'Mobile men with money': the socio-cultural and politico-economic
context of 'high-risk' behaviour among wealthy businessmen and
government officials in urban China

China's transition from an injection drug-driven HIV epidemic to one
primarily transmitted through sexual contact has triggered concern
over the potential for HIV to move into the non-drug-injecting
population.

Much discussion has focused on the migrant men of China's
vast 'floating population' who are considered a high-risk group. As a
result, many men who frequently engage in high-risk behaviour but are
not included in this especially vulnerable group are evading HIV
prevention messages.

This paper highlights the socio-cultural and politico-economic
factors that motivate many of China's wealthy businessmen and
government officials, sometimes referred to as 'mobile men with
money', to engage in such behaviour.

Examination of the activities related to the work of these men
reveals a situation where the confluence of a market-oriented economy
operating within a socialist-style political system under the
influence of traditional networking practices has engendered a unique
mode of patron-clientelism that brings them together over shared
social rituals including feasting, drinking and female-centered
entertainment that is often coupled with sexual services.

As a result, consideration of the socio-cultural factors influencing
these men's sexual practices is important for responding to the newly
emerging stage of China's HIV epidemic.

Author: Elanah Uretsky
Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS, Yale University, USA
DOI: 10.1080/13691050802380966
Publication Frequency: 8 issues per year
Published in: Culture, Health & Sexuality, Volume 10, Issue 8
November 2008 , pages 801 - 814