Songkran 2015

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Songkran starts this weekend and many of us will be travelling up to Bangkok for this wonderful and fun festival. Here are some tips we gathered from seasoned travellers. If you have any tips, add them to the comment section !

#1 Sunscreen

It’s going to be HOT. Make sure you apply sunscreen on all the exposed area to prevent from getting burned especially if you are going to a pool party. Carry it with you and re-apply as often as required. Sunscreens are very common and can be found in many pharmacies located on every corner of Bangkok. Remember: you only want to get wet, not sun-burned.

#2: To wear or not to wear

Flip flops are highly recommended, but make sure they are not slippery on wet grounds. Make sure to pack an extra pair of shoes if you plan to head to club. However, bring shoes you do not mind getting soiled. You will definitely get wet the moment you step out of your hotel. So be mentally prepared. It may be easier to go topless or wear a singlet. If you do, be proud of your own body, and have fun.

#3: Personal Safety

Song Kran is all about having fun and meeting new people. You wouldn’t want to worry about losing your items. Most clubs, circuit parties and pool parties will have a coat check where you can leave your bags. Use a back pack when in crowded places, and carry it in front where you can see it at all times.

Carrying light, only bring the important items, such as wallets, handphone, condoms, lube and a light change of clothes. Seal them in good quality ziplock bags to keep them water proof.

Need to pick up free condoms and lube sachets? Drop by our office.

#4: Eating

Make sure you have a light meal before going to the party, do not go with an empty stomach if you intend to have alcohol. If you are going to have sex, take note what food give you the runs, so you are in your top form.

#5: Accidents and emergencies

Here is a list of hotlines in case of an accident or emergency.

Local hospitals –

24 hr helpline for illicit drugs related issues and emergencies – 
Telephone: +66(0) 828112686
http://www.na-thailand.org/

If your condom broke or was exposed to HIV –
Go to any emergency centre and ask for P.E.P (What is P.E.P?) or visit the Thai Red cross on Ratchadamri Road.

The Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre
104 Ratchadamri Road, Pathumwan,
Bangkok 10330
Tel: +66 2 256 4107 – 09
Fax: +66 2 254 7577
E-mail: aids@trcarc.org
http://www.trcarc.org

 

DragonStack Takes Over Operations of Fridae

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Singapore – Fridae’s original shareholders have decided that Fridae is best placed in being run by the LGBT Community that it is set up to serve. With that in mind, telecommunications and travel company DragonStack have taken over the operation of Fridae. The group of LGBT professionals with a strong technology and communications portfolio are perfectly placed to develop Fridae as the website for LGBT networking in Asia and beyond.

Fridae has always strived to be a voice for the LGBT Community in Asia and a fruitful platform for news, events and information and we now believe we are better placed than ever to do this.

To celebrate this new and exciting era for Fridae we will be offering a specially discounted perks membership – just in case you haven’t met your beau yet during the romantic months of spring. Watch out in your email in the next couple of days.

Fridae has always strived to be a voice for the LGBT Community in Asia and a fruitful platform for news, events and information. Over the last couple of years we have attempted to adapt new technologies for Fridae to continue to work for you on new platforms and devices.

With this in mind you have got these updates to look forward to in the coming months:

  • An Android App
  • A new iOS App
  • An improved and updated Fridae website
  • An LGBT travel site with local ambassadors
  • A specialist LGBT hotel booking and Gay AIRBNB portal

We will of course continue to support Asia’s LGBT Community with a Community News and information service as well as continuing and improving our dating and networking. As ever, we welcome feedback from our members as to how we can improve and members can support Fridae’s growth by:

  • Contacting us with your comments and suggestions
  • Considering becoming a local representative/ambassador
  • Taking out a Perks membership
  • When booking hotels – use the Agoda link on the site
  • Advertising your business or event on the site

Passing of Mr Lee Kuan Yew

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Action for AIDS is saddened by the death of Mr Lee Kuan Yew, our first Prime Minister.
His leadership of our country and his achievements in building a secure and united nation with a focus on progress and prosperity, justice and equality for all Singaporeans will be his legacy.
Action for AIDS joins all Singaporeans in offering Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his family our sincerest condolences.
Prof Roy Chan
President
Action for AIDS, Singapore

A Time to Celebrate with our Family

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Christmas is a time to celebrate with our loved ones. We hosted our first Christmas party organised by our volunteers and held at AfA. We wanted to thank all the volunteers and new friends who came on Dec.22,2014 to exchange gifts, laughter and revel in each other’s company. May you all have a safe holiday and wish you the best for the coming New Year! From your MSM Programme staff  (Avin, Alex and Daniel).

 

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The Normal Heart

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AFA (Action for AIDS, Singapore) presents a special, free, by invitation only screening of ‘The Normal Heart’ courtesy of HBO. The event is taking place on 10 Sep 2014 at Golden Village, Great World City.

Your respective programme managers/coordinators should be getting in touch with you very soon!

Academy Award® nominee Mark Ruffalo, Matt Bomer, Taylor Kitsch, Emmy® winner Jim Parsons and Academy Award® winner Julia Roberts star in THE NORMAL HEART. Directed by Emmy® winner Ryan Murphy and written by Academy Award® nominee Larry Kramer, adapting his groundbreaking Tony Award-winning play of the same name, the drama tells the story of the onset of the HIV-AIDS crisis in New York City in the early 1980s, taking an unflinching look at the nation’s sexual politics as gay activists and their allies in the medical community fight to expose the truth about the burgeoning epidemic to a city and nation in denial.

