God, AIDS, Africa & HOPE

Reflections / Gedanken

11/08/2009 • 2:17 am Comments Off on 08.11.2009 Peacekeeping yes – priest no

08.11.2009 Peacekeeping yes – priest no

The following story triggered in me a question:

A first for soldiers living with HIV By Latoya Newman IOL

A KwaZulu-Natal soldier has become the first known HIV-positive soldier to be deployed externally by the SA National Defence Force.  In a statement on Tuesday, the Aids Law Project said the sergeant, from 121 SAI Battalion, based in Mtubatuba, had made history on Friday when he was deployed on a peacekeeping mission to Sudan. This follows a May 2008 judgment declaring the SANDF’s HIV-testing policies – which were used to exclude people with HIV from recruitment, promotion or foreign deployment – unconstitutional.
The SA Security Forces Union welcomed the man’s deployment, but union president Bhekinkosi Mvovo said that the union could not celebrate until the SANDF had completely changed its policy in this regard. Mvovo said the SANDF was dragging its feet in instructing its commanders that HIV-positive soldiers could no longer be held back because of their status. Project spokesperson S’khumbuzo Maphumulo said: “The sergeant was originally excluded when his unit was scheduled for deployment to Sudan. “It was only after the project intervened that the chief of the army issued an instruction on September 28, authorising his deployment to Sudan. “The project has been informed that the sergeant departed for Sudan on Friday,” he added.

A soldier living with HIV can go and serve as a peacekeeper
A diplomat living with HIV can go and serve his country,
A priest living with HIV can serve his church and the faithful,

well only if he was lucky to be already ordained before the infection was detected. Which seminary takes a man with vocation in, when he is HIV positive in our days? Please tell me since when God has mad HIV a criteria for vocations?

Filed under: Politics and Society, Reflection, , , , , , , ,

10/28/2009 • 5:25 pm Comments Off on 28.10.2009 450 youngsters…

28.10.2009 450 youngsters…

A big surprise when I enter the Liebfrauen church in Bitburg for the first part of my day: talking and celebrating a prayer service with the students of the St. Willibrord Gymnasium. Round about 450 students are filling the church – I am not sure what I thought before but I was indeed surprised to see so many youngsters. Talk and service went well, we were able to connect and it seems, at least according to some teachers afterwards, the noise level was significant lower than in other services. The youngsters listened – a good experience and quite energizing for me. And energy I needed: After the service I met with 120 students of class 13 – the Abitur class.  At the “Haus der Jugend” we had time to discuss matters and to try to bridge the gap between South Africa and Germany. And again an audience to connect to – with good questions and I hope some good answers too.

Prevention, treatment, sexuality, sangomas, academic research, grass root projects, theology, church and condoms – there was not a lot untouched during the discussion – a lively debate.

After that I went with the principal and the teachers to the school to be formally welcomed in front of all teachers. The principal found some nice words of welcome and some of my very own teachers 30 years ago were still working – a pleasure to meet them again. 2 Jahrggangsstufen (standard 8 and standard 9) were singled out to have a discussion with me during the next two hours. Amazing to hear that some students came after the talk to pass on the regards of their parents who happened to be my friends and neigbors or classmates while I was myself a student of the school.

Then a nice drive to Aachen – changing briefly into Belgium to cut time and some more busy streets – and now I prepare for my evening talk about “HIV and AIDS as signs of the time” – with a discussion afterward with the students of the University of Aachen. As mentioned before the representatives of misereor, misso and others where not allowed to discuss this topic with me – and I still feel sorry for them: not talking to each other is the worst case scenario for us as Christians. It is indeed a shame, as I strongly believe that we all try to find ways and solutions serving mankind. And we do this with seriousness and we all deserve respect and a listening ear for our ideas. I hope and pray that this ignorance will cease soon and that we are able to engage in fruitful discussion. I am amazed to see who all is talking to me, also from the church side – but not those big Catholic development agencies. Are they are scared of competition? Or anything else I am not aware?

