SWAZILAND: Army unveils HIV/AIDS policy

mbabane, 24 December 2004 (PlusNews) - The Swazi army has unveiled a new policy that rejects HIV-positive recruits, while acknowledging that its ranks of enlisted men and officers have been badly affected by the disease.

"The army is experiencing a rise in HIV/AIDS-related illnesses and deaths, and this has adverse effects on its overall mission and preparedness, and may eventually lead to insecurity in the country," stated the policy document of the national Umbutfo Royal Defence Force (URDF).

A spokesman told a press conference at the defence force headquarters in Bethany, 20 km east of the capital, Mbabane, that all personnel would undergo blood testing for HIV; pilots, aircraft engineers and air traffic controllers found to be HIV positive would be relieved of their duties.

Counselling is to be provided to those undergoing HIV tests and only recruits found to be HIV negative would be allowed to join the defence force. They would also have to undergo follow-up testing prior to enlistment.

"The military is a rather peculiar and special sector, with singular occupational requirements - more especially men and women who are fit to fight. The fitness should be ascertained at recruitment, and maintained," says the new army policy.

"Military training is designed to mould individuals into tough soldiers who can endure extremely stressful conditions during their tour of duty. The high level of HIV/AIDS in the military can undermine its effectiveness. The most potent way to avert the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS is to act before the epidemic spins out of control," the policy asserts.

Swaziland has the world's highest HIV prevalence rate: nearly 40 percent of people aged between 18 and 49 are HIV positive.

An army spokesman said the policy was not intended to discriminate against people living with HIV, but sought to spare recruits the physically harmful effects of stress and over-exertion that were often experienced during army training.

"We have some years of experience to draw from, and we know that people living with HIV have had difficulties enduring routine physical exercise and demanding field exercises that are a part of training," an officer told PlusNews.

The official said the HIV policy was consistent with similar policies employed by other African nations, and had been compiled with the assistance of other armies in the Southern Africa Development Community.

Current army personnel would not have to undergo compulsory testing unless they wished to participate in training courses held in other countries, or were in units deployed in peacekeeping missions for the African Union or United Nations. In recent years, Swazi soldiers have been engaged in training exercises for such missions in the United Kingdom, Canada and elsewhere.

"Army recruitment is likely to suffer because HIV testing is unpopular - and in Swaziland it is taboo to acknowledge that you are HIV positive. The army will face a manpower crisis," said Thulani Simelane, an AIDS activist based in Mbabane.

The army responded that it was aware of sensitivity surrounding HIV/AIDS. A voluntary counseling and testing centre had been established at Phocweni Barracks in central Swaziland, manned by a staff of 48 counselors and medical personnel. The centre also houses the army's welfare committee, which ensures benefits to the families of army personnel who die of AIDS or other causes.

In a statement accompanying the report, Army Commander Major General Sobantu Dlamini said: "We, as a military force, need to address the HIV/AIDS stigma within the military through mass media information programmes or workshops on misconceptions, cultural norms, beliefs, customs and taboos on HIV/AIDS. We need to conduct advocacy activities on HIV/AIDS-related issues by sensitising the soldiers at the lower level."

PlusNews interviewed aspiring army recruits and found that HIV testing was not a deterrent to joining the defence force. In a country with over 40 percent unemployment the army has been a reliable source of jobs, and being a soldier is considered a prestige occupation for young Swazi men and women.

"I will take an HIV test now that it's required - it's nothing," said Jabulani Dlamini, a guard with a private security firm, who has been trying to join the army for four years.

The army's policy of testing individual soldiers, or wider testing to determine the extent of HIV in the military ranks, was formulated with the assistance of local health NGOs working with HIV/AIDS and is sensitive to national standards of confidentiality.

"HIV testing for sentinel surveillance will [also] be done, unlinked [to recruitment] and anonymously, when it becomes essential for the soldiers' medical care. Results for HIV tests will not be used for discriminatory purposes," the military said.

The new policy has received positive reviews from such AIDS-related NGOs as the Swaziland AIDS Support Organisation.

"Military training is rigorous, and it is too stressful for an HIV positive person," the group's president, Hannie Dlamini, told PlusNews.

However, the president of the Swaziland Federation of Labour was quoted in the local press as questioning whether soldiers found to be HIV positive would face discrimination or summary discharge.

"We have to ask ourselves whether this policy is a good thing. If it is happening in the army, it must be happening in the police force. What is going to happen to those inside?" asked federation president Vincent Ncongwange.

The army policy emphasises the military's non-discriminatory attitude to personnel found to be HIV-positive. "We want to ensure that URDF personnel living with HIV/AIDS continue to perform the tasks they have been trained for. They should be deployed within Swaziland, and not discharged until they fail to meet performance standards."

The policy also calls for all HIV-positive soldiers to commence a regimen of antiretroviral drugs, counselling and nutritional supplements.

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