Message from the Commonwealth Secretary-General on World AIDS Day
29 November 2004
When I met with Kousalya, a young HIV positive woman from India, a year ago, she told me: "My dreams were shattered after I learned I was infected. I didn't want that to happen to any other woman." Since then, she has joined the Commonwealth Youth Ambassadors for Positive Living, helping other HIV positive young people to come to terms with their condition. As part of her work, Kousalya visits schools, colleges, rural and slum areas to spread awareness and provide accurate information on HIV/AIDS.
Kousalya is one of 13 million women living with HIV in the Commonwealth. Increasingly, they face the greatest challenges in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Twenty-five million people are now infected with the HIV/AIDS virus in the Commonwealth, which is 60% of the global total. Most HIV positive women caught the virus from their husbands or partners. In Sub-Saharan Africa, nearly 60% of HIV positive adults are women.
When they become infected, it is more than a personal tragedy. Communities are losing their teachers, doctors and nurses; mothers unwittingly give the virus to their babies during labour and through breast milk; many are ostracised by their husbands or partners.
The Commonwealth plays an important role in addressing the gender dimension of HIV/AIDS. We have established a strong partnership with UNAIDS and this year hosted the launch of the Global Coalition on Women and AIDS. We work closely with national AIDS commissions, governments and civil society partners to strengthen their capacity to respond to the social and economic impact of HIV/AIDS. Helping to lift women and girls out of poverty is a Commonwealth priority, as poverty is linked to sexual exploitation and vulnerability.
Prevention and care programmes need to address inequalities between men and women too. That is why, for example, the Commonwealth is actively engaging with men to advocate responsible sexual behaviour including the use of condoms. Even when a woman knows what safe sex is, she is too often forced to risk her life because of male power.
No effective attempt to tackle HIV/AIDS can ignore the fact that gender inequalities are a major factor in the pandemic. Women and girls should be at the centre of our joint efforts to halt the spread of AIDS. Not simply because they are victims of AIDS, but because they are key to the solution.
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