ABSTRACT
CONTENTS 1.1 Introduction....................................................................................... 4 1.2 Moral Breakdown............................................................................... 4
1.2.1 Moral Breakdown in Post-Socialist Russia.............................. 5 1.3 The HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Russia................................................... 6
1.3.1 Background............................................................................ 6 1.3.2 Response by the Government ................................................ 8 1.3.3 Two Institutional Approaches to the Epidemic ...................... 9
1.3.3.1 The Russian Orthodox Church ............................... 9 1.3.3.2 Secular NGOs ....................................................... 12
1.4 Some Final Words on an Is-Ought Distinction ............................... 14 Notes ........................................................................................................ 16
1.1 Introduction Increasingly, Russians are realizing that they are living in a country with the highest number of HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) positive persons in Europe, and, according to a 2001 UNAIDS (Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS [Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome]) report, one of the fastest HIV growth rates in the world. And yet, prevention and treatment programs remain scarce and underfunded. What programs do exist can be seen as representing competing moral positions in the struggle against the HIV/AIDS crisis in Russia. This chapter is an attempt to disclose the moral assumptions behind the HIV prevention programs offered by, on the one hand, the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) and, on the other hand, the secular non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This will be done by comparing and contrasting the moral discourse of each of these institutions and by providing examples of each from my fieldwork in St. Petersburg.
