This week’s lead story on how schools are dealing with the challenge of HIV-infected students, while encouraging, illustrates just how far we still have to go in the fight against the killer pandemic in our midst.  

The story features the experiences of two HIV-positive students who had the courage to share their status with a teacher at school. As a result, both are afforded considerable flexibility in a number of areas of school life so that they can access proper medical attention without negatively impacting their studies.

This is heartening for the students, and commendable on the part of the teachers who by being trustworthy confidants have given these students a chance to pursue their academic dreams without suffering the stigma of being HIV-positive.

However, as one reads the experiences of the two young students, one cannot help feeling sad that they have to go to such lengths to keep their condition a secret.

In fact, we learn that the mother to one of them believes "he will hang himself” if people find out his status! What is even sadder is that we all feel that it just might be true: how many times have we heard people, our own friends, say they would kill themselves if they found they were infected with HIV?

Clearly we have a problem here. It is not permissible for us as a society to maintain an atmosphere in which someone would rather die than let people know that they have a sickness whose cause and means of dispersal are well known, and which can be managed with modern drugs to ensure a long and fruitful life for the victims, without considerable danger to the rest of the community. 

The attitudes in schools are just a reflection of our attitudes as a community. We have done well on sensitising the public on how to avoid HIV/AIDS and where those that are infected can seek treatment. Now let us tear down this wall of shame that makes it difficult for HIV-positive patients to go for treatment in the open and live their lives freely without fear of being judged.