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HIV/AIDS as widely discussed as crime - IDASA
11 March 2005. IRIN PlusNews. Republished courtesy of IRIN PlusNews.
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The Institute for Democracy in South Africa (IDASA) says the number of people claiming to have lost family members or friends to HIV/AIDS has doubled, leading to greater concern about the disease in the country, Reuters reported.
"HIV/AIDS is now tied with crime as the public's second most frequently mentioned priority problem that faces the country. These everyday experiences, rather than any increased attention by the news media, offer the best explanation of the rising public attention to HIV and AIDS," IDASA noted.
Although HIV/AIDS is generally a taboo subject for discussion in most of Africa, former president Nelson Mandela and other well-known South Africans have boosted efforts to encourage public disclosure and end the stigma attached to HIV infection.
South Africa has the highest HIV/AIDS caseload in the world, with an estimated five million of the country's 45 million population living with the virus.
This item is delivered to the English Service of the United Nations' Humanitarian Information Unit but, may not necessarily reflect the views of the UN |
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