Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for today’s Spotlight program. I’m Liz Waid.
Voice 2
And I’m Rebekah Schipper. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Five hundred [500] high school teenagers sit in a large school room. A man walks to the front of the room. He stands in a front of a microphone. This man is Senator Mechai Viravaidya. He teaches the people of Thailand about family planning and safe sex. Today, he is teaching these high school students. He stands in front of the full room.
Voice 3
“Today I want you to meet a few of my friends. We will have a little talk about people with HIV. Let’s welcome Nissara and her friends.”
Voice 1
Three women join Mechai at the front of the room. They stand next to him. He puts his arm around them. They all stand together. They look happy. Mechai says:
Voice 3
“See? Even with her holding on to my clothes, there is no way I can catch the HIV virus.”
Voice 1
The room full of students laughs. Next, Mechai does something a little different. He gives a glass full of water to Nissara.
Voice 3
“Take a little drink from the glass. Don’t drink it all!”
Voice 1
Nissara drinks from the glass. She passes the water glass to her friends. They each also drink from the glass. They pass the glass back to Mechai.
Voice 3
“Now I will drink from the same part of the glass. See? I am not infected. Remember that.”*
Voice 2
AIDS is still a mystery to many people in the world. Many people simply do not know enough facts about the disease. So, Senator Mechai travels around Thailand spreading information to people like these students.
Voice 1
Senator Mechai has been spreading information about AIDS for over twenty [20] years. The first case of reported AIDS in Thailand was in 1984. And the number of HIV infected people in Thailand grew very quickly. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.
Voice 2
HIV infections were especially high in two [2] groups of people - drug users and sex workers. Experts say that in one [1] year HIV infections among drug users rose from almost zero [0] to forty percent [40%]. In 1989 forty-four percent [44%] of sex workers in one northern city were infected with HIV. HIV was like an ocean wave covering the people of Thailand.
Voice 1
And this was only the beginning of AIDS in Thailand. The future looked frightening. Someone needed to do something. And someone did. The future of HIV and AIDS changed in Thailand. The number of new HIV infections in 1991 was one hundred forty thousand [140,000]. By 2003, new HIV infections were only twenty-one thousand [21,000]. So, how did Thailand do it? Experts believe that the secret to Thailand’s success included two [2] things: strong leaders and long term political loyalty to the cause.
Voice 2
In 1991 Anand Panyarachun became Thailand’s Prime Minister. He declared that AIDS prevention and control would become his main concern. He increased the amount of money spent on public health. And he brought in Mechai Viravaidya to help him educate the Thai people about AIDS.
Voice 1
Mechai became a strong anti-AIDS activist. He led the fight against AIDS. Mechai believed that education was very important in the fight against HIV and AIDS. And a strong person needed to lead the fight. He knew that he also needed to use many different methods, unusual ideas, and even humour for people to understand his message.
Voice 2
Mechai used television and radio advertisements to inform the people about the AIDS problem. The Thai government owned hundreds of radio and television stations. They asked every station to broadcast thirty [30] seconds of AIDS information every hour.
Voice 1
Mechai also targeted the sex trade in Thailand. He gave sex workers free condoms - thin protective covers. These thin barriers can protect people from getting HIV. Sex workers and their employers could be shut down if they spread HIV. Condom use in the sex trade rose from ten percent [10%] to ninety percent [90%]!
Voice 2
The fight against AIDS in Thailand was successful because of strong devoted leaders. Mechai’s work in Thailand effectively cut the number of new HIV infections in the Thai population. But this victory did not last for long. Today, one [1] in every one hundred [100] Thai people suffer from HIV or AIDS. More than half a million [500,000] people remain infected. And AIDS is the leading cause of death in Thailand.
Voice 1
In recent years, the Thai government has cut spending money for public health. But, it remains a strong ally in the fight against AIDS.
Voice 2
Many Thai people do not seek treatment because of the stigma, or bad ideas, that go along with having AIDS. But the Thai government does offer free anti-retroviral drugs to HIV infected Thai people. These drugs fight AIDS.
Voice 1
And Mechai continues to lead the fight against AIDS. He continues to inform people about HIV and AIDS. But he also helps the people that AIDS has already affected. Many times, people with HIV are forced to leave their communities. They lose their jobs. They spend all their savings caring for their families.
Voice 2
So, Mechai also started a non profit organization to give loans to people with HIV. People with HIV can use these loans to start small businesses. Mechai’s fight against AIDS earns money through businesses he has started. The money from these businesses goes toward the fight against AIDS.
Voice 1
Today, a new generation of children are growing up in Thailand. Cases of new HIV infections are also growing. Young people think of AIDS as a disease for drug users or sex workers. So they do not always practice safe sex. Mechai knows that every person must know about AIDS. This helps a person to protect himself. So, Mechai travels to high schools and other places to spread his message. He knows that strong leaders must lead the fight. He knows that the government must help to lead the fight. And he will continue to spread this life-saving information for as long as he can.
Voice 2
The writer and producer of this program was Liz Waid. Computer users can hear more Spotlight programs on our website at www . Radio . English . net. This program is called “Mechai Viravaidya: Fighting AIDS in Thailand.”
Voice 1
Most of the information in this program came from a series of television programs. The programs were produced by PBS, a public television channel in the United States. These television programs told about several “World Health Champions” and the communities they work in. If you would like more information about this series of programs you can find a link to PBS on our website. Just look for the script page for this program. If you have a comment or question about this program, you can e-mail us at Radio @ English . net.
Voice 2
Also, keep listening for more Spotlight programs with more details about how Thailand is using creative and unusual ideas to deal with the AIDS crisis. We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program! Goodbye!
*This conversation was based on a recording from the PBS website, from the program about Mechai Viravaidya. |