UNTENU -for a good cause

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pong
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UNTENU -for a good cause

Post by pong »

As this board remains still mostly Pattaya-centered, however khun lung GB wishes to change that, I would like to mention an organization for a specific good cause: https://untenu.org/ gives info, mostly in Cambodia, to the local GBHT (or whatever it is shortened this year) and by helping out. They also help the migrant male sex workers in Pattaya-many of whom are infected or do not make it at all in the business and are helped to go home. That's another aspect of gay life that also exists. Its mostly Belgian-Dutch based, the site is also in English and gives more details.
fountainhall

Re: UNTENU -for a good cause

Post by fountainhall »

More than just a good cause I'd suggest. The work these people do is vital and they deserve our support whether or not we live there.

Lest we forget, Cambodia' s attempts to stay neutral in the Vietnam War era to a large extent created the conditions for the emergence of the Khmer Rouge. The illegal 4-year long American bombing campaign to which King Sihanouk turned a blind eye did the rest. Once the Khmer Rouge came to power, the country was closed for 4 years. Even when the Vietnamese invaded and ousted the Khmer Rouge, Cambodia was a totally devastated country and was to remain virtually isolated for most of the 1980s.

So at the time when HIV was a new epidemic ravaging the rest of the world, Cambodia was untouched. The first known case was diagnosed as late as 1991. Within less than ten years, Cambodia had the highest per capita prevalence of HIV in Asia. Both within the country and in the large refugee camps on the Thailand border, there had been no HIV education. For a time it was believed that official UN and other aid workers who descended on the country introduced the disease through sex with locals, more than some underage. That is now generally debunked, with blame - if such it can be called - falling on all the returning refugees from various parts of the world.

Now that HIV is much more under control, the rate of infection has decreased dramatically. Remarkably, I think, the country has the highest retroviral treatment coverage of any Asian country. But many poor sex workers still remain largely ignorant, or persuade themselves that "it won't happen to me." They need help. Hopefully we can help.
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