SpudIslander

1 hour ago, losjims said:

N Health. On the Sukhumvit Road on the left just before Bangkok Pattaya Hospital

I got one a few weeks ago.

Cost THB 2,250

 

Thank you, I called them and they told me to come at 9:00 am and the results will be ready later in the day around 5:00 pm. Did you use your results for travel? Etihad told me that it must be approved by the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand. It is a certificate. N Health also told me the price was THB 3,250. I'll check it out tomorrow.

2 hours ago, SAcanman said:

I'm curious which airline you are flying and where the connections are.  I plan on flying to Canada with a stop in Tokyo (on JAL). As far as I can tell, there in no requirement for a test as I will remain airside at Narita airport.  Also, assuming you are Canadian, you do not need a test to enter Canada.

Please let me know.  I'm interested in your upcoming plans.

Thanks.

I am flying this Sunday morning 12:50 with Etihad to Toronto via Abu Dhabi. This is a requirement of their airline. They also told me I needed to download an app called ArriveCAN which I did and completed the fields required. I am currently in Pattaya. I know that this test is available at Bangkok Pattaya Hospital for 6500 baht but I heard that their are some government hospitals that only charge 3000 baht.

I am leaving to return to Canada on September 13th and the airline requires a Covid PCR test. Anyone know the cheapest accepted place to go in Pattaya?

Thank you Sheryl, much appreciated. I will follow up with this lead and provide feedback for anyone else experiencing similar issues with their loved ones. 

Much appreciated Vocal Neal!

I have a 9 year old boy struggling in school. He has an evaluation from a Doctor whom I do not know which apparently states that he has ADHD or Autism or something like this. His mother says she does not know how to say in English. Does anyone know of a child Doctor who specializes in such things? We are in Pattaya. It is also worth mentioning that this little man has spent his whole education thus far in 5 different schools from a remote village to a city school. Help please!

I am sorry to read this. I have a young boy 9 years old diagnosed with ADHD living in a northern village. I am concerned about his future. Please continue to share your further experience.

Can anyone help with this question: Which Amphur is the best one to go to based on the following criteria in order for me to be granted the rights of the father in Thailand. 

• Son born in Bangkok
• the mother and I have never been married
• he is 8 years old
• he lives in Phitsanulok with his mother
• I am currently in Chiang Mai until May 5
• he has a Canadian citizenship certificate
• he has a valid Canadian Passport although never used
• I am the father on his birth certificate.
• the mother has married and changed her name which is different from the name on our son's birth certificate
• no name change for our son
• he has a house identification for Phitsanulok

My preference would be Chiang Mai, second would be Bangkok and if I must Phitsanulok. All 3 of us are willing to agree that I am the father.

I have a 8 year old son with a Thai lady. She is a great mother but terrible with finances. I have bought motorcycles and cars for her over the years and she shortly goes out and borrows money against them privately at extremely unfavourable interest rates. Then she can't repay the debt and either I pay for the debt or she loses the asset. Our son has my name on his Thai birth certificate. I have the DNA certificate as a match as father and son. He has a Canadian citizenship and Canadian Passport although he has never been to Canada. I have 2 questions:

1. In the case of real estate property in Thailand, can I buy a property in Thailand under his name in trust and situate it so that it cannot be borrowed upon nor sold until he reaches 25 years of age?

2. From what I have read above, is it as simple as my son, his mother, myself and all the documents I have mentioned show up to the Amphur and they will grant or recognize me as being the father?  

Question: Does the owner of the golf course also own all the land surrounding the golf course? And if so, what negative effect if any has it been having on the land for sale prices?

First of all, let me express my gratitude to those who have shared their thoughts on this topic and endeavoured to answer my question. I am still weighing my options. I don't want to make my decisions based on anger or resentment, Sometimes it is better to wait awhile before an action is taken for clarity,

I thought I would address some comments on DNA testing. Because the mother is/was a bar girl, it was the first thing I did. The results came back at 99% I think that dealing directly with educators and landlords was good advice (much appreciated), And lastly,thank you Dotpoom for the kind words on my sobriety - one day at a time.

