Are we losing the battle in the dark?
2006-06-08
IT’S more than two decades since the first cases of what was then called the ‘slimming’ or ‘gay’ disease was reported, but the past looks better than what is to come.
Stigma and discrimination still exist and much more young and old are succumbing to this dreadful disease, which is wiping away our communities, crippling our economy and orphaning the future generation.
With prominent leaders failing to acknowledge the rapid spread and scourge that this epidemic is causing the future looks rather scary.
I have worked in the field of HIV/Aids all my working life, but I still get shivers when people talk about their HIV positive status, because it is mainly women that take the forefront - even homebased carers in my community are 100% women.
During the recent candlelight memorial held in Mbekweni, I saw flashes of light at the end of this dark tunnel, when the Mayor of Drakenstein, Charmaine Manuel, said, “let us sensitise people that are not involved in the fight against Aids”.
This made me think about President Museveni of Uganda, who because of his political commitment to the struggle against Aids, saw the levels of HIV infection dropping drastically in his country.
Also Dr Nelis Grobbelaar made me proud when he said, “people infected with HIV/Aids should take ARVS because they save lives”.
And I thought, if only this change of events happened earlier, it would have saved our late brothers, sisters, parents and colleagues who paid the price with their lives because of people that put forward their naive, uninformed political careers instead of people’s lives.
I hope to see generations free from Aids, but that will only become reality if you and me put our collaborative efforts in combatting the spread on HIV/Aids.
Having lost family and friends to HIV/Aids I can’t help but say I write what I like and Aluta Continua Comrades!
SK Shumi
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