March and Rally in Delhi Brothel District

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) and partners organized a march and rally in the heart of a high risk brothel district in Delhi, India to commemorate the International Condom Day on Feb. 13.

G.B. Road was specifically chosen as the location for the condom awareness march and testing event because it is the area of “legal” brothels, where rates of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases are high. The team distributed 2,500 condoms and performed 82 HIV tests, mostly among men.

AHF and its partners also put on an educational risk reduction magic show, which attracted hundreds of men in the area.

Reaching more than 1,000 women and young girls working in the sex trade in these run down apartment buildings remains a longer-term challenge. They did not appear on the enclosed balconies lining the street during the rally out of fear of being seen.

Often if women in the sex trade do go to get tested for HIV and test positive, their “madame” throws them out. The problem is further exacerbated by the fact that sex workers get paid more for sex without a condom.

AHF and its partners are working on new strategies to reach these at-risk women .