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UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon says:
"Stigma remains the single most important barrier to public action. It is a main reason why too many people are afraid to see a doctor to determine whether they have the disease, or to seek treatment if so. It helps make AIDS the silent killer, because people fear the social disgrace of speaking about it, or taking easily available precautions. Stigma is a chief reason why the AIDS epidemic continues to devastate societies around the world" ....
This week on Upfront we discussed the issue of AIDS-related stigma. We had some interesting guests from the continent including Rodrick a South African AIDS activist and counselor who has been living with HIV for almost two decades.
I also reached out to my friend Kenyan professor and women's rights activist Dr.Pauline Muchina. We explore the issue with the view that women as caretakers are often at the receiving end of much of AIDS related stigma. AIDS Stigma refers to the prejudice and discrimination towards people living with HIV/AIDS.
Stigma makes dealing with HIV/AIDS much harder because it leads to rejection and discrimination.
In most societies including developed countries, stigma comes in many forms and manifests itself differently between communities and individuals.
Health experts say that stigma makes it more difficult for people trying to come to terms with and manage their illness on a personal level, but it also interferes with attempts to fight the AIDS epidemic as a whole.
Clarence Rodrick says that progress has been made in the attitudes of people since 1999, the year he went public about his HIV status. He says that one of the biggest setbacks in South Africa's fight against AIDS has been the public officials who are responsible for making health policy decisions. These individuals often lack the knowledge about HIV and some are guilty of the stigma that they should be fighting. The result is a government that takes slow, ineffective action against the epidemic.
One of the biggest problems in the HIV fight is the reluctance of people to go for HIV testing, treatment and care. They fear to be ostracized by their communities if they are found to be HIV positive. Thus many are not aware of their status until it is late and the retro viral treatments are less effective. Importantly,they risk spreading the virus to their partners.