I have a son out of wedlock who is going to be 6 years old in the fall. The mother and I have not been together since he was 6 months old. I live in Canada and would travel to Thailand a couple of times per year to visit him. My son was born during my drinking and running around years (it's almost 5 years since I have picked up a drink). The mother (36 years) and me (63 years) The mother was a bar/girl (now supposedly retired) and now living in Phitsanulok. Over the years, she had a German boyfriend who was paying her about 30 or 40,000 baht each month. I was paying her 10,000 per month in child support (voluntarily no legal paperwork). Last year, while visiting my son, she didn't have a boyfriend taking care of her and living conditions were dire. I moved her into a house (a rental) and increased my support to 18,000 baht per month.

Now, I find out that she has found another boyfriend and not disclosing this to me which has really pissed me off. I pay for my son's EMS at school (all I know it supposed to be taught in English but I am not sure), I paid 25,000 baht. I pay for all his clothes, medical and many miscellaneous items.

Bottom line: I cut her back to 10,000 baht per month. Now it has been a while (5years) since I have visited this thought about what is a reasonable child support for Thailand. I am still working and trying to reestablish my life since my drinking years and will most likely be working until I cannot work. My health is good now but time is not on my side. I would also like for my son to be educated here in Canada but I doubt she will let him go. Question: What is a reasonable amount to pay each month for child support?

Purpose: File an application to legalize myself as my son's legal father recognized in the country of Thailand.

Reason: In case (GOD forbid) the mother passes away prematurely.

• uncontested
  
• not married
  
• mother will cooperate
  
• Father - farang - Canada
  
• child is 2 years old
  
• father named on Birth Certificate (doesn't mean much but it is good that I am named on it)
  
• born in Bangkok but house card and residence is Phitsanulok District
  
• have DNA test results confirming fatherhood from Thai Hospital
  
• have Canadian Citizenship card for the child already
  

Bottom line, this should be a slam dunk.

I visited the

Purpose: File an application to legalize myself as my son's legal father recognized in the country of Thailand.

Reason: In case (GOD forbid) the mother passes away prematurely.

• uncontested
  
• not married
  
• mother will cooperate
  
• Father - farang - Canada
  
• child is 2 years old
  
• father named on Birth Certificate (doesn't mean much but it is good that I am named on it)
  
• born in Bangkok but house card and residence is Phitsanulok District
  
• have DNA test results confirming fatherhood from Thai Hospital
  
• have Canadian Citizenship card for the child already
  

Bottom line, this should be a slam dunk.

I visited the

I hear guns shooting in Silom. Does anyone know what's going on?

Subsidized care would be only for Thai citizens who qualify

Thailand does produce in generic form some HIV drugs, whether or not these asre the ones you need, I can't say. AFAIK not sold over the counter, have to get from a doctor at a hospital so if the patient not here in Thailand could be problematic.

Hi Sheryl,

How can I find out more about subsidized care for Thai citizens who qualify?

Hi Sheryl,

I remember her always asking me, if I die, would you take care of my daughter and her family. I am not bitter about our break up (at least I don't think I am) and this is why I have not acted out so readily. I am not naive enough to think that this site is not monitored by some authority and although to some that it may seem to be anonymous, it is not. I am just a guy who wants to do the right thing.

This is an part of an email I received from the Doctor when I returned. Any thoughts on this?

I got the blood test results. You are negative for antibody to HIV while your wife is positive. The level of viral load test is 2280 copy/ml, and her CD4/CD8 is 321/1086 cells/mm3. We don't know suptype of the infection but it should be HIV1 which is aggressive. The internist will decide to give antiretroviral agent when CD4 is less than 200 but consider in CD4 less than 350. In my opinion, your wife should get antiretroviral agent until CD4 more than 200 and undetectable viral load

Your wife should indeed start ARV at once. I just hope that she will be compliant. She does not need to die, if she is. She can get the ARV trhough the government at no or very subnsidzed cost but will of course lose that option if she goes abroad, a factor she should take into account in her plans.

