Religious leaders test for HIV. 18/4/10
“We needed to champion the process because this is a psycho-socio way of changing people’s behaviour and attitude,” Juruga said.
By Rehmah Sanyu and Henry Sekanjako
18 April 2010
RELIGIOUS leaders from various denominations last week tested for HIV/AIDS in a bid to create confidence among believers to do the same.
The leaders, who included sheiks, priests from Orthodox and Catholic churches and pastors from the Pentecostal, Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) and Church of Uganda, volunteered to take the test to demonstrate their commitment to the fight against HIV.
“I have tested to encourage other people to know their status,” Pastor Joseph Sserwadda, of Victory Church in Ndeeba, told The New Vision.
He was speaking at the closing ceremony of the inter-religious council of Uganda conference on HIV and maternal health for senior religious leaders in Uganda at Imperial Botanical Beach Hotel in Entebbe.
He said people carry out voluntary testing to know whether to protect themselves more or live positively.
Sserwadda said testing is the best way of fighting HIV/AIDS since it helps one know their status.
“When you know you are HIV negative, you find ways of preventing infection,” Sserwadda said.
Sheik Abdul Juruga, the Bushenyi district Khadi, said he wanted to de-stigmatise communities by giving them confidence to carry out voluntary testing as a way of fighting the scourge.
“We needed to champion the process because this is a psycho-socio way of changing people’s behaviour and attitude,” Juruga said.
Pastor Patrick Mulindwa of the SDA church said testing should be encouraged because it helps people know their status and start treatment if sick.
According to the director of the Uganda AIDS commission, Dr. Apuuli Kihumuro, the HIV prevalence stands at 6.4% among adults between the age of 20 and 50 years and 0.7% among children.
Kihumuro said people stopped having multiple relationships when the campaign against the vice had just started but now it is common practice.
He added that the number of new infections in the country every year is higher than deaths from AIDS-related illness. “This is because of multiple sexual partners,” he said.
About 300 religious leaders attended the conference in which they committed themselves to join the campaign against HIV.
Kampala Archbishop Dr Cyprian Lwanga re-affirmed the Catholic Church’s opposition to condoms.
He said condoms do not provide 100% protection, urging his counterparts to encourage being faithful and abstaining from sex but not using condoms.