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Country Profiles |
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A Woman Finds Her Voice, Protects Self and Others from HIV |
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"When we found Lovely, she was anemic, slept beside the street dogs, and had unprotected sex," said her outreach worker, Musammat Aktar. Unaware of HIV and unable to communicate verbally because of a speech impairment, Lovely already had sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and was at risk of contracting HIV. Musammat took Lovely to a Light House health center to bathe, relax, and learn how to read and write. "We taught her how to negotiate condom use to protect herself from infection," recalled Musammat. Lovely soon understood the importance of her personal safety and health and sought treatment at a Light House STI clinic. Light House has changed Lovely's life for the better in other ways as well. She now regularly showers and goes in for checkups and treatment at an integrated health center. Lovely has learned conflict resolution skills to keep her safe on the streets, and she knows how to use male and female condoms. As a peer educator, Lovely uses her new skills and knowledge to protect herself and her peers from STIs and HIV. While several of her peers are also mute, even those without speech impediments understand Lovely's own form of language. Through pantomime and signs, she demonstrates condom use, shows how to store condoms, and how to leave men who refuse to wear condoms. Bringing the point home, she holds her stomach with a pained look, graphically showing them that they risk getting seriously ill—and being unable to support themselves and their children—if they don't protect themselves. Light House, an FHI partner, provides counseling, health services, condoms, and strategic behavioral communication training to street-based sex workers. FHI supports HIV and STI prevention, targeting street-based sex workers in Barisal, Comilla, Chittagong, and Dhaka, Bangladesh Photo: Lovely (Tara O'Day) |
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JUNE 2007 — Lovely is a sex worker in Bangladesh. Like many impoverished rural women, she went to the city seeking work but ended up on the streets. She is one of hundreds of sex workers struggling to survive in the northeastern city of Bogra.