Action
Card Briefing – December 2005
World AIDS Day - observed
worldwide on 1 December - is a unique moment when all of humanity is
challenged to reflect on the way HIV and AIDS affects us and how we can
respond to the pandemic – 40 million people live with HIV or AIDS. Every
six seconds someone is infected. Every ten seconds someone dies.
Our card features an HIV
awareness-raising therukoothu performance in Bangalore, South India by
students of the United Theological College.
UNAIDS reports that
socioeconomic status, traditional social norms, cultural myths on sex
and sexuality, large-scale migration and a huge population of
marginalized people make India extremely vulnerable to the AIDS
epidemic. Due to the vast size of the country, there are many challenges
involved in expanding the national government’s commitment to providing
treatment and awareness in all states and at the grass-roots level, as
well as in involving ministries and departments other than health, and
in scaling up interventions to meet the projected needs for prevention
and care. Some parts of India already have HIV prevalence levels on a
par with sub-Saharan Africa.
-
Colleges like UTC
Bangalore and Tamilnadu Theological Seminary have responded to the
challenge and are taking a lead in
-
educating their ministerial students into
an awareness of HIV and AIDS, its modes of transmission, prevention
strategies and appropriate pastoral responses including counselling
and organising community-based care
-
training the students to communicate what
they learn through alternative popular media, including therukoothu
(street theatre), pavakoothu (screen play), folk dance and song
-
practising that training by undertaking
awareness-raising campaigns among slum and village dwellers
-
alerting congregations to the need to
educate themselves, advocate on behalf of those living with HIV and
AIDS and banish the stigma and discrimination which too often
characterise the church’s response
-
addressing the poverty and gender issues
which always surround HIV
Please send your card with
a message of encouragement to:
Rev Dr Joshva
Raja OR Rev Dr Mohan Larbeer
Department of
Communication Principal
United Theological
College Tamilnadu Theological Seminary
63 Miller’s
Road Arasaradi
Bangalore 560
046 Madurai 625 016
India India
Postage: Postcard with
airmail sticker – 47p
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