In Bangkok, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan chided world leaders for not doing nearly enough to combat the epidemic. He warned that women were becoming the unwitting victims. He encouraged “leaders everywhere to demonstrate that speaking up about AIDS is a point of pride, not a source of shame.”

In Asia, China is becoming a flashpoint for the disease. China, officially, has an estimated one million HIV patients — the actual number is expected to be much higher. After years of neglect and silence, the Chinese government is finally taking action to stop the rampant spread of HIV. But despite efforts to educate the people, they still have to come to terms with the disease. To date, AIDS cases have been concentrated in peripheral provinces. The UN fears it may soon spread into the country’s economic heartland.

Cambodia — one of Asia’s poorest countries — has the highest rate of infection of HIV. In a country of 13 million, 3 per cent of the population, aged between 15 and 49, has AIDS. Of the 20 new HIV infections occurring daily in Cambodia, seven are housewives and seven are babies. The numbers are indicative of how HIV is moving from high-risk groups, like sex workers, to becoming a generalised epidemic.

Men are using condoms in their encounters with sex workers, but seldom with their wives at home. Given the chauvinistic nature of most societies in Asia, women are seldom in a position to insist. Consequently, in many countries women are getting infected faster than men.

There are two schools of thought on how to combat AIDS. The ABC approach preaches Abstinence, Being Faithful and, if not, use Condoms. A line supported by US President George Bush. Uganda, once considered the epicentre of the disease, has used the ABC anti-AIDS campaign. Official figures suggest that the rate of AIDS infection is down to 6 per cent from 30 per cent in the 1980s.

However, many believe than in today’s social environment the ABC-approach may not be optimal. They favour the CNN view — Condoms, Needles and Negotiation. Thailand, for example, has managed to slash the rate of HIV infections in the country by campaigning tirelessly to promote the use of condoms. A key factor hindering the treatment of AIDS patients is the high cost of drugs. European and US pharma giants make most of them, protected by patents and costing as much as US$5,000 per person, per year. However, WTO rules give developing countries the flexibility to manufacture copies of expensive drugs in times of health crises. All WTO members, including the US, have to respect this clause.

But countries like the US are pressuring poor countries to relinquish rights to make generic drugs in bilateral agreements in return for free trade agreements. Washington is in the process of negotiating one such agreement with Thailand at the moment.

UK pharma giant, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), has also been criticised for a “scam” in failing to get its drugs to South Africans with HIV. Three years ago, GSK granted a so-called voluntary licence to a South African drug-maker to make generic versions of its HIV drug. But not one pill has been produced since.

The AIDS epidemic in Asia began only recently, and the incidence is still low. But if countries don’t unite their forces and take proactive measures to fight the disease quickly, an epidemic cannot be ruled out.