China marked World AIDS Day today with a pledge to keep HIV cases under 1.5 million and with public-awareness campaigns that dominated the media.

State-run television aired continuous programs about AIDS, while newspapers reported on the plight of HIV/AIDS patients, especially farmers who contracted the disease when they sold blood under government-backed plans in the 1980s and 1990s.

On the eve of World AIDS Day, Health Minister Gao Qiang told a press conference that the government would achieve its long-term goal of keeping the country's number of HIV cases under 1.5 million by 2010. Official government statistics show there are about 840,000 HIV-positive Chinese, although the UN estimated the figure could be much higher and warned it could rise to 10 million by 2010 unless serious measures are taken.

Experts say China, after only admitting to an AIDS problem in 2001, has made significant strides to address it. Government spending on HIV prevention has risen to 800 million yuan ($90 million US) this year, up considerably from 100 million yuan ($12 million US) in 2002, official figures show.

Gao on Wednesday publicly urged people to get tested for HIV. He also said the government should investigate to determine the number of people who were infected through transfusions -- a first for a top-ranking Chinese official, said experts.

Also on Wednesday, the government launched a program to promote AIDS prevention among the millions of migrant workers in China. Health officials visited construction sites to hand out pamphlets and show videos, and volunteers distributed free condoms to taxi drivers.

Back to other news for December 1, 2005

Search the Newsroom archive