AIDS in JAPAN -Basic Information and Coomunity Activities in Japan

Women, Gender and HIV/AIDS: Basic information

This article does not necessary reflect all of the views in the communities

The 2004 report released by the Committee on AIDS Trends, Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) shows that the ratio of women to the total population living with HIV/AIDS is 8% and of the non-Japanese is 18%. While this may not seem high, there are characteristics such as the high ratio of foreigners (considering the ratio of the migrants to Japan is 1% of the total Japanese population) and the high infection rates of young women, aged 15-19 and 20-24.

1. A structued social issue

In Japan, historically speaking, an issue of 'women and HIV/AIDS' began in 1980s, when Japanese people had regarded HIV transmission of sex workers as one of the main problems. Especially, women migrated from South-east Asian countries such as Thailand, increasingly got infected HIV at that time. Thus, they have been singled out as a source of HIV infection since then.

In 1990s, however, the epidemic expanded to Japanese women who worked in sex industries, and now to women who don't have experiences of sex work. Furthermore, the current situation of sexually transmitted diseases implies that HIV will certainly expand among young single women although the reported number among this group is yet small. In addition, it is not hard to imagine that wives will be infected after their husbands get HIV for some reasons such as prostition.

Thus, a lot of women are at high risk of HIV infection or are already living with HIV/AIDS. While they have different risks peculiar to their specific situations, what they have in common is that they are socially vulnerable in the gender structure of the society. Sex work, for example, is a social issue that cannot be dissociated from the gender structure. Each problem is interwoven with economic and social structures in complicated ways. Furthermore, gender is deeply related not only to visible institutions and structures but also to socio-cultural sexual norms that become internalized and do not allow women to ask their partners to use condoms.

These complex situations make a fight against HIV/AIDS extremely difficult. Needless to say, it is important to empower individuals by sex education or HIV/AIDS education. However, it is hard to promote sex and HIV/AIDS education in Japan with a recent conservative shift in politics. Provision of information and health services for sex workers faces difficulties such as not being able to secure adequate budgets under the condition that sex work is illegal. Moreover, as the number of women living with HIV/AIDS is small as a whole, it is harder for them to 'come out' with their infection or to take actions such as establishing self-help organizations than men.

2. Challenge

Despite these difficulties, it is notable that women with HIV/AIDS have begun to raise their own voices and these voices come from groups such as sex workers and young women. For example, SWASH, a group of sex workers, offers 'services and information for sexual health' to their peers. With regard to activities for people living with HIV/AIDS, 'Place Tokyo' provides women living with HIV/AIDS with meeting spaces and workshops.

Moreover, many youth groups are engaged in prevention and education programmes for themselves from the standpoint of their peers and some of these groups are especially active in sending messages to young women. Apart from activities specializing in HIV/AIDS, a women's rights movement has an extensive history in Japan, as does the feminist movement both on a national and international scale. Considering the fact that women's infection is closely related to gender and human rights, these women's organizations have become more interested in the issue of HIV/AIDS. Thus, collaboration with the women's movement will be required as one of the effective measures against HIV/AIDS.

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