Recently, St. Giles Hospital in Suva admitted 57 new youth cases, all of whom tested positive for HIV, including a 14-year-old. During the Annual Conference of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution held in Sigatoka, Permanent Secretary for Justice Selina Kuruleca highlighted the alarming rise in HIV cases, which she attributed to a risky practice known as ‘bluetoothing.’ This refers to the sharing of needles among students, which inadvertently spreads HIV through contaminated blood.
Kuruleca pointed out that this practice has contributed significantly to a public health crisis among young drug users. As of September, approximately 1.7 percent of Fiji’s students, equating to 3,519 youths, were reported to be involved in drug-related incidents. She emphasized that this statistic, while seemingly small, represents real lives at risk, with many more cases potentially unreported.
Last year, the Substance Abuse Advisory Council, under the Ministry of Education, conducted an evaluation revealing troubling results: 3,627 drug-related cases were reported in schools across the nation in 2023 alone, with 1,578 cases in primary schools and 2,049 in secondary schools. This marked a striking 40 percent increase from 2018.
While these figures are sobering, they underscore the urgent need for enhanced educational and preventive measures to protect youth from the dangers of drug abuse. By raising awareness and providing better resources for drug education and counselling, there is potential for positive change that could help young individuals make healthier choices and ultimately reduce the incidence of HIV transmission in the community.
Leave a comment