Monkeypox reporting ‘homophobic and racist’, says UN agency

The UN’s AIDS agency has called some ­reporting on the monkeypox virus racist and homophobic, warning of exacerbating stigma and undermining the response to the outbreak.

Monkeypox virus. Picture: CDC

The UN’s AIDS agency on Sunday called some ­reporting on the monkeypox virus racist and homophobic, warning of exacerbating stigma and undermining the response to the growing outbreak.

UNAIDS said “a significant proportion” of recent monkeypox cases have been identified among gay, bisexual and other men who had sex with men.

Yet transmission is most likely via close physical contact with a monkeypox sufferer and could affect anyone, it added, saying some portrayals of Africans and LGBTI people “reinforce homophobic and racist stereotypes and exacerbate stigma”.

Health authorities are investigating whether a gay pride event in Spain and a fetish festival in Belgium early in May were superspreader events.

As of Saturday, the World Health Organisation had received reports of 92 laboratory-­confirmed monkeypox cases and 28 suspected cases from 12 countries where the disease is not endemic, including several European nations, the US, Australia, Canada and Israel.

“Stigma and blame undermine trust and capacity to respond effectively during outbreaks like this one,” said UNAIDS deputy executive ­director Matthew Kavanagh.

“Experience shows stigmatising rhetoric can quickly disable evidence-based response by stoking cycles of fear, driving people away from health ser­vices, impeding efforts to identify cases, and encouraging ineffective, punitive measures.”

Monkeypox symptoms include fever, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes and a chickenpox-like rash on hands and face. No treatment exists, but the symptoms usually clear up after two to four weeks.

AFP