Need for a vaccine

Another article was published this week that only further supports the need for an HIV vaccine.

UN: New HIV infections outpaces drug treatment
by: John Heilprin

Despite a stepped up global battle against AIDS, the numbers of people newly infected with HIV are far and away outpacing the numbers beginning antiretroviral drug treatments, U.N. officials said Monday.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, opening several days of U.N. debate on AIDS prevention, told world leaders that 2.5 million people became infected with HIV last year compared with 1 million who started using important antiretroviral drugs.

"Unless greater and swifter advances are made in reaching those who need essential services, the epidemic's burden on households, communities and societies will continue to mount," Ban said.

Some 2.1 million people died of AIDS last year and at least 33 million people world wide have the HIV infection, according to U.N. figures.

In addition, people with weakened immune systems from HIV are up to 50 times more likely to develop tuberculosis, U.N. officials say.

"We cannot separate the fight against HIV/AIDS from the fight against TB," said General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim, who will preside over a two-day meeting on AIDS starting Tuesday.

Former President Bill Clinton pointed out ramifications that rising oil prices have on battling the disease.

"This oil price spike has taken away 100 percent of the value of foreign aid and debt relief to very many countries," he told the U.N. "It has dramatically increased the cost of producing food, and it has increased therefore the number of people who are at risk of these diseases."

Dr. Peter Piot, executive director of UNAIDS, said 2 million people were getting antiretroviral drugs in Africa.

Antiretroviral drugs have made HIV a manageable illness for many patients and prolonged their lives beyond what once seemed possible.

The U.N.-backed Global Fund to Fight AIDS Tuberculosis and Malaria announced Monday it helped 1.75 million get antiretroviral treatment — a 59 percent increase over last year.

But slightly more than two-thirds of people with HIV globally are not getting any such treatment, according to U.N. figures.

Power rationing

Zambia, like other countries in southern Africa, has been hit by a serious power shortage. To compensate, the country has been rationing power to its civilians. Usually twice a day - once from noon until two in the afternoon and once from six until eight in the evening - electrical power is turned off, meaning lots of cold, candlelit meals. At the end of last week, the state utility company, Zesco Ltd., announced that it would deepen rationing to civilians in order to maintain supplies to the copper and cobalt mines in the north of the country, which are the backbone of the nation's economy. It sounds like there are many more peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and salads in my near future.

Lusaka Polo Club

Today I went to a polo match at the Lusaka Polo Club. It was certainly something I never expected when I thought about the things I might do in Zambia, but it made for an interesting day. I'd never seen polo before, so the match itself was interesting to watch. The atmosphere was perhaps even more interesting, if not, disturbingly, a little reminiscent of the days of colonialism.

The "g-word"

I just finished reading the speech Barack Obama gave earlier this week and was quite inspired. The quote that stuck with me most, though, was his definition of "the common threats of the 21st century - terrorism and nuclear weapons; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease."

He said it. The "g-word". Genocide. A word that is rarely uttered by the leaders of the United States. A word describing events and actions that this nation has ignored over and over again. A word that our government emphatically refused to use in 1994.

On the 11th of May 1994, over a month into the Rwandan genocide, State Department representative Mike McCurry was asked in a press briefing, "Has this government been able to determine whether any of the acts committed in Rwanda since April 6 constitute genocide?" He answered, "I don't know that they've made any legal determination on that."

On May 17th, the United Nations Security Council finally admitted "acts of genocide may have been committed." Over a month after this admission, on June 10th, the United States continued to refuse to describe the events occurring in Rwanda as "genocide". Note that at this point, over sixty-five days had passed since "acts of genocide" had begun in Rwanda. In this time, hundreds of thousands had been killed. Since the UN had used the term "acts of genocide", State Department spokesperson Christine Shelley was asked in a briefing "How many acts of genocide does it take to make genocide?" She responded, "That's just not a question that I'm in a position to answer." The follow-up question was asked, "Well, is it true that you have specific guidance not to use the word 'genocide' in isolation, but always to preface it with these words 'acts of'?" Her response was a jumble of excuses.

Four years later, in March of 1998, President Clinton finally admitted, "We did not immediately call these crimes by their rightful name: genocide."

Now, fourteen years after the Rwandan genocide, a candidate for the office of President of the United States has not only used the "g-word", but he has mentioned genocide as one of "the common threats of the 21st century." In this nation that has refused to acknowledge genocide so often in its past, even this mention of the "g-word" gives me hope that possibly, just maybe, there is the slightest chance that next time events like those that took place in Rwanda in 1994 occur, our government might choose to acknowledge them appropriately and take action. While I know there is no guarantee, even the mention of the word "genocide" is a step forward in my mind.

For the rest of Barack Obama's speech from 3 June, visit: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/story?id=4988344&page=1.
It's a read I would recommend.

Sex and the City

Last night I went to the movie theatre to see the new 'Sex and the City' movie with several of the girls with whom I work. Now, there are a few factors you may need to consider to understand how truly exciting this event really was:

1. There is no movie theatre in Kigali (or Rwanda, for that matter) so I haven't been to see a movie in at least nine months.

2. Not only is there a movie theatre in Lusaka, but it has stadium seating and comfortable chairs.

3. The theatre served popcorn (another thing I haven't had in at least nine months) and, even though they didn't have that gross, melted, movie-theatre butter, they did have delicious flavored salts.

4. The theatre was showing 'Sex and the City', which is significant in two ways. First of all, because it isn't eight months or eight years old. It came out here the same day it came out in the U.S. Secondly, it's a movie that I really wanted to see, rather than one that I would just go to see because it was playing and I wanted to go to the theatre.

5. They showed previews with the movie, which are usually my favorite part anyway.

It was a really nice night. I actually forgot I was in Africa for a little while. And the movie, even if it wasn't quite as good as I wanted it to be, was cute and fun.