The number of people living with HIV is much lower in Europe and higher in Ireland. Test fatigue is one reason, but even more important is the ban on dealing with sexual problems in schools.

M.McFarland Campbell knew he would be infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). He was familiar with the means of transmission and the high risk of infection as a homosexual. Even so, he slept with strangers without using a condom. “I had depression and found a way to recover quickly and easily by sleeping casually with men.” He didn’t worry about contraception because “it gave me a kick”. Only a handful of people in Ireland are open about HIV infection. The 42-year-old is one of 7,200 registered HIV-positive people on the island at the end of 2018. In the same year, there were 523 new diagnoses in the country. Seven per cent increase over the previous year. Accordingly European Center for Disease Prevention and Control Ireland is one of the few European countries to have a significant increase in HIV infection.

However, this growth should be viewed differently, he says Adam Shanley Of “HIV Ireland”. The NGO supports the victims and offers tests and information. This is because some of these people are not newly diagnosed, but first registered in Ireland. As a result, many homosexuals and bisexuals are migrating from areas such as Latin America, where they are particularly affected by the epidemic. Statistics confirm Shanley’s estimate: 90,000 people emigrated to Ireland in 2018/19 alone. Of the new diagnoses for 2018, 21 percent were born in Ireland. 71% are actually from overseas, mostly from Latin America and the Caribbean. The origin of the remaining eight percent is unknown. However, this variation alone does not explain high levels of infection, Shanley says.