University of Zambia Medical Library

"Rescue Operation: Kenneth Kaunda's Vision On HIV/AIDS." By Ridgeway Liwena
The Times of Zambia, March 29, 2001

Zambia's first president, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, after more than half a century in the mixed grill of politics, is all out to prove that there is life outside politics. And he is leading the way in that direction for other leaders of nations to follow in future.

To many it is hard to comprehend that the man Zambians affectionately refer to, as the 'father of the nation' is for sure no more on the political stage. The vacuum he leaves is like a bereavement of a loved one, where the general feeling is that of 'maybe this is just a dream.' After more than 50 years of high profile on the African sub-continent and the continent as a whole, it is natural that many people would regard Dr Kaunda and politics inseparable.

This is not a strange phenomenon for political leaders of his stature, wherever they may be. But Dr Kaunda believes politics is not a means and an end to his public service to mankind. Indeed, as he is out to prove, there is life after politics. For that reason his decision to leave the high profile political world, stands as irrevocable as death is a permanent feature in human existence.

Notwithstanding the void and desolate atmosphere prevailing in many quarters, arising to his departure from the occupation of his youth days, Zambians and the world at large are assured that they have not yet heard or seen the last of the man they fondly called KK. He has chosen the Kenneth Kaunda Children of Africa Foundation (KKCAF) as his main focus of service in retirement. It is due to his inherent love to serve mankind, that he has been driven to concentrate his energies and whatever is left of his physical resources to attend to the needy children of Africa those suffering from and orphaned by the ravages of HIV-AIDS pandemic. For that purpose he has founded the KKCAF.

This is his launching pad for what he terms as a war to serve the future generation and humanity in general, extinction by the AIDS virus. There can be no better way to serve mankind than to safeguard and nurture the well being of children. Apart from his love to serve mankind, Dr Kaunda's involvement in the HIV-AIDS work has much relevance to his personal life. His son, Masuzyo, died of the virus in 1986. He left six grand-children (KKs) to be looked after.

Dr Kaunda recalls, 'One of the problems that I faced in looking after my late son when he was ill, was fear. The fear was there because at that time so little was known about AIDS. 'We as a family did not know much about this disease. Our doctor equally did not know about AIDS. To add to this, there was no one in the know, to talk to. This made the burden of looking after our son very difficult.

'But one lesson has stayed with me all these years. This is, that HIV/AIDS is a community fight. We all have to join hands. That is, the church leaders, doctors, lawyers, scientists, sportsmen and women, computer experts and so on. We can only overcome AIDS if we unite as a community.' For its survival, the world must view the fight against HIV/AIDS as World War III. The killer virus is destined to wipe out all there is of humanity from the surface of the earth.

The situation is so serious it calls for mankind to arise en-masse in a counter offensive- not only to defend itself against extinction, but to counter-attack and win the war! This is the only assurance the human race is left with to continue to live on this planet. There is no alternative, more so that HIV/AIDS has had a head start in attacking and killing the human race. And just as he played a pivotal role in the war to free Zambia and the whole southern African region from colonialism and foreign domination, Dr Kaunda's engagement in the second battle: to serve mankind, is by no means an easy one. He will need every support possible to make the desired impact on the epidemic, let alone lead mankind to triumph. In a world preoccupied by wars started and perpetrated by mankind against itself, so much time and resources are being prioritised in that area.

Dr Kaunda wants to round Africa to focus on saving the future of mankind. By concentrating his efforts on the children faced with death and perennial suffering as a result of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, Dr Kaunda deserves to be supported to ensure success. 'Let us commit ourselves to re-channeling of our military expenditure to the essential services, such as life-saving and the war against HIV/AIDS.' The fact that he has emerged as the first former African president, to practically identify himself with the fight for the most vulnerable in society-the children who are helpless in the face of the ravaging killer virus-is enough to show just how serious the threat the killer virus poses to man's existence.

