AKIPRESS.COM - Baktygul Shukurova from Kara-Balta town of Chuy region became the first woman in Kyrgyzstan, who openly disclosed her HIV status to the public, Turmush reports.

This became a sensation, as it happened in Kyrgyzstan for the first time.

She decided to make her status open for the society, according to her, to overcome all artificially created barriers in the society, help other HIV-infected people accept themselves as they are, learn to live complying the elementary methods of prevention.

According to her, the lack of knowledge of the society about the HIV infection leads to discrimination and stigma.

The official number of HIV-infected people in Kyrgyzstan is 7,396 people.

“Informing of the society about HIV infection might help overcome all artificially created barriers and learn to live together complying with the prevention methods,” Shukurova noted.

The woman told that she gave birth to a healthy child after she recognized that she is infected.

Now she is taking antiretroviral therapy and doing her bests to minimize the risk of transmission of the virus to the child.

Speaking at the conference in Bishkek, she said that HIV-infected people face negative attitude towards them, discriminations from the medical workers. Therefore, many HIV-infected people are forced to strongly hide their status and this leads to their early death, she added.

Concluding her speech, Shukurova called on the Government to continue HIV prevention programs and provide medicines to all needy people.