Ex-official Chen Bingzhong, who suffers from terminal liver cancer, has issued a letter calling on the government to come clean about a blood selling scandal that infected up to 100,000 people with HIV in the 1990s (an estimate that, if correct, would make up over 1/7 of all infections to date.) Distributed by the Beijing Aizhixing Institute, the letter pushes for an open investigation into the incident where villagers in Henan were infected via donation and transfusion practices between 1992 and 2004: "Collectors paid villagers to give their blood, pooled it without testing for HIV or anything else, extracted the valuable plasma then re-injected the blood back into those who sold it." Yeesh. What's worse, at least 10 victims have been sent to labor camps for attempting to receive reparations. Yet another example of the government attempting to protect it's image by simply damaging it further. more ›

As reported on Monday, renowned Australian author Robert Dessaix was denied a Chinese Visa to enter the country on the alleged grounds that he is HIV-positive…and, consequently, people are pissed. more ›

In China, paranoia is never too far away, but now an anxious bunch are not even letting medical diagnoses put their minds at rest. BBC News' Chris Hogg reported that hundreds of people in China believe they may have a "new disease with HIV-like symptoms", while doctors claim this is all in the mind. more ›

Woman's thought bubble: "I've heard you can contract AIDS from holding hands or eating with an infected person." Man's thought bubble: "I believe I could get AIDS from a mosquito bite." Voice over guy: "Actually mosquito bites and and holding hands, eating with infected persons can not cause you to contract AIDS. Don't misunderstand AIDS. And even more, don't discriminate against AIDS carriers." "Good friends are friends, whether they have AIDS or not. Let our world not have misunderstanding or discrimination." - Yao Ming. more ›

• “Zhejiang University Girl” Exposed By Human Flesh Search [Chinasmack] "On the evening of April 11th, through the human flesh search of netizens, the person who concocted “Zhejiang University Girl” came forward to apologize. The netizen passing as Zhejiang University Girl is “河谷渔风” ["He Gu Yu Feng"], from Jinhua in Zhejiang province, a male, born 1976 December 17. He admitted “Zhejiang University Girl” was fabricated. Reporters contacted and interviewed “河谷渔风”. “Writing this post was simply a fenqing vent. In the beginning it was posted on Tianya, there was no intention to target Zhejiang University, and even less to point at Professor Zheng Qiang.”"
• After Olympics, national spirit soars while human rights lag [USATODAY] "Not everyone agrees the billions spent on hosting the Summer Games was worthwhile. "I hoped the Olympic Games could improve my life, but they only brought disaster," says Zhang Wei, whose home was demolished in 2006 to make way for an Olympic makeover project just south of Tiananmen Square. She applied for a permit to protest but instead was sent to detention for a month. "The police told me it was because I told the truth about the demolition of my property to journalists," she says."
• Will Ditching The9 Help World Of Warcraft Get Past Chinese Censors? [Business Insider] "Starting in June, NetEase (NTES) will get exclusive operating rights to run the game in mainland China, replacing Blizzard's longtime partner The9 (NCTY), according to reports in Chinese media. Hopefully a new partner will help Blizzard through what's been a difficult period in its relations with the Chinese government. Blizz's latest Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King, still isn't on sale in China."

Is forcing men into unwanted marriages helping the spread of AIDS? According to Zhang Beichuan, a professor at Qingdao University, that—and the lack of men willing to out themselves by taking an AIDS test—has been holding back efforts to treat the endemic. HIV/AIDS was recently declared the deadliest infectious disease in the country. more ›