In a recently released report, the UN has warned that if more is not done to combat the AIDS pandemic, up to 90 million new cases of HIV could appear in Africa during the next twenty years. At the present time, 25 million Africans are HIV positive. The report recommends an international campaign against HIV and up to $105 billion dollars in investments to Africa to build infrastructure to be used to help contain the spread of the disease. The UN estimates that a more active campaign against HIV could save 16 million contractors from dying from the disease and another 43 million from becoming infected with the disease at all. The report states that if millions of Africans do become infected, “it will not be because there was no choice.”
The developed world has thus far been criminally negligent to the AIDS pandemic, as people in Africa and other underdeveloped countries are by far the most affected. In his State of the Union address in 2003 George Bush’s promised 10 billion to fight AIDS in Africa and the Caribbean, only 3.6 billion of which has been budgeted. Compare this meager donation to the amount of money allotted to Washington’s killing machine; the Pentagon will receive 401.7 billion dollars for 2005, not including the billions of dollars being spent daily in Iraq and Afghanistan.
There is only one word that can truly describe the misery that will be felt in Africa if there is no significant change: holocaust. The specter of a death toll far more monstrous than any ever seen before is looming ominously in the near future, threatening what may be the worst tragedy in human history. It is outrageous that AIDS research is not being funded completely. Despite the fact that much of the turmoil and lack of infrastructure that has allowed AIDS to spread in Africa is due to European Imperialism during the 19th and early 20th centuries in which tens of millions were killed, the west has not taken the needed initiative to fight the disease.
Various church leaders and abstinence advocates have also committed the atrocity of attempting to prevent the distribution of condoms and accurate information about sex and AIDS in Africa. One despicable action was taken by a leader of the Catholic Church who visited Africa and instructed Christians there not to use condoms. Actions such as these are nothing short of terrorist and demonstrate the hypocrisy of the church. Combating the AIDS pandemic should not be a political issue, but because the far right has no vested interest in the lives of 90 million Africans living in strategically insignificant areas, it has become a deeply politicized issue.
The world must not turn its back on the AIDS pandemic in Africa, a potential tragedy of tremendous magnitude.
David! you message sounds more spiritual than never before, but you have neglicted one thing which you ahve not talked about and that is the way forward for africa and their children the leave bahind atfer their departure from this world. Well mony people Governments, NGOS and societies have talken about the help of these children with primary education but waht about secondery and post-secondery and if such problems have not been adressed what is the use of giving them primary education yet they are not going to continue with further education because i have always compared to some body who has geiven you food when you are fully hungry and then after having a small piece of it he takes away the plate of food.
So my dear can you please adress the issues that concerns with succession planing for people with HIV/AIDS and their children
I look for word to hearing from you soon
Your
regards
Steven
Admin-secretary Samaritan Emengency volunteer organization and
Director Kampala open high school (an HIV/AIDS orphaned school)
Comment by WAMBI STEVEN FROM UGANDA— 2005/08/15 @ 12:26 AM — (Reply)
The problem is you have so many corrupt governments in Africa and so to keep sending money there is like flushing it down the toilet.
Comment by — 2005/09/04 @ 05:48 PM — (Reply)