It is important that Africans in the 21st century, have access to education & are fully informed as the 21st century is the informtion age. Partially informing Africans to promote circumcision is Unethical.
Lets start an internet campaign to Inform Africans about HIV & Medical Circumcision.
Important Information is as follows =
- Circumcision does not prevent HIV infection, Circumcised men all over the world are infected with HIV. Many circumcised populations have higher infection rates than populations that do not practice circumcision.
- The HIV reduction risk via circumcision has been poorly explained, or just plainly over-stated. At best (and this is debated in the scientific literature) the widely publicised 60% reduction in HIV infections (which is the most optimistic figure) from medical circumcision, can mean that if you have sex with 10 women who are HIV infected, you can be infected by 4 of them. Or if you have 10 sexual encounters with a single woman who is infected with HIV, you will get infected on 4 of those occassions. Therefore the 60% figure that is talked about is very misleading, and over a lifetime you are still at significant risk of becoming infected with HIV even if you have medical circumcision.
- Africans have also not been fully informed that for women having sex with a circumcised man can increase the risk of HIV infection by up to 54%, particularly if sex occurs within several months of the circumcision. Also not explained is that if a circumcised man has HIV, circumcision offers zero protection to a woman.
- Without knowing someone's HIV status when you have sex with them ( which is the true cause of sexually acquired HIV) you are at risk becoming infected with HIV circumcised or not.
- HIV virus does not hide in the foreskin itself, it hides in human blood, and human semen.
- The major cause of sexually acquired HIV infections is having unprotected sex with a person who is infected with HIV, and therefore Without behaviour change the HIV epidemic in Africa will never be defeated.
- Behaviour is the cause of HIV infections in adult sexual relationships. Having unprotected sex with a partner who is infected with HIV is the cause of infections, and having unprotected sex with multiple sex partners multiplies HIV infection rates greatly, and the cause of Epidemics.
- Exposure to contaminated blood is also a common way of becoming infected with HIV.
- The male foreskin does not cause HIV infections, therefore it is OK if your cultural tradition is to remain intact and refuse circumcision.
- HIV infections are caused by contact with the virus, usually through bodily fluids such as blood or semen.
- The only ways to eliminate contact with the virus sexually= is through avoidance (ie. Do not have sex with a person who is infected with HIV) or using a barrier method during sex, between your body and the virus.
- Condoms are a barrier method, which form a barrier between the exchange of bodily fluids such as blood and semen during sex, and is the only way to ensure protection from the HIV virus. Circumcision is not a barrier method, skin contact and bodily fluid can & does occur with a circumcised penis.
- Condoms are ethical, they provide barrier protection from the HIV virus to both the man and the woman, this is particularly important as women get zero protection from male circumcision.
- Having sex in a monogomous relationship where neither partner is infected by HIV, makes it impossible to become infected with HIV via having sex with your partner alone. Circumcision is not required.
- If you make the choice to have sex with multiple sex partners, be the new modern African, be fully informed and use a barrier method such as a condom, and use it properly to ensure no contact or exposure to the virus occurs.
- Slogan options?
- "I'm a 21st Century African & I'm Fully Informed about HIV"
- "I'm a 21st Century African & I use condoms"