Under the prevailing military battles that are raging on the African continent, people would generally look at Dr Kaunda as an obvious choice among respected elder statesmen to join in the arbitration exercises that have been going on in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Sierra Leone and elsewhere on the continent.

But no, he may choose to look at another 'war' in which mankind has been helplessly devastated. In the military confrontations of civil wars, the losses are in thousands of human life. But in the HIV/AIDS pandemic, they are in millions, and these included the people in the military, fighting the wars.

The scenario makes the situation such that if the effort such as Dr Kaunda's were not put in operation, in due course countries will not even have armies to fight the wars! Dr Kaunda says, 'This is a global fight. We cannot deny the fact that HIV/AIDS binds the whole world together-poor or rich, black or white, male or female and heterosexual or homosexual.

'All our efforts should be aimed at doing our utmost for the person living with HIV/AIDS. And the best way to do it is through community- based approach. It is the community working and living with HIV/AIDS who have the solution.' Now lets turn to the archives of information and just see how devastating the virus has been to mankind, especially Africans. According to the United Nations information on HIV/AIDS, Africa dwarfs the rest of the world on the balance sheet of the virus infection and deaths.

Since the start of the epidemic towards the end of the 1970s, 83 per cent of all AIDS related deaths have been on this continent. No single African nation has escaped the attack. The figures highlight that the most vulnerable from the impact of the infection are children. And most painful to this irony is that these helpless are made to undergo all the sufferings and deaths not from causes of their own making, but for which their the out-going generation, most of whom are dead were fully responsible.

Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for more than two thirds of the world's HIV/AIDS positive cases. Some 11.5 million have already died by the end of 1998. Of these three quarters were children. In all these cases the families of the deceased struggle to find money to meet funeral expenses and to look after the orphans, widows and widowers as well as other dependants. Employers also experience the sharp effect of the situation. They have to train other staff to replace the dead and sick.

The alarm signals do not end there. These extra deaths in children and young adults is resulting in massive depopulation of countries and the slashing of the life expectancy. Against this background is the number of children who need care. This is correct to those families being decimated by the pandemic and are demobilised to be able to render such care.

Almost 50 per cent of those now caring for orphans are grand- parents, who often have no income of their own. Furthermore, they have a limit to how many children they can take at a time, without help. The overall picture is quit depressing. But humanity has no time now to continue to ponder over the trail of destruction that the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues to wreak. Action is now. And what Dr Kaunda is embarking on deserves every support possible.

The concern of Dr Kaunda should be the concern of all mankind the future of Africa's children, on which lies the future humanity. But as the old wise saying goes that charity begins at home, Dr Kaunda support base should be from Zambia and the Southern African region. With the already depressing scenario about the area being the mostly concentrated by the virus in the whole world, governments and the people of the region cannot afford to miss any chance that arises towards stemming the death tide. And for now one of those opportunities is the KKCAF.

The deep concern that drives Dr Kaunda to tears: The number of children being orphaned; the African extended family system being dismantled; children growing without basic necessities such as food, shelter, clothing or medical care. This is heart-breaking enough to be left to him to fight a lone battle. His lament should be equally by all: As the situation stands, the future is bleak. It certainly calls for governments of the region to rise en-masse and commit themselves to Dr Kaunda's efforts.

This is a struggle of life and death, and so far the virus is winning. It goes therefore that everybody must direct their attention to combating HIV/AIDS. Governments ought to move in swiftly and show total commitment to the struggle. All the extra resources being spent on political, religious and ethnic conflicts must be diverted to a massive assault on the HIV/AIDS virus and its effects.

Dr Kaunda is prepared to lead the way. He seeks help from governments institutions, organisations and individuals to bring relief to the already hopeless situation prevailing in the region and the continent. The children of today deserve assurance of hope for a better tomorrow. Everybody must join in and offer such guarantees. Dr Kaunda deserves all that it takes to see the programme succeed.

