‘It’s not just a gay problem’: head of Aids Concern Hong Kong says growing number of HIV cases a concern for whole of society

Andrew Chidgey has been the chief executive of Aids Concern Hong Kong since 2013. Originally from Somerset in England, he was formerly with British charity the Alzheimer’s Society for 11 years as director of external affairs, working with former prime minister David Cameron’s government on new initiatives to increase public awareness of Alzheimer’s disease. Since his move to Hong Kong, he has been endeavouring to tackle the city’s growing problem with HIV and Aids. He spoke to City Weekend about Hong Kong’s cultural taboos, the city’s ban on blood donations from gay men and Hollywood actor Charlie Sheen’s revelation that he is HIV-positive.

A report published in May by the Hong Kong government’s advisory council on Aids suggested we could see a 35 per cent surge in HIV cases by 2021; what should the government and its partners be doing to reverse this trend?

I think the whole community needs to get involved in reducing the number of new HIV infections. We know from countries around the world that it can only work if people within communities understand what HIV is and how to stop it. It cannot just be governments talking to communities, and sometimes it is the people who are at highest risk who will not be listening to the government. It is important we have NGOs and community leaders talking about HIV so that the message gets deep into the community’s understanding, and at the moment that is not happening enough. In particular, a lot of young people are at high risk for HIV and they don’t even know it. I think they could do more to look at new innovations that are being used in different countries, like the use of HIV self-testing, and the use of PREP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) for people who are at risk of contracting HIV.

What reaction did you notice after the government’s report was released?

I think we’ve known for some time that the number of HIV infections has been increasing. But, yes, what is particularly surprising is the number of young people who are being infected now, aged 20 to 30 years old. It’s affecting all sorts of people, heterosexuals and homosexuals, men and women, older and young people. Everyone needs to be aware they are at risk, but also it is particularly affecting young gay and bisexual men, where we have a particular epidemic issue. We are saying to all these groups of people; protect yourselves and use condoms if you are having sex, and also make sure you get tested regularly, particularly if you think you are at risk because you have had unsafe sex, for example.