Reflection 5

I think that this initiative is great. Firstly, it will act as a deterent for people who engage in high-risk sexual activities without first checking whether they are HIV positive or not. By doing so, it will greatly reduce the number of HIV cases in Singapore. HIV is a very powerful and deadly virus, and I think this change would impact the society greatly.

Secondly, I think that with this new initiative, people will be much more aware of the dangers as well as the consequences of engaging in high-risk sexual activities, since fine is a major psychological factor. Thus, this would cause more people to go for regular HIV checkups, and I think that this would also greatly decrease the number of HIV cases in Singapore.

Mr Koh Peng Keng, senior director of operations of the ministy of health put it very well and said 'It's very easy to hide behind the veneer of 'I don't know'... but that's not a good-enough excuse. This law is to say: You have a responsibility to whoever you have sexual intercourse with, that you don't pass HIV to him or her.' I liked what he said and I certainly agree to it. I think that he brought up a very good point, that is people usually give the excuse of 'I don't know' when charged for engaging in high-risk sexual activities when they have HIV. I think that this is very irresponsible, as it shows that you do not care about the well-being of your partner, engaging in such activities without 'reasonable precautions' like wearing a condom, since you know that there is a RISK of you having HIV.

Thus I think that with the implementation of this law, people would have to be more responsible for what they do especially when it is life threatening, not only for themselves but also for their partners.

However, although I think that this new initiative is great, but i find that it is somewhat harsh, since the maximum penalty is now $50,000 fine and 10 years' jail, just because you did not take simple precautions. Though I know the reason for this is to make it a strong deterrent, but humans being humans, might sometimes be lazy and assume themselves to be HIV-negative since they do not usually engage in high-risk sexual activities, and have sex with their partners, only to end up breaking the law.

This problem lies with human nature, something that is hard to change, thus I think that it will be hard to solve directly, but other methods such as giving incentives for HIV screening could be implemented to encourage regular HIV checkups

Article 5

Ignorance is no excuse for infecting others
S'pore will introduce law to to hold those who do not know they are HIV-infected responsible for their actions

By Lee Hui Chieh
Last year, a record high of 357 people here were found to be HIV-positive. More than nine in 10 were infected through sex. -- PHOTO: ST

ENGAGING in sex while infected with the virus might soon be made a crime, regardless of whether you know you are HIV-positive or not.

The Health Ministry wants to take this major step to curb the spread of Aids, as educating the public on the HIV virus has proven ineffective.

It is proposing a change to the Infectious Diseases Act to put the onus on individuals, especially those in high risk groups, to get themselves checked medically and to behave responsibly towards their sex partners.

The amendments, up for public consultation, will affect anyone who 'although unaware he is HIV-positive, has reason to believe he has been exposed to the risk of contracting HIV or Aids', said the Health Ministry.

Risk groups would include people who have unprotected sex with multiple partners, share needles to inject drugs or have had sex with someone they later found out to be HIV-positive.
If the changes are approved, they would be obliged not to engage in sex, unless they have taken any of the following measures:

•Warned their partners of the risk of contracting HIV from them, and gone ahead with sex only if their partners agreed to accept this risk.

•Taken a HIV test, been found negative, and not have engaged in risky behaviour exposing them to the virus between the time of the test and having sex with their partners.

•Taken 'reasonable precautions' during sex, such as using condoms.

If the legislation is approved, Singapore might well be the first country in the world to hold those who do not know they are HIV-infected responsible for their actions.

As the law now stands, it is an offence for an HIV-positive person to have sex only if he already knows he is infected, and goes ahead without getting his partner's informed consent. This law, which is similar to legislation elsewhere, will remain in place.

What will also remain intact - it does not matter if the sexual partner does not end up getting infected, as long as the sexual act occurred.

The maximum penalty for the offence will be raised, from a $10,000 fine and two years' jail, to a $50,000 fine and 10 years' jail. Those who run afoul of the proposed new law will also be subject to the higher penalties.

Said the ministry's senior director of operations, Mr Koh Peng Keng, 'It's very easy to hide behind the veneer of 'I don't know'... but that's not a good-enough excuse. This law is to say: You have a responsibility to whoever you have sexual intercourse with, that you don't pass HIV to him or her.'

