News / Health
'Small houses fuel HIV infection'
24 Nov 2013 at 11:55hrs | Views
According to a 2010 Unicef research, when women enter a stable and long-term relationship they struggle to insist on the use of a condom even though there might be evidence of risk of infection.
"Society permits men to be promiscuous and forces women to always meet their physical needs. The women are constantly warned that if they do not please their men they will look for other women," reads the Unicef report.
Efforts by women's organisations to stem these imbalances have been met with a frothy reception by the society.
"We are ridiculed by the society and called all sorts of names. Some say we are bitter divorced women who just want to perpetuate waywardness," said director of Musasa Project Netty Musanhu.
According to the UNDP initiated Zimbabwe Agenda for the Accelerated Country Action of Women and Girls Gender Equality and HIV and Aids, traditional practices such as polygamy, and its modern version "small houses" whereby a man has a secret wife, are some of the reasons that fuel the high incidence of infection among married women.
"Society permits men to be promiscuous and forces women to always meet their physical needs. The women are constantly warned that if they do not please their men they will look for other women," reads the Unicef report.
"We are ridiculed by the society and called all sorts of names. Some say we are bitter divorced women who just want to perpetuate waywardness," said director of Musasa Project Netty Musanhu.
According to the UNDP initiated Zimbabwe Agenda for the Accelerated Country Action of Women and Girls Gender Equality and HIV and Aids, traditional practices such as polygamy, and its modern version "small houses" whereby a man has a secret wife, are some of the reasons that fuel the high incidence of infection among married women.
Source - standard
