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Youth Day Message from KZN MEC for Health
Dr Zweli Mkhize - KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Health Republished courtesy of Independent Newspapers (Pty) Ltd
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In 1976 the youth of our country led the struggle for a democratic and free South Africa. That struggle was eventually won with the liberation of our country in 1994, when we had the first democratic elections. The youth of that time took the lead and did not wait for the leadership to show the way. Today, our youth and country are faced with a new challenge - the challenge of HIV and AIDS.
The struggle now is for an AIDS-free generation. Here too, our province is looking to its youth for that same militance and sense of urgency in combatting HIV and AIDS.
The recent Abstinence Walk Challenge from Port Shepstone to Pietermaritzburg to raise awareness about sexual abstinence was a bold initiative by some of the youth, again showing that the youth of our country always rise up to challenges. They are the heroes of today, and they have not only talked the talk but also walked the walk, on the long road to sexual abstinence. To these committed ambassadors, we say: "Phamibili with sexual abstinence!".
This is the kind of commitment required from all of us - to take concrete steps in the fight against this epidemic as individuals, families and as communities. We call upon all youth to do likewise, and take up the challenge, committing themselves to concrete action and making a meaningful contribution to the fight against HIV/AIDS. They have already started with the Abstinence Walk Challenge - let there be more.
As government, we would like to commend such initiatives and we thank those who made it possible. We hope that such an initiative is not going to be a once-off event, but rather a catalyst for a wave of communal and social mobilsation of our youth to take pride in sexual abstinence. Today, there is a growing trend among many people whereby talk of sexual abstinence is dismissed as old-fashioned. Among many of our young people, such talk is seen as indicating that something is wrong with a person choosing to practise abstinence.
To those young people who have been under pressure from their peers to give up when choosing to practise abstinence, we are saying to you and all other young people: there is nothing wrong with you if you choose to abstain from sex. It is okay to delay sex until you feel ready and are old enough to make responsible decisions.
As we celebrate Youth Day, let the memory and militance of the youth of 1976 be the driving force motivating the youth of today in the war against AIDS, and in taking up such bold initiatives as the Abstinence Walk Challenge. Such initiatives challenge all of us to do the same in our own lives - to commit ourselves, from today onwards, to take seriously the urgency of HIV/AIDS and to implement effective preventative measures to protect ourselves from this epidemic.
The role of the youth in the fight against HIV/AIDS can never be over-emphasised, especially now that we are beginning to see a downward trend for KwaZulu-Natal with regard to infection rates. The latest statistics indicate a significant decline in the number of HIV infections amongst our people. Current statistics have shown that the KZN sero-prevalence has decreased from 36,2% in 2000 to 33,5% in 2001. This is good news, and we need to commend those men and women and the young people of this province for making this change possible. Let the motto of this year for each one of us on Youth Day be: "Prevention is better than cure." This must inform our conduct, not only in theory, but in practice.
All of us must now begin to implement and practise this saying in our daily lives. We must take personal responsibility for our health and commit ourselves to doing something concrete, and not just talk about being safe from HIV/AIDS. This is what we must all do - make a concrete decision to do something in the way we live, the way we relate to others, our wives, our husbands, our partners, something that will promote prevention of the spread of HIV/AIDS. We all know what we must do, now it is time to practise it. Many of us are guilty of the sin of omission - doing nothing to protect ourselves from getting infected.
We all know that all one needs to do is to abstain from sex, be faithful to one partner or use a condom. It is as simple as ABC. These are the things that we have to do as individuals and only then will we see the downward trend of infection continuing. These are not things that government can do for us. We have to do them ourselves - government cannot make us faithful to our partners; government cannot make us use condoms or abstain from sex.
Only an individual can make that decision and choice. We are now at a stage in our fight against the epidemic where the role of the individual is being called for more and more. We will continue as government with awareness programmes, we will seek to provide access to treatment for all our people and we will continue to support those affected and infected. But we will need you too to play your role. Only when young people, in particular, take responsibility for their health, will the situation in KZN change significantly.
Happy Youth Day, and may you have joyous celebrations.
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