Today the students of Anglican schools from across the country gathered in Belize City to march and rally against Aids. It’s been done before, but rarely by students of church managed schools. 7NEWS Jacqueline Godwin reports.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
“When you consider the fact that one of the age groups HIV and Aids has affected is between fifteen and twenty four years old, then it is important that these young people you see parading get to know all they can about this deadly disease. The children of Belize’s Anglican Schools created posters and banners bearing messages about HIV and Aids that – according to official estimates - has infected over two thousand of their peers.
According to the Ministry of Health, in 2006 alone, one hundred and eight young men and women between the ages of fifteen and twenty four were infected with HIV and Aids.
Nazera Aguilar, Concerned High School student
“If we come out here and put a step forward and say that we will try to protect ourselves then maybe everybody else can think the same.”
It took the students two months to organize the event and the effort was well supported by their principals, teachers, community and health workers who say the initiative is very critical in their fight to stop the spread of HIV and Aids. But still, it continues.
Presently there are forty children who are receiving retro viral treatments. According to Coordinator of the Voluntary Counseling and Testing Clinic Nurse Margaret Bradley they provide more than just health care to these young persons living with Aids.
Nurse Margaret Bradley, Coordinator, VCT Unit
“The younger ones do not express much but it is the much older ones who are thirteen and fourteen who are growing up who will maybe one day fall in love so we need to do a lot of education, tell them about behavioral change, what to do, what is best for them, the importance of medication and follow up.”
The parade culminated at the memorial park where a rally was held. Besides listening to various presentations, the youths took the time to fill out questionnaires and view displays. But it isn’t the first time that these students are being educated on HIV and Aids. In fact it is part of their curriculum. According to Anglican Schools General Manager Carol Babb they have been training their teachers from the lower to upper divisions.
Carol Babb, General Manager - Anglican Schools
“I do not know if you know Jackie but we are doing an Aids awareness programme in all of our schools. We realize that the young people are our future and they need to know the facts about HIV and Aids because if you don't educate them about HIV and Aids this disease is horrible, it could wipe human kind."
“At the infant division they teach about their bodies. Of course they do not teach the children about sex and about all the details about HIV and Aids but at the infant division they teach children about their bodies, how their bodies are scared, it belongs to them and none one else and to be careful.”
A total of eighteen schools from across the country participated in the parade and rally held under the theme, “youth take the lead.”
Michelle Elliott, HIV/Aids Programme Coordinator
“A lot of the focus on HIV and Aids are on the adults and we feel that it is very important to send the message to the youths because they are our future. In reality in the next twenty years or so they will be leading the country and I think in order to try and decrease the epidemic, we want to make sure that the youths get the message so they can start to practice healthy lifestyles.”
And thirteen year old Karen Welch is one of those young persons who will be helping to spread the message.
Karen Welch, 13 years old
“So that the young ones like us can protect themselves we can give them what to say so later on they can protect themselves so they do not catch the virus and the younger ones can know what to do.”
Most of the students we spoke to say they are committed to the cause and will now help to educate their peers. And it will take some years before we know if all this early education and awareness is enough to spare this next generation form the aids scourge as they enter sexually active adulthood. Reporting for 7NEWS Jacqueline Godwin.
Today's event was held in recognition of World's Aids Day that was observed on December first.
