MALAWI: President discloses brother's AIDS death

Malawi's President Bakili Muluzi on Tuesday publicly announced that his brother had died of an AIDS-related illness in 2001.

The president disclosed the information as he launched his country's first and long-awaited policy on tackling the pandemic.

He said his family had agreed to make known the cause of his brother's death in order to help "change attitudes, break the silence and initiate open talk about sex and AIDS".

Muluzi was quoted by the South African Press Association as saying: "My own brother, third-born in our family, died of AIDS three years ago. I have no apologies to making this publicly known to Malawians. We should be open and break the silence about HIV/AIDS."

Theme (s): Other,

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]