South African Leader Calls for HIV/AIDS Education for People with Disabilities
By Kay Schriner (kays@uark.edu)
In two recent speeches to meetings of the disability sector of the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC), Deputy President Jacob Zuma made it clear that more needs to be done to protect disabled South Africans from HIV/AIDS.
Speaking to groups in Johannesburg and Pretoria, Zuma said that people with disabilities must be involved in HIV/AIDS programming to overcome the current focus on "normal" people. He is quoted as saying "We must acknowledge that our AIDS education had mainly been targeted at people who are considered 'normal' and people with disabilities have been left without any knowledge about HIV and AIDS, and the protective measures needed to be taken to prevent the spread of disease or infection."
Materials needed in alternative formats
Education programs should produce materials in Braille and sign language, he said. It may be more difficult to reach individuals with intellectual disabilities, but this group is among the most vulnerable. "Young women with intellectual disabilities are vulnerable to sexual abuse and infection with HIV," said Zuma.
The disability sector has responded to Zuma's positions with a strategic plan to improve the nation's HIV/AIDS efforts in the disability community. SANAC's disability representative, Hendrietta Bogopane, welcomed the government's call for collaboration in fighting the epidemic. "We have renewed our commitment to tackle the pandemic," she said.
Information and quotations for this story were taken from AllAfrica.com.
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