Naga youths and HIV/AIDS
Al Ngullie
The hair-crazy 80s are to Naga young people what the 60s were to the hormone brigade of America. The decade will remain the most definitive point of reference for two sections of youths –those with urban sensibilities and those children who’d grown fed by bucolic mindsets. The said decade saw the birth of a new generation of hair-savvy teenagers who identified themselves with the psychedelic lifestyles of America’s post-Vietnam era: hair, guitar, drugs, sex and rock n’ roll.
With cable TV and globalization in Nagaland still in its embryonic stage then, perception to employment and career were notions the then pastoral subsistence had no time for; life was a gradual adventure into rock n’ roll with ample supplies of Spasmo Proxyvon and Phencydal from Merapani, Assam, to heighten the trip; with education still awaiting repercussive reforms from the Nagaland Government to please a then tenacious Opposition intellectual life was confined more or less only to patriotic pronouncements that subsisted on the fantasy of liberation and Naga self-determination; with the Naga Church newly obsessed with sending out 10,000 missionaries into the world, spirituality was confined only to emotive revivals and incoherent prophecies. Suddenly the average Naga youth of the 80s, was a leader-less, liberated entity with little to learn from but much to lose for.
Down rock bottom
When Freddie Mercury, the flamboyant lead vocalist of a multi-platinum-album-retentive juggernaut of a rock band called Queen, died on November 23 1991, every Naga youth worth his heavy metal hair sat in shock only to look into the eyes of an even deadlier form of corrosion than the dregs of 80s rock and roll routine –HIV/AIDS. Mercury was the first youth idol to fall prey to AIDS. Suddenly the psychedelic plastic dream popped to usher in Nagaland what we now refer to as ‘Another-Naga-youth-just-died-of-AIDS’.
Naga youths learnt the hard and more deviously repercussive way. Many young observers feel that the flamboyant yet tumultuous decade was to be the foundation many youths would fall prey to the pandemic. The liberated lifestyle would serve as the springboard of a mindset that had come to retain traces of westernism, liberalist attitudes and escapism and consequently, reinforce the grunge revolution of the 1990s when casual sex was, yes, casual; where beating the system was cool; where condoms were for yellow-bellied wimps; where love was an orgasm that overlooked the warning omens of many an NGO advocating safe sex. That was the two formative years of AIDS making its foray into the beautiful, Christian state of Nagaland.
Now the 21st century is here three decades since the first pinch of heavy metal was felt in the 80s. Suddenly, there is a possibility that within a three to four years time from now on, Nagaland might have approximately about 13,000 to 15,000 HIV/AIDS infected people. The projected number doesn’t even include the probable proportion of unaccounted/reported cases, which has now come to characterize estimation of cases.
The Deputy Director of Nagaland State AIDS Control Society (NSACS), Dr L Yanthan expressing serious concern, had called for a more invigorated effort from the grass-root level to create more platforms for spreading awareness. Why? Because, the figures might triple over the next couple or so years. “There are no formal statistics but (considering the extent of cases in recent times) it is projected that within a three years time the number of HIV/AIDS cases might touch around 13,000 to 15,000 cases of infection” the Deputy Director had said. He was of the view that the individual would make the biggest difference in curbing the pandemic. However the most disturbing aspect of it he observed was that although the level of awareness about the disease in Nagaland is extremely high, cases are still increasing.
Here was a reason to fall back on with the so called notions of Christianity serving as an excuse to deny HIV/AIDS the status of being designated as a serious epidemic needing serious attention; or a pretext to hide behind a false sense of immunity ‘because the numbers are not serious comparing to other diseases’ according to a laidback Naga father. Such complacent, apathetic pronouncements are not wholly unexpected. “The people are not wholly participating in the change process” the NSACS director had rued while implying that the awareness and knowledge imbibed were not being used to the maximum extent to deter further casualties, particularly among the youths.
