THE EDITOR, Sir:
We, the members of the Guild of Students, Mona Campus, are resolute in our protest against the headline "UWI students at high HIV risk" which appeared with an article in the Sunday Gleaner dated August 11, 2002. This headline bears little resemblance to the contents of the accompanying article.
There is no doubt that HIV/AIDS is an issue on campus as it is in the wider society. We hold the view that the students at UWI are no more at risk than students at other tertiary institutions or the entire Jamaican population.
The article's headline also insinuated that the disease has an unusually high presence on campus and thus the possibility of catching HIV/AIDS here is correspondingly high. The statistical data identified in this piece of writing did not in any way support this assertion.
The only thing it pointed to was that there was limited knowledge base about some of the methods by which AIDS may be contracted and that some students were indulging in unprotected sex.
However, we also seek to learn from this article. We would like to commend Dr. Lisa Norman and Dr. Yitades Gebre for such pioneering research as this is the first time, as far as we are aware, that such a study has been conducted among students in an institution of higher learning. Additionally, we hope that this research will be a 'launching pad' for subsequent studies as it will lead to a true picture of the AIDS-HIV situation as it relates to institutions of higher learning.
The Guild of Students remains committed to the fight against HIV/AIDS and any other sexually transmitted disease. We have participated fully the formulation of the 14-point HIV plan of the UWI Aids Response Programme (UWIHARP). Our External Affairs Chairperson also sits on the Jamaica AIDS Council and our commitment will also be shown when we host our "AIDS Symposium" in another few weeks.
I am, etc.
TREVOR THOMPSON
Public Relations Officer
UWI Guild of Students,
Mona