"Zambia Receives HIV Testing Kit." By George Chomba
Daily Mail, March 22, 2001

An American firm has given Zambia about 500,000 free HIV/AIDS testing kits and the Government has readily accepted the offer. Health Minister, Enoch Kavindele confirmed the development in an interview in Lusaka yesterday and said Zambia accepted the offer from Guardian Scientific Africa Incorporation because she did not see anything wrong with receiving the free kit whose value was not given. He, however, said he would soon be consulting his South African counterpart to get details of why that country rejected the offer. Guardian Scientific Africa Inc. offered South Africa about one million free HIV/AIDS testing kits worth R50 million but the Government rejected the offer.

"We have been offered the free HIV/AIDS testing kits and we have accepted. We have not seen anything wrong with the offer and so we will be receiving the kit soon," Mr Kavindele said. He disclosed that his ministry had asked for an initial 20,000 HIV/AIDS testing kit which would be made available to Zambia for testing for reliability. The minister said that the testing kit could be handled by even non-medical personnel whose results could be ready within five minutes. Mr Kavindele said the kits were portable and did not require electricity or refrigeration. "The initial supply will be tested to confirm their reliability. We will only ask for the rest after we are satisfied with the tests on the 20,000 initial testing kits," Mr Kavindele said. Zambia is among 11 other African countries that have accepted the free HIV/AIDS testing kits. Nigeria and Botswana are among the countries that have accepted the offer.

"Zambia Has One Of The Highest Maternal Death Rates In The World." By Chisenga Kabuswe
Post of Zambia, March 22, 2001

Zambia has one of the highest rates of maternal deaths in the world, health minister Enoch Kavindele has disclosed. Launching the White Ribbon Campaign for Safe Motherhood in Lusaka yesterday, Kavindele said 3,000 out of 325,000 pregnant women are likely to die from complications of pregnancy and childbirth everyday.

Kavindele said pregnant women suffer more mortality from preventable conditions such as malaria and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. He said such life loss was a great cost to the development of the country.

Kavindele said although the government has taken action through the health sector reforms to address the problem, it was inadequate unless everyone played a key role in promoting safe motherhood in the household, in the community and at workplaces.

"Let me take this opportunity to reinforce the message to men in this country that safe motherhood is not the responsibility of women alone but it is also their responsibility, including child rearing," he said. Kavindele said everyone in the country needed to recognise that every pregnancy faced a risk.

"AIDS Claims 300 Victims Daily In Zambia ."
Panafrican News Agency, March 20, 2001

About 300 people are dying of AIDS- related causes in Zambia everyday, the country's health minister, Enoch Kavindele disclosed Tuesday in Lusaka. Kavindele said the HIV/AIDS pandemic was serious and should be fought collectively through dissemination of information.

"As many as 300 people per day are dying as a result of this HIV/AIDS pandemic. This is according to recent statistics. So it is very important that we acknowledge and appreciate the efforts that the Standard Chartered Bank has taken," Kavindele said.

The minister was speaking at the launch of Standard Chartered Bank's free medical insurance cover for ordinary savings account holders. The bank has also published a booklet on HIV/AIDS to enlighten its employees about the disease.

Kavindele said that customers would benefit from the bank's initiative because it will meet 15 percent of every insured person's medical bill. At least one million people in Zambia are living with HIV/AIDS while over 700,000 have succumbed to the disease since the pandemic struck the country 10 years ago.

"Tuberculosis Infections Continue to Rise." By Speedwell Mupuchi
Post of Zambia, March 19, 2001

The government should urgently reorganise and strengthen the Tuberculosis (TB) Programme to check the ever rising infection rate of the disease, World Health Organisation (WHO) country representative Dr Edward Maganu has said.

In an interview on Saturday after the launch of the satellite activities in Lusaka to commemorate the World TB Day which falls on March 24, 2001, Dr Maganu said there was need to retrain health workers on the Directly Observed Treatment (DOTs) application strategy which have proved effective in controlling infection rates in many countries that had followed it.

