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Refugees, Immigrants and HIV/AIDS

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Asian Immigrants in North America with HIV/AIDS

Abstract

This chapter offers an overview of the global pattern, flow, magnitude of the refugees and HIV/AIDS pandemic and outlines the main argument, research problem and questions. It reviews global data on refugees, the identification and transmission of the HIV/AIDS virus and consequent impacts. The pandemic has spread rapidly worldwide, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. According to the UNAIDS, 47.5 million people in the world were living with HIV/AIDS in 2010. Globally, it appears that refugee populations are heavily affected by this pandemic that so far has claimed, and continues to claim, millions of lives and caused suffering to many people and their communities.

The growing number of refugees has become a matter of global concern. At present, refugees from any country are entitled to seek protection in one of the 147 countries which are party to the 1951 Refugee Convention. Refugee status is important for the rights it bestows under international law. A refugee is entitled to reside, at least temporarily, in the host country and is protected by the principle of non-refoulement. Host states are obliged to offer civil and economic rights, and refugees enjoy access to social services and protection of national laws. This chapter also sets out the objectives of this book and outlines the content of all the chapters to highlight the common theme.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The numbers may vary across sources, but the significance is undeniable.

  2. 2.

    We throughout the manuscript will be using terminologies suggested by UNAIDS terminology guidelines (2007). Words such as ‘HIV positive’ and ‘People living with HIV’ are gradually replacing other terms, such as ‘AIDS sufferers’ and ‘victims of the disease’ (UNAIDS 2007:10–11).

  3. 3.

    Based on the 29 states with confidential name-based HIV surveillance systems, between 1999 and 2002, 17.4 % of APIs diagnosed with HIV were born in India compared to 1.1 % Pakistani- and 31.9 % US-born APIs. Between 1985 and 2002, 4.9 % of AIDS cases were among people born in India, compared to 1.0 % Pakistani and 39.6 % US born (Zaidi et al. 2005).

  4. 4.

    This involves both mind and body. There is a mental aspect to every physical disease. How we react to and cope with disease varies greatly from person to person. With some mental illnesses, one may not eat or take care of oneself very well which can cause physical problems. The term psychosomatic disorder, however, is mainly used to mean … ‘a physical disease that is thought to be caused, or made worse, by mental factors’.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD), Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam

    AKM Ahsan Ullah

  2. Department of Political Science, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada

    Ahmed Shafiqul Huque

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  1. AKM Ahsan Ullah
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Ullah, A.A., Huque, A.S. (2014). Refugees, Immigrants and HIV/AIDS. In: Asian Immigrants in North America with HIV/AIDS. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-119-0_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-119-0_1

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