For Your Information

[Guest guest]

Correction.

I refer to the article: "UGANDA: Circumcision ban to prevent HIV infection"

This has subsequently been corrected by the President's press secretary.

Circumcision Explainedhttp://allafrica.com/stories/200310150259.html

Quote: "At no point during his speech did the President threaten to ban the practice of circumcision."

"Male circumcision is a recommended health practice and the President is fully aware of this. He cannot, therefore, advocate its ban," Okurut said yesterday.

For your information

U N I T E D N A T I O N SOffice for the Coordination of Humanitarian AffairsIntegrated Regional Information NetworkCONTENT:1 - SOUTH AFRICA: AIDS discrimination in army challenged2 - SOUTH AFRICA: Lobby group urges cheaper AIDS drugs3 - UGANDA: Circumcision ban to prevent HIV infection4 - ZIMBABWE: Sexual inequality spreads HIV/AIDS - MP1 - SOUTH AFRICA: AIDS discrimination in army challengedJOHANNESBURG, 14 October (PLUSNEWS) - A recent decision by the SouthAfrican government to ban HIV-positive soldiers from active duty has drawncriticism from local AIDS activists.The AIDS Law Project (ALP) said it would fight the state in court as thedecision was unconstitutional and violated anti-discrimination clauses.Minister of Defence Mosioua Lekota dropped a bombshell last week when hesaid: "Anybody with the condition [of HIV] cannot be recruited into thedefence force. There's no point. You can't take in ill people intopositions in the army. It's not useful."However, the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has denieddiscriminating against people living with HIV/AIDS, saying there was noban on such individuals doing civilian jobs in the military.The local Mail and Guardian newspaper quoted SANDF spokesman, SamMkhwanazi, as saying: "But all recruits for active military duty have topass a comprehensive health assessment - including an HIV/AIDS test - tobe accepted."[ENDS]2 - SOUTH AFRICA: Lobby group urges cheaper AIDS drugsJOHANNESBURG, 14 October (PLUSNEWS) - A South African AIDS lobby group haslost 100 of its activists to AIDS-related illnesses in a period of justover a four months.The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) said most of the members who diedbetween March and July 2003 were women younger than 24, and only one wasusing anti-HIV/AIDS drugs.Zackie Achmat, chairman of the TAC, called on the government to make thedrugs more easily accessible to people living with HIV/AIDS by reducingthe price to under R200.00 (US $28.53) per month. The drugs currently sellat R300.00 ($42.79) per monthly dose.He said the government could achieve this by issuing licences for thelocal manufacture of generic versions of the drugs.Achmat was quoted by the South African Press Association (SAPA) as saying:"I am confident the government will act urgently on this. Six hundredpeople die in our country every day, which is a tragedy. But, even worseis that, there are 1,500 new infections every day."[ENDS]3 - UGANDA: Circumcision ban to prevent HIV infectionJOHANNESBURG, 14 October (PLUSNEWS) - A threat by Ugandan President YoweriMuseveni to ban the traditional circumcision of boys so as to curb thespread of HIV/AIDS has drawn strong reaction from the country'straditional healers.Some traditionalists have warned that such a move could be regarded asinterference in cultural practices and would be strongly resisted.However, Museveni told the local newspaper, New Vision, that the culturalpractice of circumcision endangered the lives of youths by spreadingHIV/AIDS."I do not care about losing votes ... I cannot look for votes from peoplewho may die tomorrow after getting infected during the circumcisionrituals," Museveni said.The president suggested that qualified medical personnel carry out thecircumcisions, despite traditionalists saying they were now taking thenecessary steps to minimise the possibility of HIV transmission duringsuch rituals.[ENDS]4 - ZIMBABWE: Sexual inequality spreads HIV/AIDS - MPJOHANNESBURG, 14 October (PLUSNEWS) - Inequality between men and women inthe Southern African Development Community (SADC) is a major contributorto the spread of HIV/AIDS, a member of Zimbabwe's parliament has said.Lazarus Dokora, MP for Rushinga district on the northern border withMozambique, said the gender imbalance also made it difficult for women tonegotiate for safer sex.The Zimbabwean newspaper, The Herald, quoted Dokora as saying: "Men aresocialised to believe that they have the right to decide when, where andhow sex takes place, and that they are entitled to have multiple sexpartners."He said responses to HIV/AIDS and the promotion of gender equalitypresented an opportunity for comprehensive campaigns that could providelong-term solutions to ensure justice and equity among the region's menand women.Research shows that 40 percent of the more than 50 million people livingwith HIV/AIDS worldwide are in the SADC region.[ENDS][This Item is Delivered to the English Service of the UN's IRINhumanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the viewsof the United Nations. For further information, free subscriptions, orto change your keywords, contact e-mail: Irin@... or Web:http://www.irinnews.org . If you re-print, copy, archive or re-postthis item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Reposting bycommercial sites requires written IRIN permission.]Copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2003

Ingrid KloetBoardmember ENP+/GNP+www.gnpplus.netwww.planetpoz.orgcoEubank Blvd. NE 9-DAlbuquerque, New Mexico 87111Phone/Fax 505-298-2644Mobile 505-280-2218Email: Ingrid@...

"The overall aim of GNP+ is to improve the quality of life of peopleliving with HIV/AIDS. GNP+ is based on a policy platform, "The GlobalAdvocacy Agenda", which focuses on promoting global access to HIV careand treatment, ending stigma and discrimination against people livingwith HIV/AIDS, and promoting the greater and more meaningful involvementof PLWHA in the decisions that affect their lives and the lives of theircommunities."

http://www./group/http://www./group/aids-africa (a group made up of Africans worldwide)Join Digital Africa- an information technology group that discusses IT in Africa at http://www./group/digafrica

[Guest guest]

I have started a blog about the intentional steps (sometimes unintentional as

well) I have taken to become healthy. Included in that blog is/will be

occasional posts about fermented foods and recipes for fermenting.

Anyone interested in reading and commenting is welcome. Go to

http://intentionallyhealthy.wordpress.com/ There you will find two posts, one of

which is a couple of recipes for fermented rolled oats and fermented oatmeal.

Ellis Hein