Bill Gates India grant must listern to sex workers collectives/organisations

[Guest guest]

Dear Friends,

Most of you are aware of the large grant made by the Bill & Melinda Gates

Foundation to accelerate HIV prevention efforts in India. We understand

that in the first phase, the work will concentrate on HIV prevention among

sex workers and their clients.

Over the last ten years, work in different parts of the country has

resulted in the formation of independent collectives of women in sex work

in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal,

Rajasthan, Gujarat and Delhi. Currently there are over a 100 collectives

with nearly 50,000 members.

Different NGOs have uniformly found collectivisation to be the least

exploitative and the most effective strategy to build sustainability of

safer sex practices, reduce stigma and discrimination; and promote health

seeking behaviour among sex workers.

Programmes around the world and in India have shown that collective

bargaining strategies have not only forced clients to use condoms, but have

also helped sex workers access basic needs that further empower them to

protect themselves.

We strongly recommend that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation ensures that

the existing sex workers collectives/organisations be made central to the

planning, implementation and monitoring strategies that are likely to be

adopted.

If you share these views, please add your name and the name of your

organisation to this list and mail to swfk@... by January 10,

2004.

We wish you all a very happy New Year.

Signed

Maitreya, Sex Workers Forum (SWFK), Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

Sanghamitra Iyengar, Samraksha, Bangalore, Karnataka

E. Manohar, Sangama, Bangalore, Karnataka

R. Meera, Womens Initiatives, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh

B. Sekar, SWAM, Chennai, Tamil Nadu

Shyamala Natraj, South India AIDS Action Programme (Siaap), Chennai, Tamil

Nadu.

SEX WORKER'S FORUM KERALA

FIRM-ANASOOYA

T.C.14/1514,Beatrice Mansion

Thycaud Post, Thiruvananthapuram-695 014, Kerala, India.

Tel: ++91-471-2324060, ++ 91-9447389517

E-mail: <swfk@...>