Uganda president
denounces new HIV findings

The latest study showing that male circumcision reduces the risk of HIV infection has been condemned by Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni, Reuters reported Friday. The president said the findings send a dangerous message that reckless behavior is permissible as long as men take this precaution.

The study showed that circumcisions could prevent upward of 1.4 million infections, reducing the risk of infection by about half.

Museveni attributed his country's drop in HIV infections during the 1990s to his advising young people to abstain from sex.

According to Reuters, the study had said circumcision is to be seen as "only part of a broader HIV prevention strategy that includes limiting...sexual partners and using condoms."

The government organization, the Uganda AIDS Commission, said 132,000 new infections occurred in Uganda in 2005, remaining at the rate of about 6% to 7%. Reuters reports that many health workers think the official figures are too low. (Reuters)