Sunday, February 11, 2007

Pre- marital HIV test : Yes or NO ?

Redenclave raised an issue in my last post Wine and Sex by saying that in Malaysia "some states have implemented the rule that all would be couples are to be tested for AIDS/HIV. As there were many cases where their spouses were tested HIV + after they have consummated their marriage. Some transmit this through drug addiction or rampant sex."

My reference to chastity and STD was sure to bring up AIDS or HIV, so Red's remark about how HIV testing had become compulsory for newlyweds reminded me of a post by Indian blogger Mahima .

"Andra Pradesh just called for compulsory HIV testing before marriage and
everyone seems to agree that this is a violation of individual rights. [...]
Most of the people who objected were from the US, Canada and other Western
countries. And their objection was pretty much limited to the fact that they
assumed the government was frowning on people’s sex lives. One poster from this
side of the planet pointed out, rightly, that HIV was an enormous issue in India
and since most weddings are arranged and women have no control over their
husbands sex lives, this is one way of ensuring they won’t contract AIDS right
off the bat. "

I had earlier read her above mentioned post "test this" (Hattip Neha Viswanathan from Global Voices) in December but never had the time to elaborate on it. I was going to blog about this topic with regards to Libya, I guess now is the time to do it.

I was not aware that Libya was one of the countries where pre-marriage HIV testing was obligatory. I learned about this a few years back when my friend was going to get married to a non-Libyan and a health certificate was requested for both before proceeding with the other formalities. Apparently no AIDS test = no marriage contract. This rule is for all whether you marry a Libyan or not, as long as one partner is Libyan, and/or as long as you marriage is officiated by a Libyan clerk.

Personally I don’t find this law offensive, because since I’ve made all the efforts to keep myself clean all these years, I expect the same from my partner and knowing the double standards that prevail in our part of the world re. chastity, honour , virginity and other related stuff, and since I cannot guarantee that my potential husband has not been near another woman before me, or I have no idea about his past before he decided to settle as many think it is great fun to be a playboy before marriage, so at least I’ll know. For extra re-assurance I will do it at the reference state lab ( as requested) but also at an independent one since some people have managed to bribe health officials to get a clean health of bill certificate. I would probably check his semen :) too , see my earlier post here.

As a teenager I used to joke that suitors had to come with a CV and application form to marry me and I will screen them thoroughly for suitability, but now they better add that HIV test.
I just had mine for my new job so why not Mr. Highlander.

What do you think ?

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

H,
That's new, a requirement to have/do a HIV blood test for a job. I have no idea if that's a requirement over here. I guess it all depends on the type of job or if you're working in the medical field. I'll have to check on that!

غازي القبلاوي Ghazi Gheblawi said...

I'll make simple, I totally agree with the pre-marriage HIV test in Libya for the reasons that you mentioned. Ghazi

Highlander said...

Hi Red,
To start a new job in Libya you need to have a health certificate, i.e. x-ray for chest infection, and general health. HIV , hepatities were on for certain professions, but now all these tests are part of the requirements for a health certificate. They apply both to Libyan's and expats.


Ghazi, I totally agree, moreover there is a lot of prostitution ( n mostly non-Libyan women , however the libyan girls have caught up on the business too) of course it is not regulated .You get the image. Not that incidence of HIV is high but one does not want to catch by mere stupidity.

NOMAD said...

that's not a romantic way of getting involved anyway, something like a "tue l'amour" (a kill love); but I am from times when 2 persons could dream without fearing a death penalty above their heads.

does this reaction has any links with the condamned bulgarian nurses ?

anyway seems to me that's a undermined view of seeing foreigners as potential polluers ; don't remember that our country does that to our immigrants, may-be we should too

programmer craig said...

That seems like a good policy, Highlander. Some of the worst AIDS epidemics have been in areas where the government initially tried to brush the HIV/AIDS stats under the rug as if it's only a problem for other countries to deal with. Really glad Libya doesn't do that.

I don't think the HIV/AIDS test is mandatory for getting married in the US. It wasn't when I got married in the early 1990s at least. Nor is one required for work, though some jobs do require a physical examination to qualify a new hire for company health insurance.

Anonymous said...

H,
Over here, it's a requirement to have a full medical check up when starting a new job (with the government & maybe with some hot shot or established firms) or when entering a college or university.

