Global eye - Eye on China

Many believe that the world's fastest growing HIV/AIDS epidemic is now in China.

Source: UNaids/WHO

Nobody knows the exact number of people living with HIV/AIDS here, but cases have been reported in every province. According to the UN, ten million people in China could be living with HIV/AIDS by the end of the decade.

Read through the information to work out the causes of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in China. Try to classify the pieces of information into three or four main reasons. You may find it easier to print out the pieces of information, cut them up and sort them by hand.

China's first TV advert to promote the use of condoms was taken off air after two days as it violated a ban on advertising sex products.

Not enough blood is donated through official donor centres.

In 1990, most of those living with HIV/AIDS in China were concentrated in Yunnan province in the south, bordering Laos and Burma.

Sharing dirty needles amongst intravenous drug users is a common cause of infection of HIV. The first case of HIV in China was a foreign tourist in 1985.

Up to a third of intravenous drug users in China share needles.

Selling blood is a common way for poorer people to make money in China's rural areas, especially in central provinces like Hunan.

There is only one HIV testing laboratory for every 3 million people.

On the black market, blood is collected illegally and pooled together before it is sold.

Local officials are often reluctant to admit that there is a sex or drugs trade in their province.

Many Chinese migrants miss out on education on health matters, and speak many languages.

The region covering part of Burma, Laos and Thailand known as the Golden Triangle used to be one of the world's centres for the heroin trade.

People living with HIV/AIDS are often forced to leave their homes and seek a new life and identity in one of China's cities.

More money in China's coastal cities has attracted many young women. Some become prostitutes to make money quickly before returning home or to start their own business.

China's media is banned from reporting on the illegal blood trade.

By the mid-1990s, half of the new cases were in southern provinces like Guangxi, partly because of the growth in the number of drug users.

China only spends 0.7% of its GDP on health care.

Gay men remain largely hidden in China for fear of discrimination. Many marry to hide their sexuality and know little about safe sex practices.

Many people are moving to the cities in search of work. Many are young, single and have to spend long periods of time away from their families and friends.

The Chinese government banned the sale of blood in 1998.

The Chinese government is starting to take action to tackle HIV/AIDS. There are plans to spend £70 million on screening all blood used in transfusions. China is also receiving help through the United Nations.
A UN team based in China has called for mass media campaigns to promote safe sex and to fight the discrimination of people living with HIV/AIDS.