Community shuns farang over HIV fear

[Sawatdee]

Community shuns farang over HIV fear

Published by The Nation 22nd September 2004

CHAIYAPHUM: -- A community has warned residents and schoolgirls in this Northeastern province to shun a “dangerous, limping” German man who allegedly infected his former Thai wife and possibly other women in the province with HIV.

Tambon Nai Muang community issued the warning following a disclosure from Somrak (not her real name), 30, who alleged she contracted HIV from her former husband, a veteran of the German army.

Udom Saengnak, a community leader, sent a statement to all schools in the province, asking them to warn their students not to have sex with the man.

Udom said his community did not want the man living there.

He said he had learned from Somrak that the man liked to have unprotected sex with school girls, whom he allegedly paid between Bt2,000 and Bt3,000. He had allegedly slept with many girls – that was why a warning was issued.

Somrak said she had lived with the German man for five years and decided to separate from him because she could not tolerate his behaviour.

She alleged he would often go out at night to seek schoolgirls selling sexual services.

After the couple parted, Somrak said she discovered she was HIV positive. She is now very sick and being cared for by her community.

“I would like to warn all women and schoolgirls in Chaiyaphum to shun a tall, white Westerner who drives a green car and uses a walking stick,” she said.

“He is an army veteran and about 54 years old. Don’t accept money to sleep with him, otherwise you might get HIV/Aids,” she claimed.

Udom said he would lead a campaign to have the man deported from Thailand, adding that people in the community alleged they had seen the man beat Somrak regularly before the pair broke up.

Dr Sura Wiseksak, acting chief public health officer in Chaiyaphum, said the authorities could not take any action against the man, but might warn him against buying sex.

Chaiyaphum Muang district police chief Colonel Dusit Techarakpong said police were closely monitoring the man’s behaviour. But he said legal action could not be taken against him.

“The other party agreed to have sex with him, so he can’t be charged if the sex worker gets HIV from him,” Dusit said.

He noted that it had not yet been confirmed whether the man was indeed HIV positive.

“No one has dared to force him to undergo a HIV test,” the policeman said.

A 21yearold sex worker, who said she worked in a karaoke bar in Muang district, said she had unprotected sex with several Western patrons, because they insisted on not wearing a condom.

“I am scared by the news, but I can’t force big farang guys to wear a condom. I fear they won’t pay me,” she said.

[Sawatdee]

CHAIYAPHUM : German in Aids-scare saga held

The Nation, Published on Sep 23, 2004

Man accused of infecting his wife to be deported for visa violations

Chaiyaphum police said yesterday that the German accused of infecting his former wife and other women with HIV would be deported for overstaying his visa.

The German, whose visa expired three years ago, was arrested at his house and would be sent to Muang district police for further processing, said Major Thanomsak Intabutr, chief of the provincial tourist police.

The man has not been confirmed by a medical doctor of having HIV.

All schools in the province had been alerted to the man after his ex-wife warned that he had the habit of buying sex from students, said Udom Sangnak, a community leader.

The police action and the community’s reaction to avoid the suspected carrier came under criticism from Aids activists who said such measures were ineffective at protecting people from infection.

Worse still, the shunning of the man was a violation of human dignity, said Bangkok Senator Jon Ungpakorn, a leading advocate.

“His right to live with others in the community should be respected, whether he is HIV-positive or not,” Jon said, adding that the reports of discrimination were discouraging and did not bode well for the global effort to fight HIV/Aids and the stigmatisation that it brings.

Every province has people living with HIV/Aids. Rather than ostracise them, other people should be informed about risky behaviour, such as engaging in unprotected sex, he said.

Nimit Thien-udom, director of the Aids Access Foundation, said the problem was not about having foreign partners.

“There are many local men and women who have unprotected sex,” he said.

“We can’t tell people not to have sex. We can tell them, however, to practice safe sex.”

Nimit said his organisation would organise a public discussion on Sunday to educate the public on the subject.

Provincial authorities have pledged to step up public campaigns for safe sex as statistics show young people account for the majority of HIV-positive cases upcountry, with rising incidence among high-school and college students.

[Stacker]

Quote[/b] (The Nation @ Sep. 23 2004,08:23)]CHAIYAPHUM : German in Aids-scare saga held

The Nation, Published on Sep 23, 2004

All schools in the province had been alerted to the man after his ex-wife warned that he had the habit of buying sex from students, said Udom Sangnak, a community leader.

