Her husband has had sex with prostitutes in Indonesia and Malaysia. Now, he is in an affair with a lounge hostess in China, and has had sex with her without using condoms.
Yet Jane (not her real name), 49, continues to have unprotected sex with him. While she fears contracting HIV and other sexually-transmitted infections, there's one thing Jane fears even more: That her husband will leave the family.
The family is financially dependent on him, said Jane to The New Paper (TNP). Two of her three sons are still in school and she has no savings, she said. Her three children are aged 13 to 24.
While the oldest is working, he can only contribute $200 to the family. And Jane is worried that her poor O-level qualifications and age would make it hard for her to find a job that would allow her to support the two younger children. These concerns put paid to her earlier thoughts of divorcing her husband, who works in the construction industry and earns $4,000 a month.
Jane told TNP that her husband, who is also 49, said he would not leave the family if he is given "freedom".
But his freedom could soon be curtailed by the law should the proposed changes to the Infectious Diseases Act go through. The changes affect those who are at risk of getting HIV or Aids, regardless whether they know they have the diseases or not.
Under the proposed changes, such a person must:
1) Inform the partner about the risk
2) Test negative for HIV and not risk HIV infection after that
3) Take reasonable precautions during sex, like wearing a condom
