For over ten years South Africa has been in denial of its most threatining problem. The cost of ignorring this problem is the highest HIV and AIDS rates in the World. This problem has the abilty to to crush the nations population, work force, and economy. “AIDS makes most of South Africa’s other problems seem trivial”(8210:8).

Little is known for certain about how many people are now infected, and all forcasts involve some speculation”(8210:8). The first case of AIDS in South Africa occured in 1987, where as the countries farther north than South Africa had their first AIDS cases way before. The epidemic did not begin in South Africa until 1993. “A study for ING Barings last year predicted 8m infections by 2005. A study by Abt Associates, a Johanesburg consulting firm , forcast the number of deaths attributable to AIDS at 354,000-383,000 in 2005, rising to 545,000-635,000 in 2010. Average life expectancy is set to fall from 60 years to 40 by 2008”(8210:8).

Journalist Johanna McGeary spent a month in South Africa to get an up close and personal experience of how of AIDS effects the South African community. She got exactly t

The current South African president Mr. Mbeki found the AIDS plague interesting while the previous president, Mr. Mandela’s record on AIDS was not good, due to him tring to ignore the problem. Mr. Mbeki is so interested in AIDS that has has dabbed in bizarre theories not just about the causes of AIDS, but also about a supposed conspiricy involving the CIA and big pharmaceutical conpanies to sell drugs by promoting the thesis that HIV causes AIDS. “ The president’s reluctance to accept that HIV causes AIDS, coupled with the obduracy of the country’s first black health minister. The new black health minister has made the following mistakes, he has ventured into a “dangerous cul-de-sac” in quest of a cheap mirical drug called Virodene; the rejection of many offers by drug companies to provide, at a discount, drugs that did work; the long refusal to make the anti-retroviraldrug AZT available in public hospitals, and until last September, to allow nevirapine, an even cheaper retroviral drug, to be used”(8210:10). The biggest problem is the denial of the problem and the tendancy of the Government to make AIDS a closit issue. This became “cruelly apparent” with the death last October of Parks Mankahlana presidential spokesman for Mr. Mbeki and Mr. Mandela before him. Officialy he was said to have cronic anaemia, “ but therre was much speculation—and no denial-- that AIDS was responsible for his death”(8210:10). Research Unit at Chris Hani-Baragwanath Hospital, South Africa’s biggest , puts it this way. “The message is, If

wages attract prostitutes. Their hazardous job can make them careless of other risks”(8208:65). Industries with better educated workers are less affected by AIDS, “fewer than a tenth of bank employees, for example, have HIV”(8208:65).

Some topics in this essay:
South Africa, South African, HIV AIDS, Mbeki AIDS, South Africans, HIV AIDs, Jim Nachtwey, Johanna McGeary, South Africa’s, Gold Fields, south africa, south african, hiv aids, causes aids, south africa’s, south africans, health minister, hiv causes, hiv causes aids, aids epidemic, aids south africa, half population, percent women tested, black health minister,