Your daily Selection of IRIN Africa PlusNews reports, 10/28/2005

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[These reports do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

CONTENT:

1 - SOUTHERN AFRICA: AIDS-prevention policies promote stigma - expert

1 - SOUTHERN AFRICA: AIDS-prevention policies promote stigma - expert

PRETORIA, 28 October (PLUSNEWS) - Father is not one to shy away

from controversy. In his opening address to a conference on HIV-related stigma

and discrimination this week in Pretoria, South Africa, he asked: " When was the

last time you heard a minister at church say, 'let us celebrate good sex'? "

According to , HIV/AIDS was still associated with immoral sexual behaviour

and divine punishment, fuelling stigma against HIV positive people. " But sex is

good and wonderful, " he said. " The real sins are stigma and discrimination. "

is an Irish Jesuit priest who has lived in Zambia since 1955 and lectures

in education at the University of Zambia. He is now a world-renowned AIDS

expert.

The meeting of researchers and activists was organised by the Regional AIDS

Initiative of Southern Africa (RAISA), an initiative of the UK-based development

organisation, Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO). RAISA/VSO operates in Malawi,

Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

" With antiretrovirals we can cope with HIV, but there is no medicine against

stigma, " said Bam, a young Namibian woman who set up a support group

for mothers living with HIV/AIDS when she was rejected by her family after

losing her husband and baby daughter to AIDS.

warned that policies and principles applied by top aid agencies were

actually contributing to stigma, and cited the cornerstone of the international

AIDS response - behaviour change - which places the responsibility for HIV

transmission on the individual.

This approach, said , institutionalised blame and stigma at the heart of

the policy, turning HIV/AIDS into someone else's problem. He added that the

limited " focus on behavioural change misses the point - HIV/AIDS is a broader

problem of poverty, underdevelopment and inequality. "

" International agencies pour condoms into poor countries and forget there is no

clean water, " he observed.

a Clay, regional director of the AIDS and Rights Alliance for Southern

Africa, agreed. " The focus on behaviour change ignores that many women are not

in a position to choose safe sex, change power relations or transcend poverty,

race and gender disparities, " she pointed out.

With vast amounts of money flowing into antiretroviral treatment (ART)

programmes, prevention efforts have been sidelined in terms of both resource

allocation and public perception.

" Without prevention, we are creating an ART time bomb that the world will be

unable to fund, " cautioned.

Another policy inadvertently giving rise to stigma was aid agencies' targeting

HIV-positive people, while ignoring equally needy people in the community. This

raised resentment and prejudice against people living with HIV/AIDS, and could

create an incentive for people to become infected with the virus to receive aid.

Aid agencies working with orphans had become aware of the problem and were now

targeting all orphans and vulnerable children in a community, not only those

affected by AIDS.

However, stigma would only be eradicated once gender inequalities in society had

been tackled, the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS and all human rights

were protected, and health services were made more widely available.

" Cutting the roots of stigma and discrimination will make the tree of AIDS

wither and die, " said .

Among the participants was leading AIDS activist Lynde Francis, founder of The

Centre, an HIV/AIDS NGO, and the first white person in Zimbabwe to publicly

disclose her HIV-positive status.

" It is comforting to see that the person least likely to experience

discrimination - a white male in his seventies, a priest, a university lecturer

and an intellectual - has such a good understanding of the stigma and

discrimination that we suffer. "

[ENDS]

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Subscriber: AIDS treatments

[Guest guest]

Well what worked for us is legislation against discrimination that was

enforceable and education about the effects of stigma.

Geoff Heaviside

HIV/AIDS Policy Consultant

Convenor - Brimbank Community Initiatives Inc

Secretary - International Centre for Health Equity Inc

Member - Australasian Society for HIV Medicine Inc

Member - ILGA Brussels

P.O. Box 606 Sunshine 3020

. Australia.

