AIDS War. Time running out for South Africa
Big jump in South African HIV cases
South Africa’s health department has released figures suggesting that HIV infection rates in the country may be greater than previously thought. South Africa could have the world’s largest number of people living with HIV.
HIV infection in South Africa:
• Population – 40m
• Health Dept – 6m+ with HIV
• Statistics agency – 4.5m with HIV
SA military fights ‘war’ on Aids
South African military officials say they are fighting a “human war” against the “formidable enemy” of HIV/Aids. Some 23{a9f0d31f6175b3e4775e11a66c07db268fb74408d6095f6b46eeec420c0e9f62} of South Africa’s troops are infected with HIV – a similar rate to the adult population at large.
Aids ‘kills one in three’ in SA
Almost one in three deaths in South Africa are caused by Aids making it the leading killer, according to research. In two provinces, the figure is as high as 40{a9f0d31f6175b3e4775e11a66c07db268fb74408d6095f6b46eeec420c0e9f62}, says an unreleased report by South Africa’s Medical Research Council. HIV/Aids is the leading cause of death and premature mortality for all provinces,” the document states. In KwaZulu-Natal province, 41.5 {a9f0d31f6175b3e4775e11a66c07db268fb74408d6095f6b46eeec420c0e9f62} of deaths are attributable to Aids, followed by Mpumalanga with 40.7 percent, the report says. In Gauteng, South Africa’s economic heartland, Aids accounts for 32.5{a9f0d31f6175b3e4775e11a66c07db268fb74408d6095f6b46eeec420c0e9f62} of deaths, according to the report.
fly*
Oh and just one last thing….I really dont think our goverment is doing all they can about the situation and that alot more money needs to be invested into advertising campaigns, educational media and just education in general…and, quite possibly a new health minister….
fly*
The media took that out of context (unless this is a seperate speech)….the jist was that premoscuity led to AIDS and that you couldnt lay all the blame on HIV…the idea was to shift the responsibility to the people and make them aware that sleeping around (which is very common in rural areas and which unsuprisingly has the highest infection rate) was what was causing AIDS rather than some invisble disease that no-one (i’m speaking about rural areas again) understood….
This disease is not like cancer where it could affect anybody but more a disease that if you led a certain lifestyle, could lead to infection (we all understand this but sadly a lot of rural people dont get how the way they have been living thier lives for centuries could now be wrong, understandably because this is all they know)…
Given it was a very bad speech but thats not too suprising either…Im not defending her at all but the media had a field day with it, which tbh saddens me a bit (this is about all of us, not finger pointing)… I hardly think our health minister would believe that HIV does not cause AIDS…our goverment is inept but not so much so…
Anyways….sadly I think we havent even begun to feel the full impact of AIDS in this country yet…in the last few years, you can speak to anybody and they know of at least 1 person that has died of AIDS…its very sad indeed and I hate to say it but the goverment can hand out AZT to their hearts content….if they dont educate the people on the disease, it wont stop….
I hate Oprah but she made a good point when she came here last….she asked, how, with an infection rate as high as we have in this county, can our children at schools still not know about AIDS… ??? a very worrying question indeed :o?
shoo, long winded but something i’m fairly passionate about….im not attacking anybody so sorry if any are offended… ;o)
Eon
And still our wise health minister thinks that AIDS is not caused by the HIV virus. A healthy diet and good living conditions is her cure to the pandemic. She is nuts.