No Death Wish

'It is possible to have a generation without HIV/AIDS - we are the ones to make it possible.' Graça Machel.

It was an eye-opener to see the statistics on HIV/AIDS in South Africa. This is the reality and it is something we all have to face. But what gets my goat is the fact that our country has no set national plan on improving the problem. We are sitting with a president who recognises the issue of HIV/AIDS but doesn’t recognise the severity of the impact and future of HIV. Then we are sitting with a Minister of Health who is a fool to think a diet consisting of certain foods is more effective than anti-retroviral drugs. Wake up South Africa!

We are the youth of our country. We must make a difference by making ourselves good examples:

• Practice safe sex
• Educate others
• Eradicate the stigma of HIV/AIDS as a filthy disease
• And support those who have contracted the disease

Here is a website which can help us understand more about HIV/AIDS : http://www.tac.org.za. This is the website for the Treatment Action Campaign which fights for the right to affordable means of treating this disease.

I also think it is very important to know the procedures when it comes to HIV/AIDS in the workplace. That is why I would just like to thank Ms. Randall for opening my eyes and making me more aware of something this serious. We need more people like her out there who are willing to educate people to understand how the disease works and to not stereotype the disease as a death-wish.