Asia / Pacific

Thailand

RSAT at Mardi Gras 2008.

Rainbow Sky Association of Thailand (RSAT) at Mardi Gras 2008.

Bangkok partnership

ACON has a partnership with the Rainbow Sky Association of Thailand (RSAT). RSAT is the key organisation in Thailand working with GLBT communities. They have a strong focus on HIV prevention work with MSM and, like ACON, undertake this work within a broader framework of GLBT community health and human rights.

ACON and RSAT participated in a series of staff exchanges in 2006/07 and since then, funding from AusAID’s Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development Program has enabled us to place ACON staff members in Bangkok for twelve-month rotating assignments.

These assignments have included:

Collaborating with RSAT to deliver HIV education campaigns in Thailand and Australia
Working with UNAIDS on their growing advocacy work on MSM and HIV in the Asia Pacific region

A key aspect of this work is the Asia-Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health Project which brings together international donors, community organisations and other stakeholders in the region to galvanise support for addressing the escalating HIV epidemic among MSM.