Dr Maganu said the DOTs application strategy had over the years been very weak in Zambia leading to high rates of TB infection. He said the advent of the deadly HIV/AIDs pandemic had further contributed to the rising rate of TB cases especially in the Southern African countries thereby requiring quick intervention by governments.

"All the government needs to do is to reorganise the TB programme. It has been weak in the last four years and needs strengthening to control the disease." Dr. Maganu said. "As many countries in the Southern African region have had TB cases rising as a result of AIDs, there is urgent need for the government to retrain health workers on DOTs application strategy." In his speech on the occasion of the launch, Dr. Maganu said the rate of infection of TB had increased by more than 75 per cent from 124 to 409 cases per 100,000 population in the period 1985 to 1996. He said the rate since 1996 could be in the excess of 500 per 100,000 inhabitants.

For the disease which is closely associated with the HIV/AIDs, Dr Maganu called for increased political commitment on the part of the government to TB control using the DOTs strategy which had a curing record of 90 per cent.

The DOTs strategy prevents the emergence of multi drug resistant TB thereby making it impossible for one to develop incurable and fatal forms of the disease. And Central Board of Health director general Dr Gavin Silwamba said TB was a time bomb with every TB patient being capable of infecting about 15 people in a year if not treated.

He said there was need for communities to be vigorously involved in the DOTs treatment strategy and said government had put in place a policy to administer free DOTs to TB patients to control the disease.

"Don't Allow 5 Minutes Of Joy to Destroy You." By Webster Malido, Speedwell Mupuchi And Chisenga Kabuswe
Post of Zambia, March 13, 2001

Don't allow five minutes of joy to destroy your whole life, President Frederick Chiluba has advised Zambian youths. Addressing a youth day parade at the Freedom Statue in Lusaka yesterday, President Chiluba advised youths to keep away from premarital and casual sex to avoid contracting HIV/AIDS because the disease had no cure.

"Why should you allow five minutes of joy to destroy the rest of your life? President Chiluba asked. "If it's joy at all." President Chiluba said he was speaking both as a parent and a grandparent to the youths. He said condoms did not provide any solution to the problem of HIV/AIDS. "Condoms may not be the answer," President Chiluba said.

"The only answer is abstinence." President Chiluba said he would keep repeating this message, "Abstain from premarital sex now." President Chiluba reminded the youths that there was no need of destroying their lives through premarital sex because they had a brighter future. He urged them to embrace the wisdom of their fore fathers which offered positive guidance to their lives instead of making premature decisions.

President Chiluba assured the youths of government's commitment to involving them in productive government programmes. He directed the Ministry of Sports, Youth and Child Development to re-examine the current guidelines on disbursement of Constituency Development Fund to ensure it benefits the youths.

President Chiluba, who was responding to issues raised by Joanne Mwaanga from Roma Girls Secondary School about their lack of access to the money, said the CDF was meant to benefit all members of society and the youths should also benefit from the funds. He said no meaningful youth development could go without the involvement of the youths.

President Chiluba said the youths should be willing to be engaged in agricultural activities which offered a solution to unemployment. He bemoaned the lack of appropriate technologies to convert raw materials into finished products. He said the government was fighting hard to bridge the technological gap. "Zambia has a lot of potential to turn this bare soil into gold but we lack the necessary technologies to help us turn the raw materials into usable products," said President Chiluba.

But Adolescent Reproductive Heath Project youth representative Quevel Mapulanga yesterday said it was unfair for President Chiluba to continue condemning the usage of condoms when there was no other way of fighting the pandemic. Mapulanga said whenever President Chiluba condemns the usage of condoms he should always remember that the number of sexually active people in the country is more than that of those who are abstaining.

"While we appreciate that abstinence is the only sure way of fighting the pandemic, we should have in mind the people who cannot abstain because the true picture is that more people are sexually active as compared to those that are abstaining," Mapulanga said. "Using a condom is better than nothing." He said changing the current situation would be a process and completely doing away with the condom meant death and an increase in the number of people who would get infected with HIV/AIDS.

