OUT OF SIGHT   A JOURNEY INTO THE GLOBAL HIV/AIDS EPIDEMIC AFTER THIRTY YEARS

« Stigma against people living with HIV and those at higher risk of infection persists. This is a human rights violation that also hampers our ability to address AIDS. Stigma, discrimination, punitive laws, gender inequality and violence continue to inflame the epidemic and thwart our strongest efforts to ‘get to zero’. »

Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations, 2012

« A vigorous civil society is central to holding partners and countries to account for honoring the commitments they make. People living with HIV, people at higher risk of HIV infection, women and young people must therefore be present at the tables where decisions are made. […] Getting to zero discrimination requires us to do more than protect people who are vulnerable to HIV – we must empower them. »

Michel Sidibé, Executive Director UNAIDS, 2012

Out of Sight is a photographic journey into the global HIV/AIDS epidemic after 30 years. Thailand, Mozambique, Brazil, Ukraine and the U.S. are the countries where we've investigated the epidemic between 2011 and 2013. The project is meant to be a visual and narrative prevention tool, with easy-to-read infographics and insights.

Even though globally many are acting as HIV and AIDS are no longer the threat they were when it all began, the epidemic is not over yet. Throughout the years, tremendous progress has been done in stabilizing or reducing rates of new infections but, until now, the global response has hinged on the largesse of a relatively small handful of wealthy donor countries. Today though, in the current economic climate, their commitment is unpredictable and undependable, yet millions of lives depend on them. The goals of zero new infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS related deaths, as set by UNAIDS, might receive an unnecessary setback because of reckless economic and monetary policies that have led to the actual crisis. Too many Governments are not honoring their commitments to provide an effective response to the epidemic, including failure to safeguarding human rights, demanding fair drug prices and lowering barriers to obtaining low-cost drugs and commodities in the current TRIPS agreement. Besides, what is even more worrisome is that efforts to discover newer, less toxic medicines are waning as pharmaceutical companies seek other more lucrative markets.

No HIV response can be truly effective unless it combats discrimination and exclusion. Punitive laws and stigma continue to place roadblocks for people living with HIV/AIDS, who continue to experience social, vocational or family exclusion, loss of employment, refusal of care and involuntary disclosure. Growing evidence links gender-based violence and discrimination with the spread of HIV, underscoring the importance of reaching adolescents through comprehensive prevention programs. While teenagers are the most uninformed, women, on the other hand, are still the most vulnerable. If youth participation becomes crucial in the digital era of social networking to push the Aids response to a whole new level, reaching those who belong to the most exposed populations is more than ever absolutely necessary in order to help them in demanding, delivering and evaluating HIV services.

Fighting for prevention, treatment, medical care and human rights for people living with HIV/AIDS is maybe the most pressing health care justice issue today. Any time there is misunderstanding about AIDS, the idea that people living with HIV/AIDS have a different set of rights than the uninfected gets stronger. If awareness and prevention programs are key factors to succeed in the fight against the epidemic, essential drugs are humanitarian products and must be made universally much more accessible. In fact, even though the disease has potentially become a chronic and a manageable one, a cure is still far to be found. AIDS remains the most stigmatized disease in human history and after 30 years into this very complex epidemic the gains are real but still too fragile.