An Image Against Stigma is part of a multi-sector strategic plan developed by the UNDP and UNAIDS to tie the public sector
with civil society and the media for advocacy purposes. The campaign has gained a foothold in the region and is backed by
a growing number of media celebrities, political figures and prominent journalists, who together promote HIV testing and prevention
in Peru.
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| Every year UNDP Peru sets up a photo studio and calls in celebrities among other
prominent figures in an effort to raise AIDS/ HIV awareness. |
Peru—Across the street from
the United Nations Development Programme’s Peru headquarters in Lima, 100 people stood wearing red T-shirts. From a bird’s
eye view, they formed a red ribbon, a symbol synonymous for the solidarity of people living with HIV or AIDS.
Every
November, UNDP Peru turns its office into a photo studio.
TV celebrities, anchors, musicians and prima donnas unite
to have their photos taken so that they can be displayed across thousands of medical stations nationwide. The purpose is to
encourage Peruvians to get tested for HIV and is part of an HIV-AIDS advocacy campaign, An Image Against Stigma, launched
last year by the UNDP, UNAIDS and the Peruvian Press Council (PPC). This year, the campaign took on a different name, You
Prevent, but still carried the same message.
“Good things for Peru are cooked here at this house,” said the
picture coordinator Ernesto Pimentel, referring to the UNDP. A bubbly comedian, Pimentel is one of the first local actors
to openly share he is HIV positive for the sake of public advocacy.
He is part of the first campaign of its kind
and scale launched on behalf of those infected by HIV and AIDS in Peru.
Peru still faces an HIV epidemic by international
standards for concentrated epidemics: 0.5% of the general population is diagnosed with HIV. Geographically, the epidemic is
also very much concentrated in the capital. Those infected are mostly between the ages of 20 to 34.
Communication
is one of the cornerstone components of Peru’s interagency effort aimed at consolidating a network of bodies, including authorities,
the public health system, NGOs, media and show business, on behalf of HIV-AIDS prevention and control efforts.
An
Image Against Stigma along with other campaigns like Aids Day are a way of implementing policy instruments and
bringing in the quality of media discourse needed about the illness. UNDP’s support has been crucial as part of the strategy.
The friendly images and slogans were designed for a multi-target audience, aiming at introducing the issue in public
opinion and the political agenda with dignity and hope.
PPC considers An Image Against Stigma a human rights
advocacy landmark campaign on behalf of governability and citizenship building. The campaign responded to an urgent communication
void. Having analyzed the general media approach to the subject, not only in terms of misinformation, but the pervasive discourse;
UNDP, UNAIDS and PPC decided to raise the level of awareness by bringing in well established figures with popular appeal to
promote the cause.
So far the campaign has garnered a lot of attention. Last year, it featured twenty-two Peruvian
artists, sport stars and political leaders, including former UN Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar. They were photographed
and videotaped greeting people living with HIV so that they could spread the message of three keep words: Tolerance, information
and respect.