"What we need to do is to intensify on encouraging people to abstain and not to tell them to do away with the condom as it would mean death to those who will not adhere to the advice of abstaining," he said. Mapulanga said while he did not wish to encourage his fellow youths to involve themselves in premarital sex, it was important that condoms are used as an alternative to those who could not abstain. He called on his fellow youths to adhere to President Chiluba's advice to keep away to premarital and casual sex.

"Miyanda Launching The HIV/Aids Education Programme." By Chisenga Kabuswe
Post of Zambia: February 21, 2001

The HIV/AIDS pandemic has had a devastating effect on education delivery as it has reduced the number of trained teachers, administrators and other key personnel in the ministry, education minister Godfrey Miyanda has said.

Launching the HIV/AIDS education programme at Lusaka's Kabulonga Girls High School yesterday, Miyanda said the high cost of mortality has implied that resources that would have been spent on education provision has had to be diverted to medical and funeral costs and expenses at both government and individual level. 'HIV/AIDS has impacted very heavily and negatively on education provision and delivery as it has disrupted and weakened the functioning of education," he said.

"Regularity of school attendance for both teachers and pupils as well as completion rates are definitely affected." He observed that many young people today possess a lot of information on the HIV/AIDS pandemic but continued being infected. Miyanda said information alone was not enough to change the youth's behaviour. "Although some noticeable reduction rates among the youths aged between 14 years and 19 years has been observed, it should not mask the need for increased and sustained advocacy for behavioural change," he said. "Behavioural change is the first line of defence and attack in the fight of HIV/AIDS."

Miyanda called on youths not to be too proud to learn more about AIDS and not to believe that they know everything. He also called on them not to despise the Zambian culture saying there are many good lessons that could be learnt from the societies and communities.

Miyanda challenged teachers and educators to join the war on HIV/AIDS regardless of their positions. "You are the greatest parents because you spend most of the time with the children and we are depending on you for the programme to succeed," said Miyanda. Provincial education officer for Lusaka Province Bernadettee Ndlovu said the launch of the education programme has given teachers the mandate to teach on the HIV/AIDS in class freely. She said children are the best message bearers and expressed hope that the introduction of the programme will help the children make informed decisions.

The HIV/AIDS education programme is a component of the Basic Education Sub-Sector Investment Programme (BESSIP) introduced by the Ministry of Education last year to improve the education sector in the country.

"Zambian Company Defies Protests Against Enforced HIV Tests."
Panafrican News Agency: February 16, 2001

Zambia's Konkola company plans to go ahead with a clinical testing of thousands of mine workers for HIV/AIDS infection in spite of protests from union leaders and the government.

Officials at the Chingola offices of Konkola Copper Mines said Friday, that details had already been finalised for the testing to begin next Monday, 19 February. Konkola chief executive officer Tim Wadeson, had earlier defended the controversial tests by insisting that they were part of the company's health and assessment programme necessary for the mine's economic planning.

But Alec Chirwa, permanent secretary at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, said compulsory workplace testing for HIV infection is prohibited under the laws of Zambia and the regional Southern African Development Community or SADC. Speaking at a labour meeting on the outskirts of Lusaka Chirwa, a former trade union leader, insisted that the regional code of conduct on HIV/AIDS and employment were very clear and prohibited the employer from engaging in any arbitrary testing.

"If employees at Konkola Copper Mines want these tests, then that will be a totally different story. But even then they must be done by a qualified health practitioner in accordance with normal medical ethics and counselling," Chirwa said.

Permanent Human Rights Commission chair, Judge Lombe Chibesakunda, also voiced concern over the proposed tests saying miners considered to be 'loud-mouths' and troublemakers could easily be victimised. In a statement released Friday she said her organisation has no problem with the miners being tested for HIV - a condition that can lead to full blown AIDS - if this is their wish and if it is done strictly on a voluntary basis.