Worse still, the shunning of the man was a violation of human dignity, said Bangkok Senator Jon Ungpakorn, a leading advocate.

“His right to live with others in the community should be respected, whether he is HIV-positive or not,” Jon said, adding that the reports of discrimination were discouraging and did not bode well for the global effort to fight HIV/Aids and the stigmatisation that it brings.

I don't think anyone said HIV is the reason it was shunned. I believe it was mentioned that it's wife informed the commmunity leaders how it was trying to pay for sex with the schoolgirls of the community. HIV simply means not only is it exploiting these young girls, but that thing is also killing them.

Shunning a man is a violation of human dignity?? Where are the young girls it raped? what of their dignity!!? The stigma this could pose? Possibly the stigma it left Germany for... The fact that what preversions it enjoys are illegal in Germany?

I am amazed the Thai government is taking this so lightly. These political leaders no longer raise families or have children? How can they take PR and PC to such a level so as to justify this or even brush it under the table? Then to say that it is the girls fault? Some maybe, but that thing had a problem with this type of behavior, a problem that would have put it into prison or executed it throughout most of the world.

[Sawatdee]

HIV SCARE: German man's sex partners warned

The Nation, Published on Sep 25, 2004

Young 'go-between' missing after public allegations about suspected carrier

CHAIYAPHUM - Authorities are calling on local women who had sex with a detained German man suspected of having HIV to take blood tests.

"Blood tests are free at all state hospitals. Please come to us. All information will be kept confidential and we can give advice," acting provincial public-health chief Dr Sura Wisessak said yesterday.

The German was arrested at his house earlier this week for overstaying his visa.

He caught the attention of police after his Thai former wife publicly accused him of paying students to have unprotected sex.

The woman alleged that the German is HIV-positive.

Sura yesterday said women who had had sex with the foreigner should see a doctor.

"We are ready to talk to you around the clock," he said.

An administrator at a learning institute in the province said schools were asking female students if they had had sex with the German.

"All of the students interviewed said they had nothing to do with the man, but some had seen him chatting up a number of girls. These girls were also seen at restaurants and entertainment venues with him," she said.

She said a suspected go-between, a student named "Ann", had stopped going to class after Wednesday, when allegations about the German emerged.

"She told friends that she needed to find work in Bangkok," the administrator said, adding |that she had sent a circular to other schools to get women who had slept with the man to take tests.

Schools should pay attention to students who enjoy the nightlife or worked at night, she said.

"We may have to issue warnings or talk to their parents," she added.

Meanwhile, police said they would oppose the suspect's request for bail because he might attempt to flee and cause trouble elsewhere.

The suspect is being held |at Chaiyaphum provincial prison.

Pol Lt Col Kampol Nonuch, an inspector at Chaiyaphum police station, said the suspect denied any wrongdoing, and more evidence must be gathered before prosecution could begin.

[Sawatdee]

German mass spreader of HIV to face only expired-visa charge
The Nation, Published on October 16, 2004

A lawsuit will be filed on Monday against a German naval veteran suspected of deliberately infecting many young women with HIV in this northeastern province, a senior public prosecutor said recently.

Legal action will be taken against Hans-Otto Schiemann, 56, for overstaying his visa for three years, said Pawarit Chaloemsan, deputy chief of the provincial prosecutors office.

The German is being held at the provincial jail, in the heart of a community yet to come to grips with what has happened.

His wife, who said she had once survived a violent attack from him, is dying of Aids.

Schiemann’s preyed on girls aged 15 and older, whom he would approach after school offering them the equivalent of their parent’s monthly wage to have unprotected sex with him.

He also often went on sex tours of other provinces, from North to South.

He will be charged with overstaying his visa, but no other charges have been brought. “We have him on visa charges, but we want to make it much harder for him than that,” the jail’s chief said. “If we let him go he might just go to Cambodia, Laos or Burma and keep spreading this disease.”

A deputy chief of the provincial police said Thailand had no laws making infecting people with HIV a crime. “I think it’s very bad, but there is nothing we can do,” he said.

Schiemann had in the past constantly presented himself at the police station to complain about the greed of Thai women, he said.

In an interview at the jail Schiemann told The Nation, “In Chaiyaphum, I want to kill people.

“In Thailand everything is not normal. In fact, it is very abnormal,” he said. “They say a man is free here to do as he wishes, but he is not: he must pay the woman.”

