The regions with the highest rates of transmission are Asia, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean. Fifteen years ago, when the first cases of AIDS appeared in the Western world, women, especially Latin American and Caribbean women, viewed themselves as unaffected by this illness. A Life Without Violence is Our Right. Gender-based discrimination prevents women from making free and autonomous decisions, especially in the area of sexuality and relationships. Since girlhood, women are taught to be the weaker sex and are treated as such by their husbands, families, religions and society in general.
Familial abuse is common all over the world.
Men have the financial power, physical strength and authority granted by their sex with which they can demand specific sexual relations with women. The constant threat of violence makes women feel vulnerable and allows men to maintain control over the decision of when and how to have sex. In this case, the risk of infection is determined by their partner's sexual behavior. There is a clear link between HIV transmission and acts of sexual violence, rape in particular. Those most affected by this cycle of violence are women sex workers, whose clients accuse them of transmitting the virus while, ironically, many demand services without condoms.