"There must be a guarantee that those who do not take the HIV test would not be disadvantaged in any way," Chibesakunda said, wondering why the company has not shown similar concerns for diseases like malaria, which is considered to be one of the major killer diseases in Zambia today.

Andrew Mwanza, chair for the Mineworkers Union of Zambia, says about 10,000 miners would be affected by the proposed tests for HIV/AIDS. Mwanza says the union agreed to have their members tested so long as this is done on a voluntary basis and that health workers on the programme would maintain full confidentiality over the results of those tested.

But while Chirwa was expressing displeasure with the tests Health Minister Enock Kavindele says it was all right for miners to be tested for HIV infection so that, like everybody else, they are made aware of their status. "Ideally every person is supposed to take an HIV test. These tests are all right for they will help us know when and how we can be helped," Kavindele said.

Apart from the miners under its employ, Konkola Copper Mines is also trying to persuade companies contracted to it to have their workers - numbering more than 14, 000 - to also take the same tests. This will be the first time that any Zambian company would have tested workers for HIV/AIDS infection afflicted the world and was now ravaging millions in Sub-Sahara Africa.

"KCM Has Contravened SADC Code On HIV/AIDS, Says Chirwa."
Post of Zambia, February 15, 2001

Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) has contravened the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) code of conduct on HIV/AIDS and workers, Ministry of Labour permanent secretary Alec Chirwa (in picture) has claimed.

Officially opening the 19th annual congress of the Zambia Union of Financial Institutions and Allied Workers (ZUFIAW) in Kafue yesterday, Chirwa said the code of conduct was in 1997 adopted by all SADC heads of state to guide employers and employees on how to deal with the HIV situation at work places.

Quoting from the pamphlet, Chirwa said compulsory HIV testing was prohibited and that any voluntary testing had to be at the employee's request and must be carried out by a qualified health professional at a health institution. Recently, KCM chief executive Tim Wadeson disclosed during a tour of the mine by foreign journalists from the United Kingdom and South Africa that they would have their employees voluntarily take HIV tests to enable the company improve its health policy to best cater for employees that may be infected.

But Chirwa said the confidentiality of those test results was very much doubtful as the employer would have the advantage of holding the information which they would most likely use to victimise and discriminate against any workers that may test positive.

"Does KCM have the capacity for pre and post counselling for positive workers?" Chirwa asked. "They are just violating workers' human rights." But according to the Permanent Human Rights Commission, the testing would be fine as long as it remained voluntary and confidential. Chirwa also disclosed that the Ministry of Labour had looked at the Industrial Relations Act with the view of amending it.

He said the Employment Act and other Acts which fall short would be amended. ZUFIAW president Siisii Mutukwa said unions were facing pressures on membership levels which have declined due to retrenchments and early separations compounded by privatisation and restructuring of various institutions. He said ZUFIAW was responding to these challenges by critically looking at its structures, budgets and policies to ensure that organising gets highest priority possible.

"Zambian Company To Screen Workers For HIV/AIDS."
Panafrican News Agency, February 13, 2001

The recently privatised Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) in Zambia has courted controversy by requesting its workers to voluntarily take HIV tests in a move management said would help in the planning of future operations. The company, in the northern Copperbelt town of Chililabombwe, says it does not want to take chances with the HIV/AIDS pandemic that was taking a heavy toll on the country's economic sector, and was thus sending its entire workforce of 10,000 miners in for screening.

"This would enable KCM improve the health of workers as well as plan strategies to deal with the scourge," a company spokesman told reporters Monday. One million Zambians are known to be living with HIV/AIDS while over 700,000 have so far died since the pandemic struck the country 10 years ago.

The KCM move has, however, provoked both public furore and strong condemnation from human rights groups in the country. The Permanent Human Rights Commission (PHRC) has urged the company to guarantee that workers who do not take the HIV test would not be disadvantaged in any way.

PHRC Chairperson, Supreme Court Judge Lombe Chibesakunda, said that the Commission has no problem with the Konkola Copper Mines workers taking the HIV tests on a voluntary basis as long as the results remain confidential. Chibesakunda, however, urged KCM to note that HIV/AIDS was not the only killer disease in Zambia. "Malaria is another killer disease that has also taken its toll on the population", Chibesakunda pointed out.

