The HIV pandemic seems to be fading to some degree-but there are regional exceptions. The current liberal prevention strategy with programs aimed at risk reduction interventions in particular for sexual behavior and injecting drug use has been expanded by antiretroviral treatment approaches. It was expected to keep the prevalence of infectious individuals below a certain threshold to curb self-sustaining chains of HIV infections. The introduction of biomedical approaches by ART/HAART with regard to practicing risk reduction behavior has been received as an exemption of responsibility by certain populations who are defined as "at-risk" population. Certain parts of the hard-to-reach, high-risk population have returned to unsafe sex practices leading to careless behavior which in turn has promoted the spread of HIV. This is supported by modern trends in risk societies where with regard to HIV basic principles of ethics and tenets of the Human Rights like "don't harm other people" have lost any normative power. In addition, with the support of NGOs, legal norms such as protecting the "bodily integrity of individuals" have been ignored, allowing the "passing of HIV to partners" to become socially acceptable behavior. As a whole, in defiance of the endeavors of prevention applied so far, certain societies are exposed to an ongoing spread of HIV.
Abstract:The new prevalence data regarding the estimated global number of human immunodeficiency virus positive (HIV + ) cases, i.e., including people who are either aware or unaware of their HIV infection in 2010, lead many to wonder why the increase in incidence has reached today's unprecedented level and escalated within such a short time. This, in spite of prevention campaigns in countries affected by HIV/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) with their urgent messages aimed at preventing HIV transmission by promoting changes in individual's behavior. This article analyzes the background of the prevention strategies, in particular their political, social and legal concepts in terms of human rights, and reveals traits of human behavior not considered thus far. A radical reappraisal is necessary, at social and legislative levels, as well as options additional to current concepts. When ethical issues come up, they become blamed for outmoded moralistic positions. However, ignoring the reality has led to dire consequences from prioritizing individual human rights over society's collective need to prevent the spread of HIV.
The ongoing spread of HIV after sobering news about the goal "End of AIDS" is not encouraging, apart from regional differences. We focus on the consequences of the two essentially failed HIV prevention strategies in certain countries. The first failed because the correct messages concerning preventive behavior did not reach the required levels of target populations to interrupt HIV infection chains. There was a lack of appropriate framework conditions for the target populations to engage in the required scale. The additional biomedical strategy "Treatment as Prevention" didn't achieve the breakthrough as was hoped. The consequences thereof affect the financial burden on societies, which can take several decades. We draw attention to the unbalanced principles of proportionality to which governments are committed, but which are practiced in favor of those vulnerable people; these people abuse their autonomy and contribute to the further spread of HIV at the expense of financial burdens, social and medical care systems; this behavior is tolerated, although the transmission of HIV is mostly preventable. We point to extreme tendencies, such as the chem-sex settings, whose unswayable participants engage in indirect violence against the societies. Another possible consequence of the still uncontrolled spread of HIV is the potential for HIV to increase its virulence.
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