Kenyan Muslim clerics declare war on condoms, Aidsmap reviews Halperin's call to abandon ABC

"We know the condoms are not safe ... if you want to contract the virus that causes AIDS, then use [a condom]," he said. "After all, we have heard in the past that the Western world is using the condom to eliminate Africans, and Muslims in particular." - Abdi Welli, a taxi driver in Garissa, who told IRIN/PlusNews that he agreed with the clerics that condoms should be banned.

Is this a war on HIV or a war on sex? Or simply a war on common sense? The obvious reason "HIV prevalence rates are still among the lowest in the country [among the Muslims of the region] - 1.4 percent compared to the national average of 5.1 percent" is because sexual activity is carefully contained and deeply repressed. It is also possible that circumcision of both sexes has reduced the level of sexual incentive.

Link: Reuters AlertNet - KENYA: Muslim clerics declare war on condoms.

Aidsmap also has a careful review of the article urging the dropping of ABC and adopting circumcision in African countries with a generalized epidemic. The take-away lesson that Halperin and Potts deliver is that condoms can't be consistently used for practical reasons, voluntary testing and delaying sexual debut are of limited value, treating sexually transmitted infections have not proved efficacious in reducing HIV infection, and antiretrovirals are unaffordable in the longer term. Basically, they reject all efforts except male circumcision -- a one size fits all approach. They also contend that prevention programs shouldn't consider in their implementation evidence demonstrating male circumcision has no value for women.

Edit: Curiously, the Halperin/Potts article does spend some time on the issue of reducing sexual partners. However, the de-emphasis on adolescent sexual behavior and condom use along with the lack of belief in the AB (abstinence, be faithful) in the ABC approach renders partner reduction a bit muted.

Comments

[Mark Lyndon]

I honestly think they only mentioned partner reduction for these two reasons:
1) so that it's not as obvious that they're only interest in HIV in Africa is as a way to promote circumcision
2) to get the anything-but-condoms people on their side.

[Joe in CA]

Shit always floats.

Probably the best thing to do is stand back and watch the disaster happen from afar.

That circumcision fails as any kind of STD preventor has already been shown in the large science circumcision experiment that is the US.

Once circumcision fails, yet again, (we all know that circumcision does not prevent anything) the rest of the medical world can make Halperin and his ilk the laughingstock of the AIDS movement.

The circumcised AIDS victims in Africa will wake up to their crude awakening and thus never trust the white man and his mutilation again.

That circumcision does not prevent HIV will make itself self-evident and circumcision advocates will have to look for another disease that circumcision prevents.