HIV/AIDS-I believe one should voluntarily go for a HIV test before committing to a partner for life. One should not wait until it has been made mandatory & forced to go and have a test until it is too late. It's better safe than never! Some would argue that they practice safe sex, but these things happen. The virus could spread through any means.

Highlander said...

Hi Nomad,

No this reaction has nothing to do with the case of the Libyan children infected with HIV. It's simply someone being overzealous, and wanting to get a promotion.
Like Red said you need a health checkup for entering a government job or in some places/companies or even universities, first for medical insurance purposes and second it makes senses in a lot of professions whether it is foreigners or Libyans. Think dentist, baker , etc....
I admit it's not romantic but I'd rather that then learn the hard way .

The policy applies equally to Libyans and foreigners, and actually it's more the foreigners who have been using bribes to 'speed' the formalities. The facilitator gets them the health certificate in 3 days maximum while it took me 3 WEEKS. I guess because I only paid the 20 Libyan Dinars state fee perhaps. So I'm wondering really how the results of those people who get them in 3 days are...? I'm not implying anything because as I said Libyans are guilty as well ... but only those who can afford it :P

Programmer_Craig, thanks for you comment, yes tackling things face on is better.

Redenclave, that's the problem better be safe than sorry.

Lost Libyano, the end of days is coming of course , we can never run away from that ...as for sexual promiscuity it's catching up here yeah :(

"The Bulgarian nurses where Nazis in my opinion, they ran out of poor jewish children to kill so they went to arabs."

I don't think you meant the above you were just angry and it does not make sense, especially since it is not the topic of this post. I don't think also that the nurses were nazis or anything.. we shall find out the whole truth of what really happened one day, nothing remains hidden forever. But please let's not insult the nurses because many of them have and are still wonderful caretakers in Libya, don't be like those ignorant people who insult Arabs or Libyans without knowing history :) show them how much you can be better and more decent eh ?

NOMAD said...

LW I am sure Algerians and Marocans won't let you call them Berbers so far I know they won't allow free visa to lybian Berbers !

as far as pollution is concerned, your the one polluter desease

LadyCroc said...

AIDS does not exclusively arrive thru sex; what if a man has been a virgin just like his upcoming wife, but he has contracted the HIV virus thru other means; drug use some years ago, or maybe thru an infected blood transfusion?
Does he loose his right to marriage because of an error not his?
In Libya people still think AIDS as a sexual transferred disease, when in fact most people contracting the HIV virus have done so by sharing infected needles.

And think even further: why only an AIDS-test before marriage? Why not a fertility test, an IQ-test, or a DNA test to show if a person might get breast cancer or sclerosis later on?

Then we can all make sure only to marry healthy breeded human beings with brains the size of Einstein.

Of course, in that case most of us would never get any chance to marry at all, but perhaps that is the ultimate goal? To exclude people with bad genes from the breeding pool?

Where are we headed?

NOMAD said...

ekyowzgSafia, I think I am with you on that one, it appears that Kadafi made a 180°sunny side down in his lately policies, and in his aimings of looking like a good guy, he is doing too much for the appearences and not groundly ;

anyway, Of course, in that case most of us would never get any chance to marry at all, but perhaps that is the ultimate goal? To exclude people with bad genes from the breeding pool?

this is the beginning that will happen

Highlander said...

By the way Lost Libyano, the French are not ignoring their colonialist past, and this quote here seems a bit strange to me
"Just remember, no Algerians or Morrocons immigrated to your country,"

Algerians and Moroccans ARE literally dying to go to France yabni, just read about the illegal immigrants tragic journeys.

Nomad my dear Libyans still don't need a visa to go to Algeria or Morroco, but yes we do need one to get in Europe :)

Hi Safia, you really think that in Libya they are planning for a breeding pool ? no I don't think they are that smart, but other countries maybe preparing for such an eventuality , it's not Libya who is working on DNA and cloning and the human genome etc.. but then maybe because our R & D is nil LOL...

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> said...

LW I am sure Algerians and Marocans won't let you call them Berbers

1. Okay this is the second time someone on this blog adresses me as "LW". I dont know who this is, and I think their must be some case of Mistaken identity, I am The Lost Libyano.

