Shillong, Sep 9: Nongkrem MLA Ardent M Basaiawmoit took an arch conservative stance on the issue of sex in the Assembly today, dubbing the state government’s approach as completely wrong.
The opposition MLA from the Voice of the People Party (VPP) expressed grave concern over what he called “misplaced priorities” in the government’s campaign against the spread of HIV/AIDS.
According to the VPP supremo, the state’s approach should be centred on morality, specifically religious and tribal values. Instead of encouraging use of condoms, which could, in his eyes, lead to promiscuity, it would be better to teach the youth not to have sex before marriage in order to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS.
Turning to the Meghalaya AIDS Control Society (MACS), Basaiawmoit criticised its 27-year campaign as ineffective and disconnected from public sentiment. He said that unless mass HIV testing is conducted, the real numbers will remain hidden and the disease will continue to spread silently within families and communities.
He cited data from the Sankalak 2024 report by NACO, which placed Meghalaya’s HIV prevalence at 0.54 percent, the 7th highest in India and 3rd highest in the North East, far above the national average of 0.22 percent. Meghalaya also topped the list in syphilis positivity at 8.4 percent, further indicating a growing public health emergency.
Basaiawmoit made a controversial but firm suggestion to rethink the legal confidentiality around HIV-positive individuals. While acknowledging the importance of protecting the dignity of patients, he argued that the safety of the uninfected public, especially spouses and close contacts, must not be compromised. “It’s time to classify between victims and culprits,” he stated, “because when wrongdoers are protected and innocent people suffer, justice is reversed.”
