Archives

by Hanna Jackiewicz

Last year there were 4,800 reported cases of HIV/AIDS on our little Island alone. Yet this figure fails to consider those who still hide in the shadows. For years here, it has been denied that HIV/AIDS is a problem world wide. Sri Lanka has not been spared from this epidemic because whether we like it or not, people are having sex, and AIDS does not discriminate.

Every minute of every day, five people die of AIDS. However, the real culprit has been prejudice towards those with HIV/AIDS. Minister of Health and Nutrition, P. Dayaratne, said that "fear of discrimination prevents people from admitting and seeking help, afraid that families will reject them, they'll be evicted from their home. Because of this, children have become orphans, abandoned. We need to change our attitude and remove the stigma attached to those effected."

In the past year, governments and NGOs around the world have been discussing the future availability of drugs that could buy time for those with HIV/AIDS, but Chairman of Lanka Plus, Nigel de Silva said that for many of those who still live in fear, it might be too late. It's harsh judgements that have made people too afraid to seek help that could remedy and slow down the effects of the virus.

Despite years of denial, Sri Lanka's youth are becoming increasingly liberal and much more sexually active. Nigel de Silva said, "Many adults have sex outside marriage, and young people are especially vulnerable because they have multiple partners."

With this in mind, setting aside moral and ethical connotations, people need to be equipped with the knowledge and education of HIV/AIDS prevention, as well as the support for those who carry it. The ignorance of AIDS as a threat among Sri Lankan people themselves, and the stigma attached to this disease has made people hide their condition from the public, enabling it to spread further because people fear violence, abandonment, and discrimination from their friends and families.

Head of the AIDS Coalition, D. Kamalika Abeyaratne, who has dedicated herself to the struggle of protecting the rights of people with HIV/AIDS, said; "AIDS does not discriminate, so nor should you." This year's theme for the 15th World's AIDS Day was "live and let live."

They emphasized that HIV/AIDS is not something that is spread by the kindness of a helping hand or a warm embrace, but still people have ignorantly feared the disease, and ostracised those who struggle with it.

The harsh reality of HIV/AIDS is that 4.2 million people in South Asia are infected, and it continues to rapidly increase as people lack the knowledge for testing and prevention, especially those who live in poverty.

Stephen Lewis, UN envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa said that "people are speaking quite casually of 100 million deaths before the pandemic is under control, and if there is no turn-around, that figure could be 200 million, exceeding anything seen in World War I, World War II, or even the Black Death that devastated Europe in the 14th century."

www.ppilk.com

News | Business | Features | Editorial | Security
Politics | World | Letters | Sports | Obituaries

Produced by Lake House
Copyright © 2003 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
Comments and suggestions to :Web Manager