Two books on HIV/AIDS were launched at a meeting that reviewed what the Vietnamese media has been doing during December, which is National AIDS Action Month.

The books will provide journalists with some basic scientific knowledge about HIV/AIDS in Vietnam , said Le Quoc Trung, Standing Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese Journalists Association at the meeting, held in Hanoi on December 18.

Eamon Murphy, Head of the United Nations Working Group on HIV, confirmed that the press plays an important role in HIV/AIDS prevention and control in Vietnam and recognised the substantial work that Vietnamese journalists have done in the fight to end discrimination against HIV carriers.

However, he also took the opportunity to encourage them to push even harder to eliminate discrimination once and for all.

“We hope that these source books will help you speak out more effectively against stigmas and discrimination and guide public opinion on HIV issues,” said Murphy.

According to the Ministry of Health, the number of people infected with HIV in the country has almost reached 150,000, of whom more than 34,000 developed full-blown AIDS. So far over 44,000 people have died of the disease.

Cases of HIV amongst pregnant women are rising in Vietnam and the main reason for this is the difficulties people have in accessing information and prevention services./.