“They have taken my freedom and I cannot defend myself,” he added.

Out of the province’s population of about one million people, one in every 100 is HIV-positive.

“They sell their children here,” Schiemann said. “The only reason I’m in jail is because I had sex with a policeman’s daughter, who was nice but then became nasty after she became a singer at a night club.

“She stole my passport and bank card . . . all of my money. I tried to report it to police, they wouldn’t listen,” he said.

A local healthcare official said he did not know how many people Schiemann had infected, “but it’s somewhere in the vicinity of 400 to 500”.

Daniel Pedersen

The Nation

Chaiyaphum

[mangomike]

I was shocked to read this piece of human garbage was only going to be charged with a visa violation.
The govt. needs to enact laws that make it a crime for those that know they're HIV positive to have unprotected sex and, make it retroactive.
Surely they can bring charges against him for having sex with underage girls.
This man, no, this thing possibly gave a death sentence to 400-500 girls.
He deserves far more punisment than just what a visa violation will bring.

[SiamJai]

Most of you know already the hatred and outrage I feel about these sludgeworms, so I won't repeat myself.

There is going to be big trouble brewing if this one's gonna escape proper punishment due to a legal loophole. Behind those famous Thai smiles there are human beings, with feelings just like any other people. Chances are, most of you've never seen a Thai let it all go - I had. Let me tell you: it ain't pretty. It is downright scary. Imagine all that built-up tension released in a single outburst of anger; it's like a volcano.

That's what I envision will happen if this serial killer is sent away with a slap on the wrist. A national outrage, perhaps even a public lynching might happen. To be honest, I can't blame them. Heck, I'd even hand them the rope! I'd be happy to see all these sludgeworms getting what they deserve.

Otherwise, what might happen? The killer would be expelled, perhaps straight into the arms of the German authorities. There, in true Western-style imprisonment, he could live the rest of his life in a comfort that most law-abiding Thai people have never seen in their lives. He would be treated with expensive antiviral drugs that none of his victims could afford. Neither could he - the cost would be covered from the German taxpayers' pockets.

Just think about it. 500 young lives. Now it is just a number on a page, but imagine this: if these 500 bodies were put head to toe by a stretch of a road, how long would one have to walk to get from one end to the other? It'd be a long walk, wouldn't it? Seems like some of these hesitant lawmakers need to walk that road, as they don't seem to understand the true extent of the horror that this one has done.

I guess that one reason for their hesitance might be that if they make a big case out of this, they will have to face an issue that they tried (successfully ) to sweep under the carpet for too long. That's right. This could be a stepping stone to finally put an end to sex-tourism and all its related vices. A case that could equal Roe vs. Wade in significance. You can imagine that the prospect of this makes some folks shudder in fear - the ones whose priorities are votes and tourism dollars. But I ask you: how many lives are those dollars worth? Some keep pocketing the money while Thailand's most vulnerable keep dying. This has to stop, and it has to stop now. I have hope that these terribly sad events will be not in vain. I hope that something profoundly better will come out of this.

We shall see.

[Mike]

He's apparently a one-legged German army veteran, living off a disability pension and visa violations apparently only carry a maximum two year sentence. There must be something else they can charge him with - how about for having sex with 15 year olds when the age of consent is 18 for a start ? Like Stacker I'm amazed this is being taken so lightly, there would be a complete outrage if something similar were to happen in the UK.

Quote[/b] ] This could be a stepping stone to finally put an end to sex-tourism and all its related vices....This has to stop, and it has to stop now. I have hopes that these terribly sad events were not in vain. I hope that something profoundly better will come out of this.

I agree entirely. We can but hope.

[Jake]

Pease don't get the wrong idea with my question.
While I think that this roach needs to spend a long
long time in jail or a mental hospital.
Why have I yet to read that a lab has released any
results of HIV tests done on his blood?
The only mention I saw was early on in this case when
authorities announced that they would have the tests
done.
Not jumping to any conclusion but after all this time
it seems odd.
Did any of you read something that I've missed regarding
this?

[Stacker]

I seriously doubt that the HIV is spreading in other manners, since that is how they haved formed the relationship between these women and the thing that had intercourse with them. For these women to all mysteriouly have HIV, the test will/did not come up negative. Thai news reporters you will soon see are not perfect at tying news stories together. They tend to give information and continue the story rather than updated previous questions raised

Seeker it would be cool for a lynching to take place, I never before could imagine myself saying that until after this story.