Ph: 0418 328 278

Ph/Fax : (61 3) 9449 1856

or in India

Mr Geoff Heaviside

Mobile : (91) 9840 097 178

(SMS when not in India)

" The new century is not going to be new at all if we offer only charity,

that palliative to satisfy the conscience and keep the same old system of

haves and have-nots quietly contained. "

>From: " IRIN " <IRIN@...>

>Reply-AIDS treatments

> " Chiffu Chifu " <AIDS treatments >

>Subject: Your daily Selection of IRIN Africa PlusNews reports,

>10/28/2005

>Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 16:00:31 -0700

>

>

>

>U N I T E D N A T I O N S

>Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

>Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN) - 1995-2005 ten years

>serving the humanitarian community

>

>[These reports do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

>

>CONTENT:

>

>1 - SOUTHERN AFRICA: AIDS-prevention policies promote stigma - expert

>

>

>1 - SOUTHERN AFRICA: AIDS-prevention policies promote stigma - expert

>

>PRETORIA, 28 October (PLUSNEWS) - Father is not one to shy

>away from controversy. In his opening address to a conference on

>HIV-related stigma and discrimination this week in Pretoria, South Africa,

>he asked: " When was the last time you heard a minister at church say, 'let

>us celebrate good sex'? "

>

>According to , HIV/AIDS was still associated with immoral sexual

>behaviour and divine punishment, fuelling stigma against HIV positive

>people. " But sex is good and wonderful, " he said. " The real sins are stigma

>and discrimination. "

>

> is an Irish Jesuit priest who has lived in Zambia since 1955 and

>lectures in education at the University of Zambia. He is now a

>world-renowned AIDS expert.

>

>The meeting of researchers and activists was organised by the Regional AIDS

>Initiative of Southern Africa (RAISA), an initiative of the UK-based

>development organisation, Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO). RAISA/VSO

>operates in Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

>

> " With antiretrovirals we can cope with HIV, but there is no medicine

>against stigma, " said Bam, a young Namibian woman who set up a

>support group for mothers living with HIV/AIDS when she was rejected by her

>family after losing her husband and baby daughter to AIDS.

>

> warned that policies and principles applied by top aid agencies were

>actually contributing to stigma, and cited the cornerstone of the

>international AIDS response - behaviour change - which places the

>responsibility for HIV transmission on the individual.

>

>This approach, said , institutionalised blame and stigma at the heart

>of the policy, turning HIV/AIDS into someone else's problem. He added that

>the limited " focus on behavioural change misses the point - HIV/AIDS is a

>broader problem of poverty, underdevelopment and inequality. "

>

> " International agencies pour condoms into poor countries and forget there

>is no clean water, " he observed.

>

>a Clay, regional director of the AIDS and Rights Alliance for

>Southern Africa, agreed. " The focus on behaviour change ignores that many

>women are not in a position to choose safe sex, change power relations or

>transcend poverty, race and gender disparities, " she pointed out.

>

>With vast amounts of money flowing into antiretroviral treatment (ART)

>programmes, prevention efforts have been sidelined in terms of both

>resource allocation and public perception.

>

> " Without prevention, we are creating an ART time bomb that the world will

>be unable to fund, " cautioned.

>

>Another policy inadvertently giving rise to stigma was aid agencies'

>targeting HIV-positive people, while ignoring equally needy people in the

>community. This raised resentment and prejudice against people living with

>HIV/AIDS, and could create an incentive for people to become infected with

>the virus to receive aid.

>

>Aid agencies working with orphans had become aware of the problem and were

>now targeting all orphans and vulnerable children in a community, not only

>those affected by AIDS.

>

>However, stigma would only be eradicated once gender inequalities in

>society had been tackled, the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS and all

>human rights were protected, and health services were made more widely

>available.

>

> " Cutting the roots of stigma and discrimination will make the tree of AIDS

>wither and die, " said .

>

>Among the participants was leading AIDS activist Lynde Francis, founder of

>The Centre, an HIV/AIDS NGO, and the first white person in Zimbabwe to

>publicly disclose her HIV-positive status.

>

> " It is comforting to see that the person least likely to experience

>discrimination - a white male in his seventies, a priest, a university

>lecturer and an intellectual - has such a good understanding of the stigma

>and discrimination that we suffer. "

>

>

>[ENDS]

>

>

>We have sent this message from a no-reply address to avoid bounced messages

>into our general email folder. Please do not hesitate to contact us at

>Mail@... with any comments or questions you may have

>

>[This Item is Delivered to the English Service of the UN's IRIN

>humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views

>of the United Nations. For further information, free subscriptions, or

>to change your keywords, contact e-mail: Irin@... or Web:

>http://www.irinnews.org . If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post

>this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Reposting by

>commercial sites requires written IRIN permission.]

>

>Copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2005

>

>

>

>IRIN Contacts:

>

>PLUSNEWS

>Tel: +27 11 895-1900

>Fax: +27 11 784-6759

>Email: Mail@...

>

>To make changes to or cancel your subscription visit:

>http://www.irinnews.org/subscriptions

>

>Subscriber: AIDS treatments

>

>