WORLD AIDS DAY,1ST DECEMBER
STIGMA & DISCRIMINATION
Love us and let us live.

It does not matter from what angle you look, AIDS is a terrible thing, and it is going to be with us at least for the foreseeable future.
Even if a vaccine were developed tomorrow, the number of people infected is already enormous. Even if a cure were found today, the number of people dead is great and the effect on all those whose lives indirectly have been touched by this dreadful illness will last for decades. How can we bear the pain of this development in world history? How can we deal with Aids and not either engage in full-scale denial or be immobilized?
The world set the 1st of December each year to be commemorated as world aids day. This is a time to reflect on the reality and existence of the pandemic and also to appreciate the impact that it has on human life. No one can deny the existence of the disease as it is affecting everyone either directly or indirectly.

One gets astounded when one reflects on how grave the scourge has spread within a short period of time since its discovery.
To appreciate the extent to which the pandemic has affected the entire world, Africa and Malawi in particular, consider the following statistics.
The end of the year 2001,40 million people were living with HIV/Aids infected 5 million infected in that year and 3 million died because of the disease. Let us get a little closer to home.
Sub-Saharan Africa only accounts for 10% of the global population, but it
Accounts for 70% of total Aids infections
Accounts for 80% of global Aids deaths
Accounts for 83% of all HIV positive women
Accounts for 87% of all HIV positive children

Getting more down to earth by getting home.
Malawi is one of the countries with the highest number of people living with aids, and the number continues to grow every single day.
For a clear understanding, a few more statistics will do
15% of people of ages between 15 –49 are positive, 60% of whom are females.
A real shock is that 250 Malawians are infected everyday, 60% of whom are youth and of the 60% youth, 90-% are females!!
The male –female Aids contraction rate is 1:6 imagine!
From the year 2000,70,000 people dies yearly because of the disease
7 out of 10 people admitted in government hospitals are due to aids related infections.
More than half a million orphans have been generated because of the disease with 70,000 added every year. Statistics such as the above are so overwhelming such that we cannot afford to keep our mouths shut and watch the killer finish us on by one.

The theme for this year is stigma and discrimination: love us and let us live, which through our actions, most people have made it live and let die. By having the diseased, people are often stigmatized as immoral and discriminated against.
We forget that not everyone is getting the disease through sexual involvement, and even if that be the case, who is man to condemn another person whom God, the creator does not condemn?
The impact of stigma can be as detrimental as the virus itself. The solitude and lack of support it imposes are deeply wounding to those who suffer it. It should also hurt every one of us, for it is an affront to our common humanity. Some people with AIDS are being denied basic rights such as food or shelter, and dismissed from jobs they are perfectly fit to perform, and even denied education opportunities. They may be shunned by their community, or most tragic of all, by their own family. The fear of stigma leads to silence, and when it comes to fighting AIDS, silence is death. It suppresses public discussion about AIDS, and deters people from finding out whether they are infected. It can cause people reluctant to disclose their HIV status - to risk transmitting HIV rather than attract suspicion that they might be infected. By adopting the slogan "Live and Let Live", this year's World AIDS Campaign challenges us to ensure that all people, with or without HIV, can realize their human rights and live in dignity. On this World AIDS Day, let us resolve to replace stigma with support, fear with hope, and silence with solidarity. Let us act on the understanding that this work begins with each and every one of us.

Yours truly

TAYANIE