Be it as it is – I am looking forward to discuss a theology of HIV and AIDS with the students and to see, whether my very fragmented approach of theology, bounced on the minds of those students, can develop further. I continue to hope for the best…

Filed under: HIV Prevention, HIV Treatment, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, Medical and Research, Networking, Politics and Society, , , , , , , , , , , ,

10/27/2009 • 10:30 am Comments Off on 27.10.2009 The state of the health care system in SA

27.10.2009 The state of the health care system in SA

An insight into the health system of South Africa is given by the following article published by IOL and spread throughout the country – this article speaks for itself:

South Africa’s public hospitals are in a bleak state with failing equipment, a lack of basic consumables and dwindling numbers of doctors, Parliament heard on Wednesday.  Professor Bongani Mayozi, the head of internal medicine at the University of Cape Town, told the portfolio committee on health it was taking up to three days for patients to get a bed in a public hospital. “It takes about 24 hours a day for us to put 50 percent of people into a bed,” he said. “These people are sitting on a chair or lying on a trolley. They are very sick. They need to be admitted. Some people wait up to three days to get into a bed. “We regard this situation as completely unacceptable. Something that you would not wish on your mother or father.” Mayozi said surgical lists in many centres had been cut, equipment had not been renewed and there had been an overall decrease in tertiary level beds. The capacity to train new doctors had also been severely diminished. “When you go to war you need troops. You can’t fight a war without soldiers.”
South Africa is producing 0.58 doctors per 1 000 people, he said. Brazil and Mexico, with a similar gross domestic product per capita, are producing nearly two doctors per 1 000.
“As a result of this South Africa’s infant mortality rate is a lot higher than it should be and more people are dying from infectious diseases,” he said. Mayozi said the situation had arisen due to an “increasing demand” with “diminishing resources”. “When one looks at the reasons for the lack of progress, they are not difficult to find. They are related to under-investment to our public health sector over the past 15 years.” Andries Stulting, the acting head of the school of medicine at the University of the Free State, said the province’s health care situation is in a dire position. “There is a collapse of systems in the Free State. TB, HIV, primary health care, hospital services, training platforms, research, you name it, we are declining.  “We can’t do elective surgery anymore. Patients with hernias and cataracts. They don’t seem to be emergencies, so we cannot operate. People go blind and people can’t do their work.  “We don’t have basic things like eye pads, eye shields, medications… or should we keep quiet because we can be reprimanded?
“I hope I can give you some good news, but at the moment there is none.” –

Filed under: HIV Treatment, Medical and Research, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, Uncategorized, , ,

10/27/2009 • 7:30 am Comments Off on 27.10.2009 … and in Africa..

27.10.2009 … and in Africa..

JOHANNESBURG – AFP reports: — African leaders were urged Thursday to increase efforts to end HIV infections among children and women, in the world’s worst affected continent.

Speaking at the launch of the Campaign to End Pediatric HIV-AIDS, activist Graca Machel said that only two countries in Africa spent a target of 15 percent of their budgets on health. “You tell me next time we meet how much is being spent in wars and defence…but how much is being spent in health, how much is being spent in agriculture to produce food for our kids,” Machel told delegates. Sub-saharan Africa is home to 1.8 million of the world’s two million children infected with the virus that causes AIDS. Mother-to-child prevention and treatment coverage currently averages 30 to 40 percent against a target of 80 percent. “We need the international community to commit, to meet their obligations, but we have to show commitment ourselves no matter how small our budgets might be,” said Machel, who is married to South Africa’s Nelson Mandela and a member of the group of senior statespeople known as The Eld”We will not get there when African leaders do not get moved, they do not get moved by the hundreds of thousands of people who are dying on this continent when we know that this can be prevented,” she said.