Zambia Independent Monitoring Team (ZIMT), an (NGO) specialising in the monitoring of elections, also condemned the plans, saying the act was against International Labour Organisation (ILO) provisions. ZIMT President Alfred Zulu said the move amounted to discrimination, as those found to be positive might not enjoy their full employment rights.

"No employer in Zambia is allowed to subject its workers to HIV/AIDS tests voluntarily as this would violate several individual rights," Zulu said. He insisted that HIV testing be the discretion of employees and not a management policy. In the circumstance in question, Zulu noted that the testing was being done at the instigation of the employer.

"An HIV/AIDS patient is no threat to colleagues and his capability does not diminish," Zulu argued, asserting that "KCM's view for future plans should not require them to know the HIV/AIDS status of its workers. Let them worry about immediate killers like malaria and tuberculosis." Zulu advised KCM to discontinue the exercise and warned that ZIMT would create public embarrassment for them by mounting an international campaign through HIV/AIDS lobby networks.

Konkola Copper Mines runs hospitals for its workers and their health institutions are known to be the best run with drugs in abundance.

"Talk To Your Children About AIDS."
Times of Zambia, February 7, 2001

Many children have to struggle on their own and face realities of life as most young parents continue dying from HIV/AIDS. Millions of youths are dying and many more are getting infected with HIV/AIDS everyday. A large number of children have been turned into orphans because of the same disease.

YOUTHS ARE IN CRISIS
The fact is that today's youths are in a crisis. They have been exposed to so many things, some of which have forced them into being sexually active. Now, what should be done to address this situation? Firstly, parents must face realities of youth culture today, which is quite different from their own. They need to have more honest and open discussions about sex, pregnancy and AIDS with youths.

Adults need to help youths understand that they are at risk of contracting HIV if they are sexually active and not using condoms consistently and correctly every time they have sex. We must also encourage abstinence among youths both boys and girls. Young girls must be able to say no and resist the pressure to have sex (especially unprotected sex) from boys and older men. And for those who are sexually active, parents should fight hard to ensure that they start abstaining.

Where there is resistance, indeed, there is need to promote consistent and correct condom use among youths in order to protect them from contracting and spreading HIV/AIDS.

NO CURE. JUST DEATH!
For sure there is no cure and all that adults are left with, is to bury their old cultural beliefs and face reality. That is the only way to stop their children and even grandchildren from being wiped out by HIV/AIDS.

Parents should support youths and provide recommendations to help resolve their problems, more importantly HIV/AIDS. They must address ways to influence youths to change their sexual behaviour to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS.

DON'T BLAME CULTURE FOR YOUR SILENCE

A Libala parent, Dickson Chasaya, says parents should not expose their children to things that might destroy their lives and blame it on culture. Mr. Chasaya says that they should instead explain to their children what is expected of them in life.

'Parents should talk to their children on issues that concern life, especially the current situation on HIV/AIDS. They must also lead by example because when they are chasing their children they are equally running, perhaps faster than them,' he said.

He emphasised that discussing something that concerns life with children is not taboo. Talking to children about AIDS is the parents' role and they have an obligation to do that. He says if parents do not bring up their children in a proper manner, they will be answerable to the living God. Mr. Chasaya says children must stay away from sex because it is the only way they can protect themselves from contracting HIV/AIDS.

EMPOWER YOUR CHILDREN
Another Lusaka parent, Cecilia Wright, says the crisis facing Zambian youth is so serious that parents must empower their children with knowledge to help them avoid getting HIV/AIDS. 'HIV/AIDS is real, we need not take it for granted because once you get it, there is no way out, 'says Mrs Wright from Network for Zambian People Living with HIV/AIDS (NZP+) She says parents have a great challenge ahead of them as they have no option, but talk to their children about sex and AIDS openly if they are to protect them from getting infected.

