Dressed in a striking blue and red shalwar kameez (traditional dress from South and Central Asia), Akkai, a transgender woman from Bangladesh, steps onto the stage. Turning to her audience of government officials from Ministries of health, justice, public security, drug control, social protection; United Nations officials; and fellow members of key populations most affected by HIV, she started to sing:

“I born as me/ My feelings changed… / I started behaving like a girl / I started walking like a girl / I started dressing as a girl / When my parents forced me to stop myself /  I was beaten up / I was locked up / I was tortured…./ …There was nobody to ask these things / … / This kind of torture, violence, harassment /  Is not faced only by me / Where to live?/ Where to share?/ Where to survive our life?”

Joining the scene, the coordinator of the Women’s arm of the Asia-Pacific Network of people living with HIV explained: “I have been living with HIV for 17 years. Fortunately I have had access to treatment. But now free-trade agreements are compromising access to essential medicines,” she said. “Eighty percent of generic medicines are made in this region. Without access to affordable medicines we cannot get to zero,” she added.

These personal experiences were two of many shared by people living with HIV and key affected populations at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) high-level intergovernmental meeting held in Bangkok, Thailand from 6-8 February 2012. The meeting was an opportunity to review the region’s progress towards international targets on AIDS.