AIDS CANDLELIGHT MEMORIAL

Through the Health Services Office, the city government of Baguio remembers the lives lost due to AIDS during the 2025 International AIDS Candlelight Memorial on May 16, 2025, at the Baguio Convention and Cultural Center grounds.

Mayor Benjamin Magalong led the candlelight ceremony with city council members Hon. Betty Lourdes Tabanda, Hon. Elmer Datuin, City Health Officer Celia Flor Brillantes, and stakeholders.

As of February 2025, there are already 734 AIDS/HIV cases in the city of Baguio since the start of documentation in 1984. Out of the 734 cases, 685 are males and 49 are females.

HIV patients are as young as 15 years old, with a median age of 17-21, and most of the cases are males having sex with males.

HIV is a sexually transmitted disease caused by a virus that attacks the body’s immune system. If HIV is not treated, it can lead to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). – JMPS/📸NCO