In medical parlance, an epidemic is a serious term. The failure to be considered thus is implicit of the laidback attitude of most Naga youths in dealing with the issue. Annual statistics (general) till June 2005 stood at 923 cases (Males-554, females-369) and this constitutes cases only of patients who actually reported. If the unreported/hidden cases are totaled, then the numbers would be extremely higher than the actual confirmed cases. In the statistics relevant to district-wise prevalence, Kohima (1.75%) Mokokchung (2.51%) and Tuensang (unconfirmed) accounted the highest cases and Dimapur, curiously stood lower than usually perceived, standing at 0.79 %.
The populace accounting for the HIV/AID confirmed cases comprises of sex-workers (4.44%), Ante-natal clinic attendees (1.28 %), Intravenous Drug Users (2.92%) and STD clinic attendees (1.72%). Emphasizing on the aforementioned statistics most NGOs opine that the high prevalence rate in spite of sustained efforts and the resultant, extremely high level of awareness. There is a higher incidence of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs). The obvious attributes are placed on high sexual promiscuity, low condom-utilization, and early initiation of youths into drug-abuse, steady continuance of the same, academic failure of students, sexual exposure at an early age as well as peer pressure.
Role of youth and Naga student organizations
Where the youths are concerned, youth/Students bodies can play an exceedingly effective role in curbing the threat of the disease amongst the younger lot. I believe the Naga Students Federation (NSF) with its pan-Naga application and appeal with the support of its influential subordinate units like the All Nagaland College Students Union, Diphupar Naga Students Union, Dimapur Naga Students Union etc and apex tribal units like the ASU, ACK, LSU, SKK etc can impact greater results along with the sustained efforts of NGOs working in the area of HIV/AIDS, substance-addiction and sex-traffic. Church youth departments should also move beyond interpreting spirituality in terms of precepts and instead translate the teachings of the Bible into philanthropic action. The scope of these entities’ effectiveness serving as external deterrents can be achieved to a higher extent. Their role must move beyond implementation of contemporary or religious dictates.
There are myriad roles they can play to encourage healthy participation and regeneration of positive attitudes, as well as founding strategies to consolidate the action-base. For instance, not only can they serve as effective support to NGO-directed operations, student/youth bodies can also campaign against, say, discrimination or stigmatization by virtue that schools/colleges/church are most knowledge-retentive then other systems. They should be open-minded to evaluate objectively the measures to be employed, decisions and of results and reassessment etc. A practical approach and knowledge of different options to be employed to address and relatively, reduce the vulnerability of risk-groups, drug-transactions, treatment of users etc should first be imbibed.
Here are some strategies they can employ.
• Initiating awareness and educational drives in the form of poster campaigns, pamphlets, health fairs and student/general meetings.
• Involving and persuading the Church to diversify their respective activities in regard to HIV+ people and drug-addicts. It may be reiterated that Church youth departments should also move beyond interpreting spirituality in terms of precepts and instead translate the teachings of the Bible into philanthropic action.
• Clarifying and establishing ‘proven’ explanations against the various misconceptions to do away with social stigma and discrimination attached to HIV/AIDS patients, substance-abusers, sex-workers et al.
• Spearhead mobilization of different youth/student-organizations for a more concerted effort and greater response.
• Canvassing for establishment of community care centers, information booths and counseling forums under mobilization programs.
• Cooperating with the police and Law & Order agencies in identifying illegal drug suppliers and channels as well as in providing vigilance fronts.
• Identifying prominent figures of the society (politicians, bureaucrats, church-leaders Journalists, social-workers writers etc.) and soliciting their support to the cause and involve families of infected patients, drug-addicts, former drug-addicts, health workers etc in the activities pertaining to media coverage, social-response assessment, strategy-planning and mobilization programs.
Evidently, these roles youth/student entities can play, illustrates their significance in addressing the scourges. This fact of purpose can be attributed to their influence in almost all the important aspects of youth culture as well for their greater visibility in matters requiring an effective generation of youth opinion, enforcement of certain youth dictates and acceptance of the represented population. These reasons affirm the role they can play in deterring further advance of HIV/AIDS as well as in all its perils.
