"Izvestija", November 4, 1994, p.2

Svetlana TUTORSKAYA

Without an estimation of the work on the bill in general, I will try to comment on two important aspects.

First, the majority in Duma adopted the proposal to subject the Russian citizens to a total examination. It was Bela Denisenko, the Chair of the Public Health Committee, and Vadim Pokrovsky, the leader of the Aids Research Laboratory, who were against. They tried to explain that a total Aids testing was not necessary and not effective.

Unfortunately, I was not present at the discussion, for I was not invited. Valentin Pokrovsky, the President of the Russian Academy of Medicine, the well-known epidemiologist, who gave many efforts to Aids investigation, was not invited as well. As he said, he was just debarred.

At the same time, according to a well-informed source, the medics dealing with different enterprises that produce Aids diagnostic means for blood testing were present at the session.

The second important problem is Article 9 of the bill. It presupposes in particular an obligatory examination for foreign citizens and people without citizenship coming to Russia to work, to study or with other purposes. This does not concern the countries with that we have agreements about Aids testing certificates' exchange.

Suppose an elderly Nobel prize-winner is coming to a scientific symposium that lasts 4 days. Even in case he goes with delight to the laboratory (which is rather questionable), the test result will be ready only in two days. This means by the day of departure. The scientists spare their time, they often come to a scientific conference just for a day.

Let's turn to business. The businessmen are people of great endurance by nature. But will a businessman remember two wasted days with gratitude?

Well, the imperialist sharks can console themselves with their profits and super-profits. But what about an elderly teacher who is coming from Hamburg or London for her modest money to see white nights in Petersburg and is instead forced to be tested -- how can she console herself?

And the most important thing is the following: these hard examination rules are supposed to prevent infection import to this country. Even the exclamations "Protect Russia!" are said to have been heard at the session. This is a good intention. But we do not live behind the Iron Curtain now. It is not a secret that every day many people go to different countries from here. And their way to make money there is not a secret as well. And many of them are never asked about their health.

So - is it worth complicating the life of many experts and tourists coming to us, if it does not create a barrier for Aids penetration and spreading?

If we develop contacts with other countries, we have to respect the time of people coming to us and we must not turn the examination into a farce and nonsense, as in our example with the scientist. In this case we could think of certificates' exchange with some developed countries.

The problem of aids is more complicated than it could seem at the first sight. So, Vadim Pokrovsky whom I asked to comment on the situation with the bill and who worked primarily on its project, is a supporter of exclusively voluntary Aids testing. There are other medics who believe obligatory testing of several groups is necessary (prostitutes and drug addicts for example). But everybody agrees that instruction in correct sexual behavior should be the main direction of the anti-Aids campaign. If the requirements of the deputies about the total examination are met, no money for scientific research, training and instruction will be left. The fact of being contaminated does not usually changes the sexual behavior of the people. We need, but we have no specialists who are able to speak with every difficult patient, to persuade him. So, we will build lots of barriers, we will create obstacles for the foreigners coming to us, but we will have no real barrier before Aids and no success in our anti-Aids struggle.