Left Out Twice: Living with HIV and Disabilitie
source: http://www.womensenews.org/story/commentary/100720/left-out-twice-living-hiv-and-disabilities
"I'm a woman with a disability. I am HIV-positive and I am on ARVs (antiretroviral drugs). My life is very hard."
These were the first words Immaculate, a 52-year-old landmine survivor in northern Uganda, said to me when I met her in May. "It took long for me to declare my status. I felt I should just die," she said.
Margaret is another Ugandan with HIV who also has an amputated leg from a landmine accident.
"I cannot bathe near others," she told me. "My neighbors think that the water that comes off of me has HIV in it. They say I will get the community sick if they touch the water. There has been HIV sensitization in the community but there is no real change in attitudes."
As government and U.N. leaders, HIV advocates and members of civil society gather in Vienna, Austria, this week for the International AIDS Conference, the needs of women such as Immaculate and Margaret must be given priority in the design, implementation and funding of HIV programs and policies.
At least 10 percent of the world's population--as many as 660 million people--have a disability, according to the United Nations.
Read the rest: http://www.womensenews.org/story/commentary/100720/left-out-twice-living-hiv-and...
These were the first words Immaculate, a 52-year-old landmine survivor in northern Uganda, said to me when I met her in May. "It took long for me to declare my status. I felt I should just die," she said.
Margaret is another Ugandan with HIV who also has an amputated leg from a landmine accident.
"I cannot bathe near others," she told me. "My neighbors think that the water that comes off of me has HIV in it. They say I will get the community sick if they touch the water. There has been HIV sensitization in the community but there is no real change in attitudes."
As government and U.N. leaders, HIV advocates and members of civil society gather in Vienna, Austria, this week for the International AIDS Conference, the needs of women such as Immaculate and Margaret must be given priority in the design, implementation and funding of HIV programs and policies.
At least 10 percent of the world's population--as many as 660 million people--have a disability, according to the United Nations.
Read the rest: http://www.womensenews.org/story/commentary/100720/left-out-twice-living-hiv-and...
