DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
5.5 How adults fuel HIV infection both directly and indirectly
who assumes he can have his way with a girl whenever he wants. This mindset overturns the stereotyped misconception generated by masculine hegemony; that a man must have sex on demand. Cindy is not prepared to keep a man at any cost by sleeping with him - on his terms - unlike some girls who act out of desperation and cannot bear to be seen as being 'undesirable' to men. Cindy is hopeful that there are other men out there who would be prepared to wait for her until she is ready for sex. Unlike some of the respondents, Cindy refuses to stereotype all men as being potential rapists.
Sarah: I think that girls have older people as their boyfriends, and the age difference starts at about five years.
A nationwide survey indicates that, generally, older men are less likely than younger men to want to use condoms for protection, because they are more set in their ways. Young people are often more open to adopting new behaviour (Shisana and Simbayi, 2002). It is, therefore, ironic that when young girls such as Jessica seek protection by partnering with older men, they (girls) run a relatively higher risk of engaging in unprotected sex than they would with partners of their own age, who are more likely to heed HIV/AIDS prevention messages.
The system of patriarchy, which advocates gender inequality, endows men with more social power over women worldwide. The trend is even more evident when it comes to older men, who also wield the authority that comes with age. Conversely, the younger the adolescent girls are, the less likely they are to have adequate negotiation skills to insist on condom use during every sexual act. Cultural double standards advocate that unmarried adolescent girls abstain from, and remain uninformed about sex. Consequently, girls may be too embarrassed to even ask a man to use condoms to safeguard them against HIV.
A number of Ogwini respondents mention that in some instances, older men assume that young girls are virgins, and act in accordance with the virgin myth. Raping a virgin is believed to be a prophylaxis or cure for HIV/AIDS. Young people of both sexes, have also bought into this misconception by listening to their elders. At least 12% of the adolescent girls and 15% of the adolescent boys interviewed, believe having sex with a virgin could cure HIV/AIDS (CIET, 2004).
When it comes to intergenerational sex, sexual misconceptions are held by both partners.
The young girl, for her part, may work on the assumption that because she is sexually active, she is mature enough to handle an older sexual partner. However, some girls succumb easily to sex since they are socialised culturally from a young age to be subservient to older men in general. Such a dynamic in intergenerational relationships is reinforced by the strictures of patriarchal power, which make it difficult for girls to insist
on safer sex, or simply to say "no" to sex. According to the CIET (2004) study, 22% of girls say they do not have the right to refuse their boyfriends sex, while 30% of the boys feel the same. This thinking is most pertinent among younger girls who may not know their rights or - despite knowing them - lack negotiation skills, or are too young to make moral decisions relating to sex. As one respondent explains:
Mandy. Some girls have sex at an early age: they are too young to decide whether it is right or wrong to have sex. They can't choose.
Girls who are minors may agree to have sex, mostly due to peer pressure or through coercion. Out of a lack of awareness, girls unwittingly make decisions that might have a bearing on their entire lives. An abrasion in their genital tract resulting from sex, could provide an entry point for HIV, should they have unprotected sex with an older, infected man.
The older man, often assumes that the younger a girl is, the more likely she is to be a virgin, or that she has had very little sexual experience, if any. Other older men, often hold the same beliefs and approach the same eye-catching, young girls. The girls in turn exercise their sexual agency and end up with multiple partners. They then have to juggle the relationships in such a way that the men involved do not know of each other's existence.
What these men are not aware of, however, are the physiological factors that paradoxically predispose younger women more to HIV infection than their older female counterparts. For example, young adolescent girls have an increased presence of cervical ectopy (an outgrowth of membranous tissue from the cervix towards the vagina), which increases their risk of acquiring HIV (Hankins, 1996). In addition to this, young adolescent girls are also at an increased risk of HIV infection partly due to minimum vaginal mucus production, which provides less of a barrier to HIV than adult women with more mature reproductive organs (McCammon, Knox and Schacht, 1998). Due to limited mucous secretions, the adolescent girl may get lacerations in her genitals due to inadequate lubrication and vigorous penetrative intercourse.
The range of significant adults predisposing adolescent girls to HIV infection includes what appears to be unlikely groups of males. According to Hunter (2002: 110):
Older male relatives, family friends and men in positions of power and influence such as teachers, often sexually abuse young women. 'Sugar daddies' may entice young girls into sexual relationships in exchange for necessities or 'treats'. These men are generally older and economically independent, and therefore have considerable power and access to girls.
The individuals who are supposed to be role models by virtue of their age, and who are expected to protect and care for the young girls, are implicated in fuelling the spread of HIV.