980 and early 1990s.  Here they reflect on Anthony's life, and the lasting contributions he has made to Australia's response to HIV.

Dino Hodge was on the board of NTAC between 1989-1992. As a fellow Board Member, including in his capacity as a member of The NTAC Council Law and Policy Working Group, he worked closely alongside Anthony Smith.  Dino recalls:

Advocacy Corner at the ASHM Conference

Ryan Snaith from Kenya Aid

An Advocacy Corner in the Exhibition Hall was a new addition to ASHM's (Australasian Society for HIV Medicine) HIV/AIDS Conference in Melbourne this year.

The corner, organised by AFAO, created a space to discuss the work and issues of the HIV community sector, both here in Australia and internationally. There were several great discussions held throughout the week, two of which I was lucky enough to attend as host.