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Sankies and Safe Sex
I started HIV/AIDS research for the DR after I read this article: Dominican Republic: Women with HIV Doubly Abused (Human Rights Watch, 13-7-2004)
My concern was mostly not about actual numbers, but about the attitude towards the infection. It looks like with the kind of negligence towards the spread of the decease as it is described by some of the researchers the numbers will continue going up.
HIV and AIDS: Amnesty International's Human Rights Concerns
My concern was mostly not about actual numbers, but about the attitude towards the infection. It looks like with the kind of negligence towards the spread of the decease as it is described by some of the researchers the numbers will continue going up.
HIV and AIDS: Amnesty International's Human Rights Concerns
Most dominican men do not really use condoms all the time, y the sankies? They don't really care what diseases they contract and pass around, lets face it. And if they get a gringa pregnant, sometimes that is bonus (for some sankie, not all), porque then they get something that locks their gringa into the relationship even when la gringa has discover truth about the sankie. And also I have heared of situation where rich gringas living in the RD get sankies who even like to marry them for an easy life!
Safe sex is alien to the majority of our sankies.
Safe sex is alien to the majority of our sankies.
when i was there last month i made alot of friends with nice guys from the hotel. (i did not sleep with them) but everytime they'd pull out there wallets for something i could always see a condom or two in it. maybe it was just these guys but they all carried them and seemed like they would be using them.
I know of a beautiful foriegn woman living in DR who was going out with a sankie and she left him but not after contracting, of all things, mumps. Mumps is passed through saliva.
i know at the resort i stayed at, they get tested every 3 months, not only for hiv but drugs and such too. thats animacion though, not sure for the others
hahaha well good point but i dont think so, they wernt flashing it really i just saw. plus they were not hitting on me at all, my guy friend i went with also noticed them.
A couple of years ago I did research in the DR about AIDS (machismo, stigmatization and knowledge about aids influencing condom uses among adolescents in the DR). At the time about 85% of the HIV/AIDS cases of the carribean were on the island of hispanolia (most in Haiti).
The HIV prevalence was 2,5%, where (if I remember correctly) a percentage higher then 1 (of the general population) is considered to be an epidemic and difficult to control. Almost 5% of the population most at risk (sexworkers, gay people and drug addicts) were infected.
The DR did put some money into AIDS prevention and education and numbers were dropping, also condom use was rising.
I did my research mainly under adolescents in the north part of the country (surrounding tourist areas).
After analysis of the results it turned out that dominican adolescents used more condoms then their american/european counterparts. Personally I think this is a little bit hard to believe and could partly be the effect of giving a social desirable answer (although that happens everywhere, but i think stronger here) and partly it is, because in europe/usa girls use more other forms of contraception.
But anyway, this does point out that using condoms is considered a good thing.
And I always hear all my (male) dominican friends say that they usa a condom, ESPECIALLY with gringas. Now Im not standing in the room with them when they do it, so its impossible for me to know for sure, but I do think they use alot more condoms then people think/expect. (at least in tourist areas)
The HIV prevalence was 2,5%, where (if I remember correctly) a percentage higher then 1 (of the general population) is considered to be an epidemic and difficult to control. Almost 5% of the population most at risk (sexworkers, gay people and drug addicts) were infected.
The DR did put some money into AIDS prevention and education and numbers were dropping, also condom use was rising.
I did my research mainly under adolescents in the north part of the country (surrounding tourist areas).
After analysis of the results it turned out that dominican adolescents used more condoms then their american/european counterparts. Personally I think this is a little bit hard to believe and could partly be the effect of giving a social desirable answer (although that happens everywhere, but i think stronger here) and partly it is, because in europe/usa girls use more other forms of contraception.
But anyway, this does point out that using condoms is considered a good thing.
And I always hear all my (male) dominican friends say that they usa a condom, ESPECIALLY with gringas. Now Im not standing in the room with them when they do it, so its impossible for me to know for sure, but I do think they use alot more condoms then people think/expect. (at least in tourist areas)
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Bearing in mind that most of the "encounters" would be taking place in cabanas and short time hotels where condoms are provided with the room, I think that the percentage of safe sex would be relatively high.
My 2 pesos worth!
Rio
I have my prejudice, but I beleive that most of the STDs come from foreigners looking for sex and not the other way around. As a local you have a belief that these estranjeros come from across the ocean so "they MUST be safe". In most foreign countries, if you give someone an dangerous STD, you may be taken to court or even arrested. This doesn't happen in DR.
Now if I was a resort worker, I would protect myself from the tourists as well. But that's just me and my opinion.
Now if I was a resort worker, I would protect myself from the tourists as well. But that's just me and my opinion.
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I have that book and read it several times. I was always bothered by her take on the whole subject but could not put my finger on it until recently.
Her premise on the factors and motivations that drive dominican women into sex tourism and their justification for their behavior once they are in that life is completely one-sided. I really don't understand how it took her almost 10 years of research to come up with such a narrow-minded, pro feminist view.
Her book really does the subject a disservice. Then again, I'm sure she got paid well to sit in the sun and listen to all the lies and pathetic justifications of her subjects. Beats the hell out of getting a real job, I suppose.
And yes, I did recommend this book at one point in time. But like I said I've changed my viewpoint after reading it more than once.
I agree to a certain extent...
However, i read somewhere, The male lower class youths are opposed to protection and have practised unsafe sex, having both female and male partners. I cant remember exact percentage but it was well over %30. Can this be right?
I don't know about that. But my feelings are that tourists are just as likely to practice unsafe sex as local. Especially, if they found a girlfriend or boyfriend. Gauranteed that during the 2 or 3 trip, both parties are engaging in non-condom sex.
But my other point is that resort workers would be caught off-guard to believe that all of these young girls or women are ALL STD free.
But my other point is that resort workers would be caught off-guard to believe that all of these young girls or women are ALL STD free.
Agree with you final assment of book.
She spent very little time explaining the fact that these younger women are put in this situation because they have 2, 3 or more children from Dominican boyfriends who don't use condoms or pay support.
She spent very little time explaining the fact that these younger women are put in this situation because they have 2, 3 or more children from Dominican boyfriends who don't use condoms or pay support.