Going on ARV and getting her viral load down (and if she is compliant, it can be brought down to undetectable or nearly so) will also make her less infective, important since, let's face it, she seems prettu certain to stay in this line of work. And as has been discussed there really is not anything you can do to prevent that in Thailand.

In etrsm of you -- if I were you, and able to afford it, I'd go ahead and have the PCR test just to put the question of whether or not I was infected to rest once and for all. The odds are very much in your favor given that yiou are antibody negative, but since you had certain exposure and to a woman with a significant viral load, need to be sure.

The Hassle Free Clinic won't be able to do the PCR themselves but they may be able to draw the b,lood and send it to a hospital that can, or refer you to one.

So sorry to hear there is a child involved, how old is the girl?

And are you still in communication with your wife? I'm just wondering if there is any hope you cvan persuade her to (1) not go abroad, since she needs to stay here for her treatment and (2) understand that if she has sex with a man without using condoms she m ay be indirectly doing to other women, and even to those women's children, what was done to her.

There are also groups in Thailand who help women in her circumstance to seek other tyoes of liveliuhood. I can give you some contacts buit it's only worth doing if you think she would act on it, as only she can take that first step.

I hope those who expressed such strong condemnation of her as a person will take note of the background you just provided. This is a woman who is deeply, deeply damaged. That doesn';t make her actions right but it does make it understandable (at least to me!)

I wouldn't worry too much about authorities monitoring and acting on this thread. If there are any "authorities"monitoring this forum I can assure you they are not in the least suprirsed by or concerned about a Thai sex worker who is HIV+. She is one of many thousands out there, and the official response has, quite appriopriately (and effectively, if one looks at the data over time) dealt with by promoting condom use and providing ARV rather than trying to somehow round up such women.

Hi Sheryl,

This thread is getting deeper and deeper into an area, far greater than I had expected. Let me address your last post as best I can.

Your wife should start ARV at once.

· We visited the closest hospital (still a little primitive) near her village. The health care worker took blood samples and was content to monitor her progression. (I believe her CD4 counts showed 305 (this seemed to be the only concern to decide whether medication was required) on her 1^st visit (She has a male friend who is hiv positive for some time and is taking medication. It was their idea that I not attend for fear that if medication was prescribed, the price would go up if they knew she was married to a farang.) During their visit the health care worker talked about how when she (the health care worker) started her position there, she had reservations about taking the position. She also attends some local schools in the area to talk to students about condoms and STD. She asked my wife if she would be interested in going along and talking about her life experiences. When my wife told me about this suggestion she was so happy and excited about doing something positive and making a difference and a contribution to society (this was a good day).She was asked to come back in 2 weeks.

· On the second visit where I did attend, her CD4 count was 321 (if I remember correctly). Still a decision was not prescribe for medication. I didn’t feel comfortable about the progress and communication was difficult due to language, I had questions regarding viral load (I had spent some time googling on the internet earlier as hiv was not a part of my life and I didn’t know much about it and L had many questions regarding hiv). Again no medication was prescribed. She was asked to come back in 6 weeks. I am no longer in the picture here and whether she went or not I don’t know. I have a feeling she probably did not go back.

· On October 5^th (or there about, I left for Canada on October 7^th), we attended a hospital near Pattaya for further tests (because of my unanswered questions regarding viral load). Please refer to the excerpt in my earlier posting. This testing was not cheap (about $530.00 CAD).

· Bottom line: I doubt very much that she will get the help she needs. You see she has 2 different personalities (as we all do) but hers are more distinctive and extreme. One is kind, loving, generous, caring for herself and others, the other is anger, denial, f---- it, I don’t care about anything. This is probably due to her life experiences mentioned earlier. But to answer your question: No I don’t think she will get the help she needs.

In terms of you – if I were you and able to afford it, I’d go ................PCR

· This would involve seeing my doctor and convincing him that I would need this test. In Canada, this test might be covered by our government provincial medical plan. I may need to wait for a long time to get it but I think it could be done. I will call him for an appointment tomorrow. Thank you.

