Scholars of the Holy Bible have long touted that the noun phrase “Fear not” is recorded 365 times in the Holy Bible. Fear, which is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary, the tenth edition, as “an unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain or harm'', has retarded the progress of many people. I also reckon the fear of HIV/AIDS antibody test as one of the factors making the fight against HIV/AIDS not only difficult but also untenable.
Many people are afraid to know their HIV status even when the test is free of charge. This is because of the perception created earlier about HIV/AIDS. Some people see HIV/AIDS as the single most deadly disease and therefore see People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs) as infectious and deadly entities who must not be associated with.
For instance, it was reported by www.african-news.ch on 28th August, 2007 that some PLWHAs in Papua New Guinea have been buried alive by their relatives. This inhuman act inflicted on PLWHAS, coupled with the ordeal that the society has subjected them to has generated a lot of fear in the lives of many people to go for the HIV/AIDS antibody test.
Besides, once a person becomes aware of his or her HIV status as being positive and therefore thinks of the perception and the ill-treatment the society subjects PLWHAs to, the mental trauma alone is enough to kill that person. Perhaps, this may explain why some say “consciousness of death kills faster than death itself''. PLWHAs lose hope of the future and consider themselves unworthy of human inclusion. Life becomes meaningless and all hopes for survival flee from them. The only thing they await and think of is the day of their departure into the land of the dead. If this is the fate of those who are tested positive of HIV/AIDS, then who else would like to know his or her HIV status even when the test is free of charge?
Beyond this horrendous treatment, those who have tested positive of HIV/AIDS also face stigmatization and discrimination. Families point fingers at PLWHAs, while some even do not talk, eat, shake hands or have anything to do in common with them. Relatives keep their distance from PLWHAs by confining them to specific abodes of which friends and children are not allowed to see them. Some PLWHAs are “imprisoned'' and only see human beings when they are being served with food.
Furthermore, men have divorced their wives and others have beaten their wives mercilessly to the brink of death when they found that their spouses were HIV positive.
The most disturbing aspect of all is the attitude of some health workers. Some health workers have refused to care for PLWHAs, causing the latter a lot of psychological and physical torture and anxiety.
Ignorantly, some faith-based organizations that are supposed to be friends to PLWHAs have rather worsened the situation. The teachings and preaching of some of them on HIV/AIDS create the impression that PLWHAs are the most sinful beings that have ever lived on earth. Some even have reserved special pews for PLWHAs. Even the faith based- organizations that associate with PLWHAs are regarded by other counterparts as being immoral and weak in their religious faith.
The least said about the attitude of co-workers and employers of PLWHAs the better. They despise, victimize, reject and look down on PLWHAs. Some PLWHAs are even sacked from work because of their HIV status.
These perpetual injustices, trauma and stigmatization resulting in discrimination and ostracism have generated fear in many people to know their HIV status.
The failure on the part of many people to go for the test is stemming all efforts to prevent HIV/AIDS, since those living with the virus are spreading it unknowingly. Moreover, it impedes the efforts of policy-makers and the government, since they cannot draw effective and workable plans to combat the HIV/AIDS menace without knowing the actual number of those who are living with the virus. Hence relative, friends, health workers, faith-based Organizations and all individuals are being called upon to desist from any negative attitudes which make people unwilling to know their HIV status. Such negative attitudes can be reduced drastically if stringent legislations are enacted to deal with those who will deliberately reveal people's HIV status or discriminate against PLWHAs. We are admonished 365 times yearly not to be afraid of the HIV antibody test since it is one of the sure means of bringing the HIV/AIDS pandemic under control in both Ghana and Africa.
Gyan Eric University of Cape Coast, Ghana
Views expressed by the author(s) do not necessarily reflect those of GhanaHomePage.
