I am not sure where this came from and who gave the credit to me and Mr. Sanjit Patnaik for making this statement. But we have not made any statement on mandatory testing neither do we have any intention of promoting mandatory testing in Orissa. I am not shocked or surprised that this statement has brought on such strong reaction. I am angry that such a damaging statement on mandatory testing is going to ruin all these years of struggle undertaken by all. Mr. Sanjit Patnaik and I have been struggling at the community level against forced testing of married young women by family members. The sad part is that in Orissa media is yet to learn how damaging these kinds of statement is for Orissa as a state where we are yet to go beyond prevention programmes and where districts with high prevalence are neglected by the state.
BY -- Loknath Mishra,
ARUNA.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
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1 comment:
Dear Loknath, it's a welcome relief to see your statement. When I first read the AIDS India posting, I had my doubts, given that I've met you and know where you stand. Well, I'm glad we'll be working together in the coming days and media advocacy will be high on our priorities.
Sarita - Congratulations on your blogging initiative!
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