'As a parent today, I feel youths are in danger and it is very important to tell our children that HIV/AIDS is deadly and that if they cannot abstain, that's why the condom is there to be used,' she said. Mrs. Wright adds that the problem is that some parents do not want to explain the dangers of AIDS to their children.

OPTIONS And Church of God Central Africa Regional Superintendent Bishop John Mambo says the church must not put one option away and take another, but must come out strongly and fight the spread of HIV/AIDS. Bishop Mambo however says as a church leader the first option is abstinence and second a condom. He said AIDS was not just killing ordinary people, but even the clergy was dying from it.

The Bishop added that there is need to let those who cannot abstain to use condoms in order to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. He said the church should come out strongly on the issue of AIDS and protect the people because many people are dying from it.

Many young people are sexually active today for a variety of reasons and many of them are having unprotected sex. Some of these young people are even in marriages. According to the Central Board of Health (CBoH) at least 100 Zambians are dying every day as a result of AIDS.

TERRIFYING REALITY
Here are some hard facts about the reality facing Zambian youth today. Youths continue to participate in sexual behaviour despite the prevalence of HIV/AIDS. Many sexually active youths have unprotected sex and do not use modern contraceptives. Those who use condoms are usually inconsistent users. Therefore, STDs and HIV prevalence is high among the youth population. Pregnancy and abortion rates are high among youths.

Sixty -four per cent of girls and 70 per cent of boys think they are not at risk of HIV yet 75 per cent are sexually active and 71 per cent of those did not use a condom the last time they had sex. (ZDHS 1996) Please send your thoughts on this topic to the address below.

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If you need any information on this and any other health topic, please write to:
To Your Health Central Board of Health
P. O. Box 32588
Ndeke House, Lusaka

"Zambian HIV/AIDS Campaigners Target Promiscuity."
Panafrican News Agency, February 1, 2001

Zambian anti-HIV/AIDS campaigners are targeting residents of Mumena village, 15 km from the provincial capital of Solwezi, to sensitise the villagers about the dangers of irresponsible sexual behaviour.

A male resident of the village told the health workers that one of the main causes of promiscuity among the men in the the village was alcohol consumption, which resulted in their wives chasing them away from home. He told an HIV/AIDS awareness workshop that it was their wives who were driving them to sleep with other women.

"A lot of wives in Mumena village are in the habit of refusing to open the doors for their husbands each time they go home drunk as a way of discouraging them from beer drinking. "In turn, some men are forced to go and sleep at their girlfriends' homes after being chased away by their wives," the married participant told the Zambia Information Services (ZIS) recently.

The women, however, said that they in fact chased their husbands away because the wives were becoming vulnerable to HIV/AIDS and feared contracting the disease because a lot of men were promiscuous after getting drunk. "When we meet during the day with our fellow housewives, we exchange information and what has emerged is that most of our husbands come home drunk and go straight to sleep."

"Tell me, what makes them feel so deflated to fail to meet their marital obligations. The answer is simple: they will have met other women during their drinking escapades. Do you want us to be infected with HIV/AIDS?" a housewife, who identified herself only as Bana Maggie (Maggie's mother), said.

Another housewife who declined to identify herself said some of the housewives turned away their drunken husbands to avoid abusive language and battery. Solwezi Urban Clinic HIV/AIDS Counsellor Michael Chimbipa, who spoke at the workshop, advised the women to stop chasing away the men but to engage them in a dialogue on the dangers of excessive beer drinking when they are sober. "Chasing your husbands away from home only worsens the situation as some men will go on a rampage with other women as a way of revenging," Chimbipa told the women.

Zambia is sustaining a devastating impact from the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The burden of the disease includes 690,000 deaths, while an estimated one million persons are currently living with HIV/AIDS in the country. Zambian women are said to be vulnerable because of cultural sexual expectations and poverty which weakens their ability to negotiate best sexual practices.

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Last updated March 29, 2001

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