The latest issue of the Ethiopian Journal of Health Development contains many interesting articles.
Among these important public health articles, I would like to highlight one paper: Getnet Tadele from the Department of Sociology at Addis Ababa University writes about sexual abuse against male street children in Addis Ababa (1). He worked in the Merkato (main market) area in Addis Ababa, and found that sexual abuse against male children around Merkato area is widespread.
Male homosexuality makes up a major HIV transmission route in the Americas, Eastern Europe and parts of Asia but is rare in Africa. Although anthropologists have reported homosexual behaviour in Africa since the 17th century, it remains as a taboo subject. Recent information suggests that homosexuality is common in Ethiopia. This adds to increasing evidence that the HIV epidemic in Ethiopian towns is more complex that previously anticipated (2 – 4) .
References
1. Tadele G. ‘Unrecognized victims’: Sexual abuse against male street children in Merkato area, Addis Ababa. Ethiop J Hlth Dev. 2009;23(3):174-82.
2. Kloos H, Mariam D, Lindtjørn B. The AIDS Epidemic in a Low-Income Country: Ethiopia. Human Ecology Review. 2007 Jan 1;14(1):39-55.
3. Tadele G. Bleak prospects: young men, sexuality and HIV/AIDS in an Ethiopian town. PhD Thesis. Amsterdam: University of Amsterdam; 2005.
4. Gebreyesus SH, Mariam DH. Assessment of HIV/AIDS related risks among men having sex with men (MSM) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. J Public Health Policy. 2009 Sep;30(3):269-79.