Note to OxfordWill: Thank you for your input

Sorry to hear there is a child involved..............

· You are probably referring to her first discovery that she was HIV positive 6 years ago. She lost this baby during the pregnancy. She has only the one child (a 12 year old daughter who is healthy as far as I know.

Are you still in communication with your wife? Can you persuade her to not go abroad and seek treatment..............

· No, I am no longer in communication with her currently. I could however attempt to communicate with her of course. A lot of bad things were said over the internet, telephone and text messaging before the break up. I believe that in her line of work in order to survive (if you can call it that) is to cut all knowledge of someone who has gotten close to their heart. Try to erase them from their memory, destroy photos, break all communication and try to block any memories that they even existed (that is my theory anyway). All of this is protect and suppress her feelings. I think most of us are similar in some respects but more drastic measures would be taken here.

· Can I convince her not to travel abroad and stay here and follow up on seeking medical help in terms of treatment? I don’t know, not the way things are now.

· Can I help her understand the chain reaction of transmission from men, to their other partners, to their wives and finally to children through pregnancy. Same answer, I don’t know.

There are groups in Thailand ..................... re: other types of livelihood

· During the time we were together, I was giving her 52, 000 baht a month, 12,000 baht was for the payment of a truck and the balance went towards living expenses for the mother, her mother’s husband (her father lives in Bangkok) and education of her daughter. In addition, she with help of her family had a little business of buying a pig, butchering it up and selling it at a local market on Mondays. The margins were about 3,000 baht a week. This may have been a little exaggerated but let’s say about 9 to 10 thousand baht a month.

· I think that the breakup has put her into a tailspin and as a result she has gone back into the sex trade industry. She was a freelancer, very attractive, good command of English and Chinese. She has become accustomed to big money (by Thai standards), this would be hard for her accept something less. If she could somehow understand the risk factors more, it might appeal to her kind and good side. I don’t know.

I wouldn’t worry about authorities monitoring.........................

· I am not so concerned about this; I have mostly left a trail about me, not so much her. I was actually referring to earlier posts by other people in terms of my being careful of exposing her “harassing the woman” “court action” “defamation of character” I guess I got a little paranoid for a moment (“Neo, there is a knock at the door” – The Matrix).

· Truly, there is a part of me that wishes to continue paying money to her and her family. But, I am not a (Bill Gates) rich man. The economy is hitting hard globally and particularly North America. My business is real estate and I have been hit pretty hard. Myself, like most, are holding down the fort preparing for more bad news (tip of the iceberg) and just how long for this rocky ride, who knows for sure.

There are different types of HIV test:

1) tests for the presence of antibodies (and within this group, several different techniques each with different levels of reliability and cost to perfrom, eg Elisa, Western blot etc). Because these tests depend upon the presence of antibodies, they will be negative in very early stages of the disease as the antibodies haven't developed yet. Majority (>90%, I forget exact figure) of people will be antibody positive within 3 months but a small minority will take up to 6 months hence the recommendation for a repeat test at 6 months if negative at 3. It is BTW standard practice tio repeat the antibody test ate least once (usually using a more accurate emthod) if it is positive before giving the results to the patient. If followed this procedure pretty well rukles out a "false positive"result unless somehow the lab results of 2 patients get mixed up.

2) tests for the presence of the virus itself - much more expensive and time-consuming to do. In people who have tested antibody positive, a "Viral Load" test should be done (along with CD4 count) to help determine how far advanced the disease is and whether there is a need to start treatment. This test will have the added advantage of identifying any mistake on the antibody test since, of course, no virus will be seen. This same test can also be done in people who are antibody negative to see if they perhaps have the virus but are in an early stage and have thus not yet formed antibodies. In that case, an additional technique called PCR is done first, which adds to the cost and time involved; what the PCR does is basically replicate any virus that may be present so that there is enough of it to be seen as a Viral Load may miss very minute quantities of virus, which is all there would be in someone so early in the course of infection that they did not yet have antibodies.

