FEATURES
February 2021 Issue
The AYAT of Ilocanos written by Edgar Bagasol Jr.
The fast-growing HIV/AIDS epidemic in the country has been alarming. And as an advocate, I have always wanted to initiate something for this cause, especially in my province, Ilocos Norte. It was a Saturday late evening last October when I finally had the guts to invite Jurgen Rapacon, a nurse and a fellow advocate, to start an HIV cause in Ilocos Norte. I first met Jurgen in a virtual orientation organized by another HIV-focused group here in Manila on that same day and the moment I knew that he is an Ilocano, I immediately looked for him on social media and prepared my speech. I was actually quite hesitant to connect with him at first because of his background but, I’d say now, pushing that send button is one of the things that I will always be grateful for in my life. That invitation I sent him that night has now turned into something transformative and meaningful. In November 2020, the AYAT advocacy was born. The AYAT advocacy is my vision. Since I graduated from college, I have always wanted to lead an HIV-related cause in my home province where HIV cases are still low in numbers, but so is the level of Ilocano’s awareness about HIV; it’s almost a strange topic for them. And Jurgen can attest to this saying that most Ilocanos, if not all, are still very conservative and that conversations about sex and anything related to it, including HIV, are still a taboo and highly stigmatized. Our conversations went on for days and even weeks, discussing about what something could we do to increase the Ilocanos’ awareness on HIV and normalize sex conversations while considering the Ilocano’s religious orthodoxy. We were hesitant to
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introduce beliefs and behaviors that may sound intrusive or imposing for them given the fact that not many programs have been implemented about HIV specifically in Ilocos. We reflected as we conversed and finally in November, we arrived at a common ground: Love. We both agreed that by sharing the value of love, we will be able to empower our fellow Ilocanos with the right knowledge and attitude towards taking care of oneself, and by extension, protecting oneself from HIV.
Digital campaigns - Maximize social media platforms to spark awareness on HIV/AIDS and facilitate discourse to address stigma and discrimination against affected individuals.
From then on, we started gathering more Ilocano advocates, engaging them to our conversations; unpacking their opinions about the sex culture in Ilocos, as well as with their insights on the strategies on how we can effectively communicate our cause to the people without sounding too combative to Ilocano’s conservative beliefs. Grounded from these shared conversations and reflections, we agreed to call our group, the AYAT advocacy. An Ilocano term for love, “AYAT” stands for Advocates Yearning for an Ardent and Transformative HIV advocacy in Ilocos.
Shared advocacy - Explore opportunities for networking and partnerships with key stakeholders, including government institutions, international and private groups, medical and civil societies, and people’s organizations to ensure optimum impact in the communities we mutually serve.
Our vision, mission, and strategies
Building capacities - Capacitate individuals on leadership, technical, creative and life skills as a way of empowering the self and the community.
Care and support - Serve as a safe space for everyone, especially for people living with HIV, by fostering inclusivity, embracing sex positivity, and providing psychosocial support.
Initiated as an HIV awareness and support group, AYAT advocacy envisions championing self and community empowerment in Ilocos by embracing the values of love and equity. By mobilizing a community of ardent advocates, we strive to realize this vision through these strategies:
These strategies are also grounded from our shared core values: ayat (love), gagar (passion), and panagkaykaysa (unity). Love drives our passion for the advocacy and unity to transform stigmatizing notions about HIV and sex, combat discrimination towards people affected by it, and make Ilocos free from HIV by imparting people Community outreach - Utilize our the right knowledge and preventive praccapacities and resources to conduct tices against the virus. HIV education drives and provide other sexual health services, includ- Ardent Ilocano youth heed the call ing but not limited to, HIV preven- When we started AYAT, we did not expect tion, testing and counseling, and things to go smoothly, yet the number of linkage to care. people who see the same vision as us, increased drastically. From just me and Jurgen, we are now joined by over 50 Ilocano
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