 

 

 

 

 

Ruffalo portrays Ned Weeks, who witnesses first-hand a mysterious disease that has begun to claim the lives of many in his gay community and starts to seek answers. Matt Bomer plays Felix Turner, a reporter who becomes Ned’s lover. Taylor Kitsch plays Bruce Niles, a closeted investment banker who becomes a prominent AIDS activist. Jim Parsons plays gay activist Tommy Boatwright, reprising his role from the 2011 Broadway revival. Roberts plays physician Dr. Emma Brookner, a survivor of childhood polio who treats several of the earliest victims of HIV-AIDS.

Read : 10 things to know about Truvada

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10 things you need to know about the pill to prevent HIV

It’s been called, simultaneously, a medicine to “end the HIV epidemic” and a “party drug:” Pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP for short, refers to a daily antiviral treatment that prevents HIV.

That’s right: People who don’t have the virus can take a pill a day to save themselves from getting infected.

Haven’t heard about PrEP? You’re probably not alone. The drug-maker, Gilead, doesn’t advertise Truvada (its brand name) for prevention, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only endorsed it this past May—two years after it hit the market.

Going forward, however, you’ll be hearing a lot more. This month, both the International Antiviral Society-USA and the World Health Organization—opinion leaders in medicine—backed the antiviral, recommending all HIV-negative at-risk individuals consider taking it as part of a strategy to reduce the global incidence of the disease. But there’s a lot more to the story. Here’s what you need to know:

  1. Public health officials aren’t recommending this pill for “all gay men,” despite what the headlines say
  2. Truvada is not a condom replacement
  3. We don’t yet know exactly how the drug will be used in real life
  4. We do know Truvada only works effectively when taken every day
  5. Truvada can cause drug-resistant HIV infection
  6. Besides that, it’s pretty safe
  7. “Truvada whores” are a thing
  8. Uptake has been slow—but that’s not the full story
  9. The drug is expensive
  10. HIV remains a socioeconomic crisis in America and around the world

Click to read more about the above 10 points

First published on vox.com – 21 July 2014

Consolidated guidelines (UNAIDS 2014)

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People at higher risk of HIV infection are not getting the health services they need, according to a new report by the World Health Organization entitled Consolidated guidelines on HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care for key populations.

Released on 11 July, the publication warns that failure to provide adequate

 

HIV services for key groups, such as men who have sex with men, people in prison, people who inject drugs, sex workers and transgender people, threatens the global progress of the HIV response.

The consolidated guidelines outline the steps for countries to take to reduce new HIV infections and increase access to HIV testing, treatment and care services by populations at higher risk. The report aims to provide a comprehensive package of evidence-informed HIV-related recommendations for all populations, increase awareness of the needs of and issues important to key populations, improve access, coverage and uptake of effective and acceptable services, and catalyse greater national and global commitment to adequate funding and services.

“Failure to provide services to the people who are at greatest risk of HIV jeopardizes further progress against the global epidemic and threatens the health and well-being of individuals, their families and the broader community.”

Gottfried Hirnschall, Director of the HIV Department at the World Health Organization

 

First published – July 11 2014

AIDS 2014 Melbourne Declaration

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This declaration affirms that non-discrimination is fundamental to an evidence-based response to HIV and effective public health programmes.

aids-2014-declaration

“The enforcement of discriminatory and criminalising laws and policies against Key Affected Populations is deeply alarming.” said Professor Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, AIDS 2014 International Chair, President of the International AIDS Society (IAS) and Director of the Regulation of Retroviral Infections Unit at the Institut Pasteur in Paris. “Such practices clearly violate basic human rights and heavily undermine HIV programmes by posing barriers to access to HIV prevention, treatment, and care. With the declaration we want to reiterate that every individual has the same rights and dignity as everyone else as we are born equal and part of the human family. ”

 

 

All individuals and organizations involved in the global response to HIV and AIDS are encouraged to visit and sign the declaration at www.aids2014.org/declaration.aspx and to share it with their networks.

 

“If we really want to change the course of HIV we must make sure that nobody is left behind. AIDS 2014 will be a truly global, inclusive conference and will reflect the principles of the declaration” commented Professor Sharon Lewin, Local Co-Chair of AIDS 2014, Head of the Department of Infectious Diseases, Alfred Hospital and Monash University and Co-Head of the Centre for Biomedical Research at the Burnet Institute in Melbourne.

Would you like a proud burger?

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Just for the San Francisco Gay Pride 2014, Burger King introduced a new burger: the Proud Whopper. What made this burger different? People were surprised, delighted and even a little shocked to find out. Watch the Proud Whopper unwrap for the big reveal.

Some said it’s sweeter, some say it’s the same. Tell us what you think below!!!

Fly Love Yourself

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Sebastian Castro, star of the phenomenal YouTube hit “Bubble,” talks about HIV in our new chic and cheeky instructional video entitled,”

Fly Love Yourself: How to Enjoy Sex and Avoid HIV.“

What really is HIV? 
How can one stay healthy and HIV-free, 
while living a smart and scrumptious sexy life? 

This video departs from the clinical approach of talking about the basics of HIV/AIDS. Instead, similar to an airline’s in-flight safety video,  Sebastian encourages men to “dare” to fly, shows them how to take “care” of themselves during flight, and encourages them to “share” the video with others.

Source: Loveyourself.inc