So in answer to your questions, Spuds, iif you are, as I understand it, in the 3-6 month period having been negative at 3 months, is possible but unlikely that you are in very early stages of infection, and if so this will show up at the 6 month testing, You can, if you want and feel it is worth the extra cost, get a PCR test, but if it is already close to the 6 month mark it may not make much sense.

If -- and the odds are strongly in our favor on this -- the 6th month test is negative too, the possibility that you nonetheless still harbor the virus are so minute (a fraction of a percent) as to be effectively nil, but if you want to be ab solutely sure beyond even a fraction opf a percent of a doubt, you could at that point have a PCR done.

To respond to 2 earlier queries:

1) spermicide -- yes, the research has shown conflicting results, and more research wuill probably be requiored to reach consensus on this. but should understyand that even the most favorable reports never shopwed spermicides to be as effective as condoms and they have never been proposed as a substuitue. the issue has been whether there would be an added benefit tio having the condoms lubricated with spermicide.

2) - prevalence rates: because of their public health importance considerable care is taken in the testing procedure, often with double testing by different (antibody) methods. Of course, among the people tested in surveillance studies there will be some who are infected but have not yet formed antibodies and thus show up as negative; that is a given, but unlikely to make a significnact statistical difference unless for some reason there has been a huge surge in infection within a period of a few months. And even in that rather improbable scenario, it will get picked uop at the next survey; these are done every 1-2 years for the purpose of tracking trends. If you read the report I referenced you will find a great deal of information not just on how prevalent HIV is in various groups in Thailand now but how this has changed over the years. ..and also what behavioral changes likely contributed to the changes. (The behavioral data, of course, is never as rfeliable as the prevalence data as it depends on people's statements of what they do/did rather than a lab test).

Hi Sheryl,

To add a little more insight to the first post, as I had indicated we were both tested on Sptember 2nd but of course this is only a short version of the story in order to post. She confessed to me later that she had contracted the virus at least 6 years ago while working in Malaysia (she was pregnant). Around October 5th before I left for Canada, we tested again because I was worried about the level of viral load and whether she needed to take medication or not. All the things you say about the culture of this situation are very true. She lost her virginity at 10 by her father, married at 16, a baby at 17, sold to Singapore at 20, jailed and returned to Thailand and then sold again in Malaysia. She speaks english very well and also chinese. I met her in Hong Kong and I remember her changing her name and id card upon her return. And what sticks out most of all, I remember her always asking me, if I die, would you take care of my daughter and her family. I am not bitter about our break up (at least I don't think I am) and this is why I have not acted out so readily. I am not naive enough to think that this site is not monitored by some authority and although to some that it may seem to be anonymous, it is not. I am just a guy who wants to do the right thing.

This is an part of an email I received from the Doctor when I returned. Any thoughts on this?

I got the blood test results. You are negative for antibody to HIV while your wife is positive. The level of viral load test is 2280 copy/ml, and her CD4/CD8 is 321/1086 cells/mm3. We don't know suptype of the infection but it should be HIV1 which is aggressive. The internist will decide to give antiretroviral agent when CD4 is less than 200 but consider in CD4 less than 350. In my opinion, your wife should get antiretroviral agent until CD4 more than 200 and undetectable viral load

I met a thai girl (a working girl) in 2007, fell in love, married her (Buddist wedding not registered) and had unprotected sex for a year and a half. On September 2, 2008 she had a headache and sore throat so we went to the hospital (Bangkok) to check it out. The doctor reviewed her file and noted that the last visit (2 years ago) she tested hiv positive and asked if she had told me (in thai). She told her that no but perhaps I should tell him now. I was shocked and immediately had a hiv test but negative. I was still prepared to accept this as a mixed relationship with some changes to our sex life.

However since that time, we have broken up and she is going back to work. This poses a health risk and I am aware of it. She is also planning a trip to Europe because the money is better over there. Should I just let it go as not my problem or should I expose her. I am weighing the health risk of others vs their family income (she is the breadwinner of the family mother, father, brother (who is jail but getting out in the new year) 12 year old daughter. any comments?

