On Wednesday, Dr. Balaji Sadasivan, senior minister of state for health, told Singapore's Parliament that the nation recorded 311 new AIDS cases in 2004 -- a jump of almost 30 percent from 2003. In a move to identify the estimated 4,000 to 8,000 undiagnosed HIV cases, the government is working to make testing easier by supplying over-the-counter test kits, Channel News Asia quoted Balaji as saying. In addition to gays, infections are increasing among "heterosexual men who have casual sex. In many cases, this puts the wife at risk. If we do not act to protect women, many women will get infected and we too will have a situation where women form the majority of AIDS patients," Balaji said, adding, "There is a need to balance the right to confidentiality of the AIDS patient with the right to protect those at risk."

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