Iran’s high HIV/AIDS rate is not only a health and societal problem, it’s a political one as well. Official Iranian numbers estimate that over 18,000 of the country’s people are living with AIDS. But a Tehran journalist writing under the pseudonym Mina Rasheed reports that the figure might be a low estimate because of stigma surrounding the disease.

“According to a statement by the World Health Organisation, we have to multiply this figure four or five times to reach the real figure of those infected with AIDS in Iran,” warned Masoud Mardani, a member of the AIDS National Committee.

Unfortunately, Rasheed writes, HIV/AIDS has also been politicized through the detention of Drs. Kamiar and Arash Alaei.

AIDS, however, is not just a social taboo; it has also become a political and security issue. In June 2008, two brothers who were pioneers in the fight against AIDS in Iran were arrested and charged with having contacts with “hostile governments”.

The Alaeis’ detention has hampered Iran’s capacity to meet the needs of AIDS patients and fight the spread of the disease. The Alaeis’ groundbreaking work included harm-reduction programs, regional health worker training sessions and participation in international health conferences.

The brothers had also written a five-year plan for tackling AIDS on a national level – a first for Iran.

Physicians for Human Rights has led a coalition of activists calling for the Alaei doctors’ release. PHR members have called attention to the case through a vigil and at the August 2008 17th International AIDS Conference in Mexico City, where Dr. Arash Alaei was scheduled to speak. In addition, thousands of concerned citizens, as well as Nobel Laureates, MacArthur Genius Grant recipients and international medical leaders have written letters to Iranian officials on the Alaeis’ behalf. You can join the movement by signing our petition.