I am new at posting, hopefully this works

I see from your message that you tested for HIV and were not infected. Did she take another test? You should have had her take a new test to check again. Several years ago I was tested positive. I immediately did what I said I would do when interviewed "get a second opinion". I did and was confirm negative. I went a third time to make sure and was given a clean bill of health. I suggest you ask her to re-check and see. I met a young couple years ago that was tested and told positive. They stayed together trying to understand what had happened, they considered suicide. Then they finally decided to return to the hospital to find out that they were actually given the wrong results. This is why I have always told the doctor during an interview " I will get a second opinion if found to be HIV positive". I suggest the same.

Hi ilyushin,

Yes, on September 2nd, we both were tested. She was confirmed positive and I negative. Question to Sheryl: You seem quite knowledgeable on this topic and I have been in contact with organizations here in Toronto (Casey House, Hassle Free Clinic and have spoke to counsellors from ACT), but one thing I haven't asked is " Is it possible that I may show negative, but the virus is there but dormant and could develop if my system became weak?" I know that this virus may not show on first testing and I was adviced to test 3 months following (I have moved my appointment up to December 5th). I am using the Hassle Free Clinic because I don't want my family doctor to know until I know the results.

Excuse me but how is she planning a trip to Europe ? Where is the visa coming from ?

I am no longer in conversations with her but from one of my previous conversations and during the time I was with her, there were two possibilities.

1. She has a friend in Sweden and she tells me that when sponsered for a 30 day tourist visa, hiv tests are not a requirement.

2. Romania, I don't know details about that country.

Laws are changing all the time and it differs from jurisdiction to jursidiction. In Canada, a man goes into a bar and drinks far too much, gets into his car and drives home, he gets stopped by the police and is charged, in addition the owner of the bar gets charged as well. In Thailand, same scenario, the man gives the policeman a 100 baht and thats the end. Thailand is tolerant, Canada has zero tolerance laws to protect the innocent public. Zero tolerance is growing amongst countries and in the very near future it is possible that I may even be charged for failure to diclose a crime.

Also, please note that I am not totally out of the woods as yet, hiv may not show up from the first test, I have an appointment on December 15th for another test.

Well, upon waking up this morning, I can see that there has been much discussion about this issue. I must say that it leaves me with alot to think about from:

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy" - Martin Luther King

The other is into seeking legal advice from a lawyer.

There doesn't seem to be any one clear answer.

I met a thai girl (a working girl) in 2007, fell in love, married her (Buddist wedding not registered) and had unprotected sex for a year and a half. On September 2, 2008 she had a headache and sore throat so we went to the hospital (Bangkok) to check it out. The doctor reviewed her file and noted that the last visit (2 years ago) she tested hiv positive and asked if she had told me (in thai). She told her that no but perhaps I should tell him now. I was shocked and immediately had a hiv test but negative. I was still prepared to accept this as a mixed relationship with some changes to our sex life.

However since that time, we have broken up and she is going back to work. This poses a health risk and I am aware of it. She is also planning a trip to Europe because the money is better over there. Should I just let it go as not my problem or should I expose her. I am weighing the health risk of others vs their family income (she is the breadwinner of the family mother, father, brother (who is jail but getting out in the new year) 12 year old daughter. any comments?

I am new at posting, hopefully this works

I was in similar situation not so long ago. My advice - thank your lucky stars as i do that you escaped, mind your own business and walk away while reminding yourself this is south east asia and you cant change anything.

Ah ok, I understand. Sorry. Yes a very tragic outbreak. God only knows why it happened so grotesquely and powerfully here - terrible.

I am not God, but I know. Everyone was having sex with everyone, often on the same night at the same place, and nobody even knew what a condom was back then. We also did not know about the virus and how it was passed. It was really a kind of historic era there, extreme pleasure followed by extreme death (there are a number of books on the subject).

