PlusNews HIV/AIDS news and analysis

A forum for people affected by HIV and AIDS whose voices are often not heard. These personal accounts document the impact of the pandemic, but also serve as testimony to people's strength and determination to meet those challenges. This forum seeks to encourage others to speak openly about the disease, tackling the stigma and denial that have led so many people to a silent and unnecessary death.

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People think because I can't see, I can't hear either
		Catherine Wanjiku is a visually impaired teacher from Thika District in central Kenya who was diagnosed with HIV in 2001. She told a recent media briefing on HIV and the disabled about her difficulties in accessing HIV services. full testimony
Marie: "My one night stand could change my life forever"
		Marie*, 25, comes from France but works for an international non-governmental organisation that often requires her to travel around Asia and Africa. While on one such trip she made a decision that could change her life forever. full testimony
Thembi Ngubane: "I said no way, this is not anonymous; this is Thembi and everyone has to hear it."
		Thembi Ngubane, from Khayelitsha, a township in Cape Town, South Africa, discovered she was HIV positive when she was 16 years old. Six years later, while attending a support group, she was approached by a United States-based radio producer interested in making a documentary about a year in the life of a young, HIV-positive South African. Now, Thembi is doing HIV and AIDS outreach at schools across the country and recently participated in the reality TV series, "Imagine Afrika." full testimony
Carmela Acen: "I tell everyone I'm positive because it's no secret"
		Carmela Acen fled her home in northern Uganda when the rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) began its insurgency campaign in 1986. She told IRIN/PlusNews about her life in Kireka, a high-density township in the capital, Kampala. full testimony
Henry Mwitirere, Kenya, "I'm displaced but at least I can help other HIV-positive people"
		Henry Kamau Mwiterere works with the Academic Model for the Prevention and Treatment of HIV (AMPATH) as a facilitator for HIV support groups in Kenya's western Rift Valley Province. Made homeless by the country's post-election violence in January, he told PlusNews how he has managed to make a difference to displaced people living with the virus. full testimony
Albertina Nyatsi: "You don't have to suffer in silence; you don't have to suffer at all"
		When Albertina Nyatsi learned she was HIV-positive, she compiled a "memory book" for her daughter. However, Albertina's positive outlook on life, and her adherence to medication and a healthy lifestyle means the book has been gathering dust for several years now. She told IRIN/PlusNews how being open about her status has helped her stay strong. full testimony

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