2. I Never refered to Algerians or Morrocons as berbers, but the fact that a large part of the populations in those two countries is Berber, in liguistics, and culture, I find it strange that you claim these peoples would not allow me to call them "berbers" in anycase. I have absolutly no idea what this has to do with HIV or Immigrants, Immigration being a topic which you brought up Nomad, I am sorry to inform you but your secratarianism wont work here in North Africa, we are a diverse group of people,who cherish and respect our diffrences, and we all share a common bond which is our religion Islam. So this rubish of berbers, and arabs, and blacks, is not welcome here.


so far I know they won't allow free visa to lybian Berbers

Psshh, dude, I really have no desire to go to Algeria or Morroco, but I most definatly dont need a visa, I just walk across the border slap hands with My homies, pick up a hooka, and sit back and chill, eat some cuscus, listen to some Cheb khalid, Hamid Cheriet:)

Safia speaks


AIDS does not exclusively arrive thru sex; what if a man has been a virgin just like his upcoming wife, but he has contracted the HIV virus thru other means; drug use some years ago, or maybe thru an infected blood transfusion?
Does he loose his right to marriage because of an error not his?

Well Dude if he was doing drugs, then I cant say I feel much sympothy, as far as bad blood transfusion, then I geuss the dude is out of luck, what do you recommend he goes and infects people without the deisease just so he can get off?

If he was permiscuse or a drug addict and he has the virus then he loses his right to marry from the chase communinty. God lays it out in the Quran Chase Men for Chase women, unchaste Men for unchaste women, vise versa. its really pretty simple.

NOMAD said...

yabni, just read about the illegal immigrants tragic journeys.

Marocans or Algerians don't have to cross Gibraltar alike boat people, it's mostly Africans who are landing in Spain ; As far as Marocans and algerians, there are agriements for them to travel more confortably to join their family or work
highlander,
Nomad my dear Libyans still don't need a visa to go to Algeria or Morroco, but yes we do need one to get in Europe :)

they did, but should be over soon, according my lecture of Algerian papers

"LW", if your not LW, your his twin brother

try to read some of algerian and marocan forums, I bet you could not find anyone who set his Berber origin above their nationality

Highlander said...

Hi Nomad,

they did, but should be over soon, according my lecture of Algerian papers

No we do not need a visa to get into Egypt, Tunis, Algeria and Morocco. However, we may need one in April if some new regulations are implemented and that is what you have been reading about. I know that because I have travelled freely to these 4 countries and to Jordan and Syria with no need for visa... at least until last Sunday :) that was still the law - no visa .

Sorry Lost Libyano, but you do sound a lot like an ex- reader of this blog called LW and he was berber Libyan .. so if it is a mistaken identity then I apologise. LW has many names so we all assumed lost libyano was one of his many names...

programmer craig said...

What's the percentage of Libyan ex-pats who use American slang, can't spell, and are abusive racists? And who read Highlander's blog!? :O

Hiv News said...

I totally agree with the pre-marriage HIV test but that does'nt mean we have to take a complete chek up for the job related matters.

Well this is a nice Blog on most important facts. I am happy to read this. But I am looking more and more info. Please add some thing more. I shall link from my blogs to this blog to day itself.

Last week I have found a nice informative guide on HIV from following URL http://www.helpcure.com/hiv/

This guide says - How To Cure HIV Through herbal medicines and Holistic Treatment. Guide claims that HIV viruses can't be killed but they can be ousted out of the body cells using bio magnetic repulsion or something written. I dreamt of a HIV free world after reading this guide.

Hope to read more from you people soon.

Wish you all a nice and fantastic Day for you

Hiv News said...

I totally agree with the pre-marriage HIV test but that does'nt mean we have to take a complete chek up for the job related matters.

Well this is a nice Blog on most important facts. I am happy to read this. But I am looking more and more info. Please add some thing more. I shall link from my blogs to this blog to day itself.

Last week I have found a nice informative guide on HIV from following URL http://www.helpcure.com/hiv/

This guide says - How To Cure HIV Through herbal medicines and Holistic Treatment. Guide claims that HIV viruses can't be killed but they can be ousted out of the body cells using bio magnetic repulsion or something written. I dreamt of a HIV free world after reading this guide.

Hope to read more from you people soon.

Wish you all a nice and fantastic Day for you

Maya M said...

First, to all: Let's be enlightened people, not submit to quackery and not promote it.
Second: If somebody really, really feels like promoting quackery so much that cannot resist it, I strongly recommend him at least not to advertise quack treatments for AIDS on Libyan blogs. The subject is too sensitive.