Jingthing I empathize with you and your tragic memories. I to lived in San fran in the early eighties.

For me I lost a loved one and also consider myself a very very lucky man.

This is a moral decision that requires much taught and consideration.

Lover did not tell fatally infected woman he was HIV positive, court hears

Provided by: The Canadian Press

Written by: Colin Perkel, THE CANADIAN PRESS

Oct. 31, 2008

HAMILTON - The throaty laugh of a woman who died of AIDS-related cancer filled a courtroom Friday when audiotape evidence was played at the first-degree murder trial of the man accused of fatally infecting her.

In her statement to police, the Toronto woman insisted she did not know her former lover was HIV positive and was adamant she would not have had sex with him had she known.

"Absolutely not," she told police.

Johnson Aziga, 52, of Hamilton, is on trial for first-degree murder in the deaths of the woman and another of his ex-lovers.

Even though he had known since late 1996 that he carried the virus that leads to AIDS, police allege he did not tell the women - or several others with whom he had unprotected sex - about his status.

In her statement, the woman described beginning a sexual relationship with Aziga, whom she met at her job with the government of Ontario, where they both worked, in the fall of 2001.

"He seemed a very nice, considerate person. And then we had sex," she told the officer in a clear, confident voice, punctuated at times with throaty laughter.

"There was no discussion whatsoever about HIV at all, and it was unprotected sex. I didn't really think of it."

Court previously heard that Aziga had several counselling sessions in the 1990s with public health officials about HIV, the risks of unprotected sex, and treatment options.

He was also twice formally ordered to inform any partners about his status.

The woman had tested negative for HIV twice before in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and had only one other partner besides Aziga since then who was also negative.

About a month after her relationship with Aziga began, she fell ill. She had never felt so sick before, she said.

Court has previously heard that the acute phase of HIV infection can make someone seriously ill, but the symptoms usually disappear within a few weeks.

The two continued seeing each other until June 2002, when the relationship soured - ostensibly because he was having a nasty custody battle with his ex-wife.

"He said he actually was not very fond of women right at that point in time."

She and Aziga did have one last, "unpleasant" sexual encounter in October 2002 that left her bleeding, court heard.

Ironically, she tried to reassure him that she posed no health risk.

"I'm bleeding but I'm OK," the woman said she told him. "I've been tested."

The woman was soon diagnosed as HIV positive.

Over a beer a few months later, she told Aziga about her status. He did not seem particularly surprised, she said.

"He just sort of went, 'Oh man.' He didn't say, 'Oh my God, like when?' or 'I have to get tested,"' she said.

It was only in May 2003, after calls from public health officials, that she concluded Johnson infected her, she said.

She then called to ask him directly whether he was HIV positive, at which point he admitted he was, court heard.

The rest of the call comprised a discussion about HIV infection, and her offering him advice on support groups, and advising him on medications to control the illness.

"I said, 'I know personally people who have been HIV positive for like 17 years," she said.

"He said, 'Oh really? Wow."'

"It's not the same as the '80s," the woman is heard explaining to the detective who made the recording in August 2003.

"You're not going to be dead in three years."

She died in April 2004, two days after she gave a sworn videotaped statement to police in which she could only nod that her previous statement was true.

Hi Bizz,

I am aware of this case. I am in Toronto now. There is a growing number of countries taking similar positions regarding disclosure. but Thailand is not one of them. It is growing in Europe though.

I would like to thank everyone who has replied to my issue, especially mommysboy and jingthing. I like jingthing's quote " It is every person's personal responsibility to protect yourself from HIV infection." This was my mistake and thank God I am not paying for it. My ex is paying for her mistakes and my heart reaches out to her. It is a great burden to carry. I have learned my lesson and if anyone else reads this thread please take heed.

I remember the 80's as well. I worked in a company where more than half the employees were gay. The world has lost alot of good people to this virus. Many of them were good friends. I am not gay and I remember in those gays that it appeared to be a gay problem. You do make sense to me that responsibilty does rest on the shoulders of the individual.