Frost Briefs Parliament on HIV/AIDS in Asia

February 2006—Kevin Frost, director of TREAT Asia and amfAR’s vice president of clinical research and prevention programs, addressed a special Parliamentary briefing on the Asian AIDS epidemic in London on 9 November. Speaking in the House of Commons before members of the All Party Parliamentary Group on AIDS (APPGA) and representatives of domestic and international NGOs, Frost detailed the spread of HIV/AIDS in Asia and presented an overview of TREAT Asia’s initiatives in the region.

Among those in attendance were Lord Fowler, secretary of state for health in the mid-1980s and a long-time advocate of HIV/AIDS prevention efforts, and Baroness Masham, a member of the APPGA since it was formed more than 18 years ago.

Frost was joined at the podium by representatives of London’s Naz Foundation International, which advocates and provides policy support for South Asian communities of men who have sex with men (MSM). The briefing also addressed the status of MSM in the region, the lack of prevention efforts in many countries, the impact of population movement across national borders, and the difficulties presented by generic drugs that are not controlled for quality.

The Parliamentary briefing was part of an ongoing effort to build relationships in the United Kingdom, where the Department for International Development has begun to ramp up its support for global AIDS projects. Frost was invited to return for a follow-up briefing at an unspecified date by MP and chair of the APPGA Neil Gerrard.