Reference to Incidents of PLHA Commiting Suicide

March 20, 2007

Dear Forum,

This has reference to messages about persons living with HIV committing suicide.

I feel deeply disturbed by the continuing incidents of PLHA committing suicide.

Devindar of Chandigarh and BNP+ member could be the latest known victims of

ignorance, stigma and discrimination. We come across similar incidents in other

parts of the country too. The modes of transmission and prevalence of HIV may

differ from region to region, but about the prevalence of stigma, discrimination

and ignorance, India seems standing united without any regional disparities.

The past efforts have done enough to create a notion that HIV is an “incurable

deadly disease” but the good news that HIV is no more a deadly disease and is

treatable has not gone sufficiently enough to the masses.

I have been living with HIV for the last 19 years and leading a healthy normal

life. No reason why I should feel less normal than any other human being living

with or with out an ailment. I am on ART since the last three years. The

knowledge that treatment is available gives my family and me a great hope.

The knowledge of treatment availability is limited to some segment of people in

the HIV/AIDS circle. The knowledge that the person X or Y will continue to live

with us with the support of medication, can create a greater impact in the minds

of community, with whom a person living with HIV have to survive. Surviving with

the virus is easily manageable but surviving with the minds around you

precipitating pity and guiltiness is a hard job.

What highly required now is to normalize the notion for HIV among people. There

should be enabling environment that could help people to freely walk in to a

VCTC and test themselves. If the estimates are correct, around fifty million

people living in India do not know their HIV status. Why such a huge gap between

the number of people who know there status and who do not know?

Regards

Elango Ramachander

President

Indian Network for People Living with HIV/AIDS (INP+)

e-mail: awaazdho@...

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