Islamabad, Dec 01: A candlelit vigil, parades by doctors and cricket players sporting red ribbons marked today's World Aids Day in Pakistan, where cases are few but the risks are high. Shared use of needles among the four million drug addicts in Pakistan threatens to push up the numbers of aids sufferers from the 231 currently detailed in official figures.
According to the authorities, Pakistan has identified 2,080 cases of HIV but underreporting and poor screening is likely to mean the real numbers are far higher.
Unicef and UNAIDS estimate that 70,000-80,000 people in Pakistan are living with HIV/AIDS. They represent about 0.1 per cent of the total adult population of 145 million Pakistanis.
The campaign this year has been launched "to renew commitments to fight aids and to involve general public in this noble cause," officials at the national aids control programme said.
The programme included doctors and other health workers parading on the streets of the port city of Karachi in a torchlit rally intended to educate people how to safeguard against the disease.
Cricket players from Pakistan and New Zealand said they would wear red ribbons during the second one-day international at Lahore to show their support for aids victims.
Bureau Report