Filed under: HIV and AIDS, HIV Prevention, HIV Treatment, Politics and Society, , , , ,

10/27/2009 • 5:30 am Comments Off on 27.10.2009 In between in Europe…

27.10.2009 In between in Europe…

Press Release European Commission:

A strategy for combating HIV/AIDS in the EU and neighbouring countries 2009-2013

Today, the Commission has renewed its efforts to fight HIV/AIDS in the EU and neighbouring countries by adopting a strategy for the period 2009-2013. Effective HIV treatment exists but there is still no cure or vaccine against AIDS. The number of people living with HIV/AIDS in the EU and neighbouring countries has increased from 1.5 million in 2001 to 2.2 million in 2007. Approximately 730,000 of these people live in the EU. With 50 000 newly diagnosed HIV cases in the EU and the neighbouring countries alone in 2007, there is no time for complacency. Disparities exist between the numbers of HIV cases and the different modes of transmission across Europe. The strategy tackles these differences by concentrating on 3 key areas: HIV prevention and HIV testing, priority groups most at risk of HIV and priority regions. The strategy is accompanied by an action plan which illustrates concrete steps, target groups and evaluation tools that can be used to measure progress.

EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou said “We need to continue the political momentum in the fight against HIV/AIDS. We need to encourage people to take responsibility for themselves and their partners by talking about and practicing safe sex and going for HIV testing. However, this needs to go hand in hand with the respect for the human rights and non discrimination of people living with HIV/AIDS. We have treatment options today that can delay the outbreak of AIDS for many years”.

Objectives

The overall objectives of this Strategy are: (i) to reduce new HIV infections across all European countries by 2013, (ii) to improve access to prevention, treatment, care and support and (iii) to improve the quality of life of people living with, affected by or most vulnerable to HIV/AIDS in the European Union and neighbouring countries.

The strategy calls on all key actors including national authorities and NGOs to work on:

  • improving information for all, especially targeting young people who have missed the successful HIV communication campaigns in the past
  • addressing migrants from countries with a high prevalence of HIV to make them knowledgeable on preventing transmission, HIV testing and treatment options
  • improving policies targeting, in particular, the populations most at risk, emphasising human rights, and addressing discrimination and stigma associated to HIV/AIDS

Priority regions

HIV infections are particularly high in the neighbouring countries of the Union. Exchange of good practices on prevention, testing, treatment and care between countries is important. This is especially beneficial in times of budget constraints. The cooperation and know how transfer of doctors, nurses and public health experts as well as the sharing of quality data will help colleagues in neighbouring countries to improve evidence based prevention, state of the art testing and treatment services, and to improve surveillance. Such joint efforts will reduce new infections and improve the life of people living with HIV/AIDS and underline the value of good cooperation between neighbours.

Priority groups: most at risk populations

The strategy reiterates the fact that the biggest impact on the epidemic can be achieved when the situation of the most at risk populations is efficiently addressed. The major at risk populations in Europe are men having sex with men, accounting for about 40% of all new infections in the EU, migrants from high prevalence areas, and injecting drug users, with a share of up to 70% of all new infections in EU neighbouring countries. Tailor-made approaches to reach these groups are essential towards containing the epidemic in Europe.

Early testing and timely access to treatment save lives

Of particular concern is the high number of persons who are not aware of their infection. About 30% of people in the EU and up to 70% of people in several neighbouring countries do not know their HIV status. This presents a serious concern for policy makers. Late diagnosis usually leads to late treatment and hence to a reduced life expectancy, a lower quality of life and to an increased danger of transmitting the virus to partners.

Background

The European Commission is involved in the fight against AIDS at European and Global levels. The first strategy on combating HIV/AIDS in the EU and neighbouring countries, adopted in 2005 laid the foundations for today’s updated strategy. A number of key achievements relate to a stronger political commitment, involvement of civil society at European level, the operational centralisation of HIV/AIDS surveillance by the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC), efforts to facilitate access to affordable antiretroviral medicines, funding of prevention projects and programmes, investments in research, and a close cooperation between partners.

More information:

http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_threats/com/aids/aids_en.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/health-eu/health_problems/hiv-aids/index_en.htm

MEMO/09/479

Filed under: HIV and AIDS, HIV Prevention, Politics and Society, , ,

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