Swapping entertainment for education: Soth Mom’s story
27 March 2008
Since June 2007, former entertainment worker Soth Mom has met and educated nearly 600 people in her role as an HIV prevention educator for Men’s Health Social Service, Battambang province, Cambodia. Mom goes out into the community, visiting karaoke parlours and brothels to educate entertainment workers and villagers about HIV prevention.
Soth Mom decided she wanted to provide health education in her community after finding out she was HIV positive. The Alliance’s linking organisation in Cambodia, the Khmer HIV/AIDS NGO Alliance (KHANA), encouraged and trained Mom to do this.
“I am now living with HIV and I do not want other people to end up like me. That’s why I decided to join society to help stop HIV epidemics,” she said.
Mom had been a karaoke and indirect entertainment worker* for eight years when, in December 2006, she fell ill. With help from a local NGO, she had a blood test and found out she was HIV-positive.
According to Cambodia’s National Centre for HIV/AIDS Dermatology and STDs (NCHADS), there are an estimated 3,430 direct entertainment workers and 13,723 non-brothel based or indirect entertainment workers in Cambodia.
“Without treatment for opportunistic infections and antiretroviral treatment, I am not sure if I could survive today,” she said. “Before having the blood test, I felt powerless and some unusual spots were appearing on my skin. After getting proper treatment from health experts, I am now alright and feel normal.”
Mom wants to share her experiences with others so that they can live longer and carry on working. “I would like to urge all entertainment workers to have their blood tested to find out if they are HIV-positive and if they are, they can live longer through proper health care with support from health experts and workers. At the same time, I would like all entertainment workers and their clients to use condoms when having sex in order to stop the transmission of HIV and sexually transmitted infections”.
KHANA, through its implementing partners, has reached 1,568 direct entertainment workers and 4,715 indirect entertainment workers across the country with information about HIV and other sexually transmitted infection prevention.
Men’s Health Social Service is an implementing partner of KHANA, the Alliance’s linking organisation in Cambodia. The local NGO that supported Soth Mom to have an HIV test is also an implementing partner of KHANA.
*Indirect entertainment workers work as sex workers in entertainment establishments such as bars or karaoke parlours. They are not necessarily bar or karaoke staff. Direct sex workers work in brothels or massage parlours/saunas.