Panelists in Session D22 this morning will examine the underlying force of gender and power as it relates to the effectiveness of HIV/AIDS intervention programmes.

"What is gender? What is its social construction?" asked co-author Ellen Weiss in a pre-Conference interview. "Once you define gender, you see that there is a clear distinction between women’s and men's decision-making authority and their ability to access resources." Panelist Geeta Rao Gupta will present findings in this area during the panel discussion.

"'Providing condoms alone to women is not as effective as group settings where women can access resources like peer support, information and education," Weiss said. "In group settings, power can be deconstructed. Women can begin to look at their situations, at their relationships, and at their bodies, and they can develop communication skills that will enhance their autonomy."

this story can also be found in The Bridge, the onsite print newspaper

Weiss identifies five P’s of sexuality: practices, partners, pleasure, procreation, and power. "In the past," Weiss explained, "HIV/AIDS prevention programmes have primarily addressed two or three P's without looking at the underlying force of power. Power must be taken as a serious force if prevention programmes are to be effective."

In Nepal, according to panelist Dhana Malla Shrestha, the root problem is women have absolutely no power in their sexual relationships. Whatever a husband asks, the woman has to obey, no matter what the time or place. A woman who refuses can be beaten, expelled from her home and shunned by her family. Husbands can have many sexual relationships and, because women of "good character" cannot buy condoms, they are very vulnerable to STDs and HIV.

The session also includes a paper on gender issues in HIV prevention for heterosexual men. While there are hundreds of HIV/AIDS prevention programmes targeting women, says co-author Alexander Menezes, there are none targeting men. "In all of these programmes," he stated, "the male population is seen as the villain. Our main intention is to develop new models of intervention that bring the AIDS issue to the attention of heterosexual males."