Other countries consider an offence for a HIV-infected person to have sex without his partners' informed consent only when he is aware of his condition.

On why the Ministry has decided to take such a radical move, its director of medical services, Professor K. Satku, said, 'There are concerns that with all the education that we have done, we are still unable to contain the problem. 'Legislation may be useful in curbing the problem, even if it doesn't resolve it.'

He cited the example of how banning smoking in more places has reduced the number of smokers here, and hoped that the new law would push more people into getting tested regularly.

Last year, a record high of 357 people here were found to be HIV-positive. More than nine in 10 were infected through sex.

Madam Halimah Yacob, who heads the Goverment Parliamentary Committee for Health, acknowledged that major changes were being proposed. 'But the overriding consideration is to protect the innocent against irresponsible behaviour of some who should have known that their lifestyle would expose them to the risk of getting HIV,' she said.

Reflection 4

I have always been disgusted by the acts of prostitutes, who earn their money through offering sex to other men, and in the process degrading themselves. This case is no better, and probably even worse, since not only did she "offered herself to him(the victims)" but she also drugged them and stole their money. To me, that is one of the most unethical and immoral ways to obtain money, offering sex, and then dope-and-steal. It makes me even more disgusted when i realise that she is actually a "mother of three". I think that her actions would affect her children greatly, since she probably will not be able to provided them with proper education, not just academically, but most importantly, ethically.
I think that the reason why people like the lady in the article choose to do such immoral things like prostitution and stealing is because of their poor financial backgrounds. having no skills and no money to start a normal career, they resort to prostitution, since it is the easiest way to earn quick bucks without having to have any form of qualifications, just to a certain extent, sex appeal and no shame.
However, although it really gets you some easy cash, but it is absolutely degrading to your character, which is why people have such bad impressions about protitutes. This also has really great implications on people who look up to you as role models, especially your children. Since the parents are their natural models, and what the parents do who greatly affect what the children would do in the future. In this case, the lady does not seem to be thinking about the implications of her actions on her children.
I think that if people like this lady in the article are really struggling financially, they should instead of resorting to prostitution, work hard to do simple part-time jobs like those in the cleaning and manufacturing sector. Using the money earned as well as some more from friends and relatives, they should learn skills to improve themselves, and then use that skill in the future to a proper career of their own. I think that this way is much better than protitution and theft, since it allows the person to pink up a new skill, have a stable income, have something that they can be proud of, as well as being a good role model for their children and others who look up to them, all at the price of hardwork and determination.
Lastly, to solve such problems in the future, i think that the government should set up incentive schemes for people who are struggling financially to allow them to pick up new skills, therefore allowing them to have a proper career and improve their lives. By doing this, there would be more people picking up new skills to create a better future for themselves, rather than relying on unethical forms of attaining money like prostitution and theft.

Article 4

Dope-and-steal woman jailed 6 months
By Elena Chong

A WOMAN who stole from her victims after doping them with pills was jailed for six months on Friday.
Devi Marie Rattan Singh nee Dumont, 43, who faced a total of 10 charges, admitted to stealing cash and valuables from three men between 2004 and this year.
Seven other charges including soliciting for prostitution were taken into consideration.
A district court heard that she met Mr Vengadasalam Muthusamy Sundaram Srinivasan, 57, along Rochor Road on March 16 and invited him to a hotel but he suggested going to a club.
They ended up at Fort Canning Park where they drank beer. She gave him a pill to take and he became dizzy and lost consciousness.
When he woke up a few hours later at his home, he found cash and valuables totalling $1,270 missing. He did not know what happened and how he got home.
Earlier on July 29, 2004, she met Mr Vivekananthar Kandasamy at a pub and offered herself to him. They went to his flat in Toa Payoh North where she gave him a few blue coloured pills, claiming they were for sexual enhancement.
The 42-year-old took some beer with the tablets and lost consciousness. When he woke up, he found cash and property totalling $590 missing.
She similarly stole cash and property amounting to $767 from Mr Thirunavukkarasu Veeran Ramasamy, 40, at Hotel 81 in Geylang on March 17, 2005.
The mother of three, whose husband is serving a jail sentence, had convictions for drug possession and theft in 1999.