The Global Impact of HIV/AIDS on Peace Support Operations

Tripodi, Paolo; Patel, Preeti

doi:10.1080/714002738

Cited by 27 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Indeed, initial data suggested that the prevalence of HIV amongst militaries was far in excess of the general populations in their home countries [ 2 , 3 , 12 , 13 ]. Multiple risk factors for HIV infection have been attributed to soldiers, including frequent commercial sex, risk taking mentality, concomitant sexually transmitted infection (STIs) and increasingly, injection drug use [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 8 , 10 , 13 - 15 ]. During conflict these behaviors may be exacerbated by stress and potentially limited command oversight.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

HIV/AIDS, conflict and security in Africa: rethinking relationships

Becker

Theodosis

Kulkarni

2008

Journal of the International AIDS Society

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The effect of conflict on HIV transmission and regional and global security has been the subject of much recent discussion and debate. Many long held assumptions regarding these relationships are being reconsidered. Conflict has long been assumed to contribute significantly to the spread of HIV infection. However, new research is casting doubt on this assumption. Studies from Africa suggest that conflict does not necessarily predispose to HIV transmission and indeed, there is evidence to suggest that recovery in the "post-conflict" state is potentially dangerous from the standpoint of HIV transmission. As well, refugee populations have been previously considered as highly infected vectors of HIV transmission. But in light of new investigation this belief is also being reconsidered. There has additionally been concern that high rates of HIV infection among many of the militaries of sub-Saharan Africa poses a threat to regional security. However, data is lacking on both dramatically elevated prevalence amongst soldiers and a possible negative effect on regional security. Nevertheless, HIV/AIDS remain a serious threat to population health and economic well being in this region. These issues are of vital importance for HIV programming and health sector development in conflict and "post-conflict" societies and will constitute formidable challenges to the international community. Further research is required to better inform the discussion of HIV, conflict, and security in sub-Saharan Africa.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

HIV/AIDS, conflict and security in Africa: rethinking relationships

Becker

Theodosis

Kulkarni

2008

Journal of the International AIDS Society

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“…These studies have sought to assess empirically the multiple ways in which HIV/AIDS has ramifications for human security 5 (Kristoffersson 2000; Fourie and Schönteich 2001; Piot 2001; Chen 2003; Leen 2004), national security (Price‐Smith 1998, 2001, 2002; Harker 2001; Heinecken 2001a; Yeager and Kingma 2001; CSIS 2002; Ostergard 2002; Sarin 2003), and international security (National Intelligence Council 2000; Singer 2002; Elbe 2003; Prins 2004). 6 They argue that the social, economic, and political stability of communities (and even entire states) can be undermined in the long run by HIV prevalence rates ranging between 10% and 40% of the adult population (ICG 2001; Pharaoh and Schönteich 2003; ICG 2004), that in some African armed forces HIV prevalence rates are estimated to be between 40% and 60%, raising concerns about their combat effectiveness (Heinecken 2001b; Mills 2000; Elbe 2002), and that HIV/AIDS even has important ramifications for international peacekeeping operations, which because they are staffed by members of these same armed forces, can serve as a vector of the illness where and when they are deployed (Bazergan 2001, 2003; U.S. Government Accountability Office 2001; Bratt 2002; Tripodi and Patel 2002). Although a few scholars (David 2001; Mock 2002; Peterson 2002/2003; Elbe 2003; Bazergan 2003) have since begun to raise questions about the unproblematic way in which some of these empirical relationships are increasingly posited, arguments about the security implications of HIV/AIDS have clearly not fallen on deaf ears.…”

Section: Hiv/aids and Security: The Need For A Normative Debatementioning

confidence: 99%

Should HIV/AIDS Be Securitized? The Ethical Dilemmas of Linking HIV/AIDS and Security

Elbe

2006

Int Studies Q

233

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Should the global AIDS pandemic be framed as an international security issue? Drawing on securitization theory, this article argues that there is a complex normative dilemma at the heart of recent attempts to formulate the global response to HIV/AIDS in the language of international security. Although “securitizing” the AIDS pandemic could bolster international AIDS initiatives by raising awareness and resources, the language of security simultaneously pushes responses to the disease away from civil society toward military and intelligence organizations with the power to override the civil liberties of persons living with HIV/AIDS. The security framework, moreover, brings into play a “threat‐defense” logic that could undermine international efforts to address the pandemic because it makes such efforts a function of narrow national interest rather than of altruism, because it allows states to prioritize AIDS funding for their elites and armed forces who play a crucial role in maintaining security, and because portraying the illness as an overwhelming “threat” works against ongoing efforts to normalize social perceptions regarding HIV/AIDS. These overlooked dangers give rise to a profound ethical dilemma as to whether or not the global AIDS pandemic should be portrayed as a security issue. The article concludes that securitization theory cannot resolve this complex dilemma, but that raising awareness of its presence does allow policy makers, activists, and scholars to begin drawing the links between HIV/AIDS and security in ways that at least minimize some of these dangers.

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“…In addition to peacekeepers directly spreading HIV, high rates of HIV among the militaries in troop-contributing countries may make it more difficult to staff peacekeeping missions [ 9 , 13 ]. High rates of HIV in the South African and Nigerian militaries in particular, which are major contributors of peacekeeping troops, may imperil African-led responses to regional crises such as that in Sudan.…”

Section: The Impact Of Hiv/aids On Strategically Important Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%