BY Jeevan Sharma, Hetauda
Manka Kura Quaterly Magazine,
Website: ssmk.org
SSMK Team
In Picture: Saathi Sanga Manka Kura TEAM

“Friend, you are also going to get married? Lots of congratulations…but are you ready for it? How much have you understood your future partner for life? How much have you analysed? And what do you think about having HIV Test before marriage? It’s also very necessary to take care of many things on this regard, isn’t it? ” This kind of stuff was coming from Saathi Sanga Manka Kura, a popular youth radio show and two elder people were saying, “What nonsense are they talking? Testing blood before getting marriage……….is this practical? We should talk that matches or social, cultural values and ethics…talking like this, they have destroyed……”
Being myself a Radio Program Producer, I was forced to think because I have heard such kind of stuffs while visiting villages……
“Because of lack of our courage to express our queries regarding sex and our shyness to learn about it, now many youths are suffering from it. That’s why we should talk about it openly.”
“Do you know that unsafe sex might result HIV/AIDS. But use of condom can protect you.”

Some listeners of Palpa, Dang, Makwanpur were forced to turn off their radio when SSMK encourage them to talk openly about HIV/AIDS, sex education. They complain such stuffs told by program are impractical and they are not able to listen the program with family. Some listeners of Makwanpur even told that such topics are improper and vulgar. Program Presenters of SSMK told that they also have heard same kind of complains when they visited Dang and Palpa. Then why still Saathi Sanga Manka Kura or SSMK is continuing to talk on such issues. In this question, Team Leader of SSMK, Binita said, “Current scenario of HIV/AIDS in our country is not hidden. Recent study shows that more than 75,000 people are infected with HIV/AIDS. Among them the number of Youths are very high. And analysing this statistic, number of women infected by HIV/AIDS from their husband is also not less. If we are able to disseminate importance about being aware before marriage and save few of them from being infected with HIV, then that would be big achievement for us. We are ready to face such negative comments given by some friends without understanding it.”
HIV infection rate in Nepal is really alarming and worrying issue. Further more, marriage that took place on ground of trust and without having enough knowledge, has helped a lot in transmission of HIV/AIDS. We are hearing that many people are getting infected because their parents got married them to people who are working in cities/town without knowing much. The parents do so because they believe by doing so their daughter will be happy and don’t want such chances to let go. The story of Nirmala Paudel of Chitwan is not much different. In hope of her bright future, her parents forced her to get married at early age and she got HIV infection from her husband. After a week of marriage her husband who returned from foreign land went back to work. After a year he returned home having ill health. Later when medical test was done it was discovered that he’s got HIV infection and was in stage of AIDS. Nirmala’s parent’s blind trust became misfortunate for her. This is just an example. There are many such cases in our villages which are increasing day by day.
SSMK’s presenter Binayak believes awareness can help to decrease such cases. He says “We cannot do anything to help those who take risks knowingly. But our program has tried to make people awake who are unknowingly at risk. If we can make people understand and aware by talking openly then why not to talk openly.”
Really if such issues and queries are given spaces then results will be positive instead of negative. People can be safe from cases like of Nirmala’s. While studying, it is found that SSMK has brought big changes in the life of Kirpa Poudel (Name Changed). While she was being forced to marry foreign returned guy, one thing came in her mind – to apply recently heard information through SSMK. She proposed to have HIV test. Later when test was done it was discovered that he was infected with HIV. She said that if SSMK hasn’t given such information, her life would have been jeopardised. She says that such information should be raised regularly. Afterwards she has been encouraging her friends to talk on such issues openly and listen to SSMK.
From these two different examples what can we understand? Still discouraging programs like SSMK to talk openly on such issue by giving negative comments or coming forward to get needed information? I think this is the topic we need to analyse.

Some Key Facts:
• Saathi Sanga Manka Kura, now airs from 35 local FM stations and State Radio, radio Nepal covering almost whole of Nepal.
• According to recent Survey by AC Neilson, around 65.3 million young people tune in to Saathi Sanga Manka Kura regularly.
• It’s been six years since SSMK started it’s first broadcast.
• According to recent “National Demographic Health Survey’, conducted by Ministry of Health, once every five years (and is highly recognized survey of international standard) has found SSMK to be the most reliable source of information for young people in Nepal when it comes to ‘Sexual Reproductive Health’ issue.
• Every month SSMK gets around 1400 letters and 200 emails addressing various personnel problems.