Zambians across the country joined the WAD global commemorations and several organisations tried their best to mobilize early and demonstrate leadership. These events ranged from political statements to candlelight vigils and workshops attended by former African heads of state.

The aim of this year's World AIDS Day (WAD) theme in Zambia was to highlight the need for innovation, vision and perseverance in the face of the HIV and AIDS challenge.

Families, communities, civil society

organisations and business were all encouraged to become involved in providing stronger leadership in HIV and AIDS initiatives.

On the part of civil society, a joint effort called the Zambia AIDS Campaign, composed of several organisations among them the Zambia AIDS Law Research and Advocacy Network (ZARAN), Treatment Advocacy Literacy Campaign (TALC) and Youth Vision Zambia, took the lead on WAD by issuing joint statements and participating in other events as individual organisations.

ZARAN Executive Director, Malala Mwondela, said that WAD provides an opportunity to celebrate the successes scored and reflect on the failures of the current AIDS response.

She said the theme of leadership was very appropriate because leadership was central to the response. She echoed the need to hold governments accountable for their commitments.

And on the very day in which the theme should have encouraged strong displays of public leadership there was an obvious lack of leadership by some of Zambia’s top political leaders. Minister of Health, Dr. Brian Chituwo delayed the flagging off of the march past because he was seeing off the President at the airport. The march, led by the National AIDS Council, took place in Lusaka from Northmead to the show grounds. Various civil society organisations, including AfyaMzuri, ZARAN, TALC and the Zambia Interfaith Networking Groups, were present as well as members of the business community.

Collaboration could be seen during the WAD march past where civil society groups, government departments and private sector companies came together to show solidarity in the fight against HIV and AIDS and converged to listen to speeches and other messages on the pandemic.

Republican President Dr. Levey, who has said on many occasions that he is committed to the AIDS fight, missed the World AIDS Day Interfaith candle service on the eve of WAD and was not even in Zambia on World AIDS Day.

“Political leaders are failing to demonstrate practical leadership, if a simple thing such as flagging off a march past can fail to take off because the ‘leaders’ are at the airport seeing off the Head of State while thousands of people, most of whom are living with HIV, are left standing in the sun for hours is very disappointing.” Mrs Mwondela said.

ZARAN observed that one of the biggest challenges of the civil society collaborative efforts was the lack of a platform to plan and coordinate their activities for WAD. Hence the Zambia AIDS Campaign became more strategic oriented - uniting diverse constituencies of civil society under a common campaigning framework for political accountability: “Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise”- rather than activity oriented.

In a joint press statement issued by ZARAN and TALC as part of civil society collaborative activities, the two organisations lamented that people living with HIV in rural areas are still not able to access the full range of treatment services.

The statement reads in part:” In some places they have to travel through game reserves where they face the risk of being mauled by animals, while many more are forced to cross wide rivers in open canoes from where they are also at the mercy of crocodiles and hippos just for the purpose of having access to antiretroviral treatment.”

Amos Mwale of Youth Vision Zambia, also a member of the Zambia AIDS Campaign, says the theme of leadership challenges leaders to take a more proactive role. He bemoaned the lack of creativity in the commemorations and stressed the need of civil society and government to involve communities in their activities as opposed to March pasts which have become monotonous.

“There is more solidarity than active collaboration from civil society and as you can see, it’s all about T-shirts.”

Mulenga Fube board member of the Youth Alive Zambia another Zambia AIDS Campaign member said leadership should be narrowed down to community –level organisation.

Members of the the Zambia AIDS Campaign, TALC and ZARAN, challenged the government to demonstrate leadership in honouring its commitments made at various international fora. The organisations said the government should strive to improve the current legal and policy environment and play visible roles in addressing the issues that have impacted negatively on efforts to stop AIDS.

They prodded government to place keen emphasis on matters of human rights in relation to HIV and AIDS and hence the need to deal with the legal and policy framework of the country.

The organisations also organised activities in their individual capacities. ZARAN produced posters and other IEC materials on the day and aired a radio programme and a television documentary. TALC, as part of the WAD activities, participated in an hour long radio program on Hot 96.8 FM on 1 December, to discuss leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

TALC Programs Officer, Felix Mwanza also answered some questions from listeners on several issues regarding HIV and AIDS leadership.

Mr. Mwanza was forthright in condemning the Zambian government’s failure to provide adequate leadership. He challenged political leaders to make a shift from merely making speeches about HIV and AIDS to practically take the lead.

Mr. Mwanza, when questioning the political leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS noted the failure by most politicians to publicly go for HIV tests.

Other World AIDS Day Activities Around the Country

In other events to mark the day, momentum towards the day started building in Livingstone when first republican president Dr. Kenneth Kaunda convened a workshop attended by former African heads of state on 22 November at the Sun Hotel.
The workshop was convened by AIDSCOM, a Johannesburg based trust founded in 2005 to raise awareness and mobilise leadership against the pandemic and a Zambian NGO Trust for Collective Action on HIV and AIDS in Zambia (TCAHZa). It was further supported by OXFAM and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

“We leaders must take personal action. We commit ourselves to working with all stakeholders to ensure that the issue of HIV and AIDS remains on top of our agendas,” The leaders’ joint communiqué read in part.

Much of the best leadership on AIDS has been demonstrated within civil society organisations challenging the status quo and implementing joint activities aimed at addressing HIV and AIDS.

On the eve of WAD an interfaith candlelight service was held at the cathedral of the holy cross in Lusaka. The vigil was an example of effective collaboration where people from all walks of life met to remember the departed and pray for strength for those living with the virus.

The candle light service attended by people from major religious groupings in the country as well as top government and private sector officials and graced by vice president Rupiah Banda was organised by the Zambia Inter Faith Networking Group (ZINGO).

The most disappointing part of this vigil could be said to have been the decision by the organisers to cut short the programme for the candlelight service from the traditional four hours to less than two hours.

In interviews after the event, many AIDS activists questioned the rationale behind the move to cut the evening’s programme which they said inconvenienced them as they wanted to use the occasion to remember their beloved ones whose lives have been taken away by AIDS.

Another notable activity on WAD saw local government minister Sylvia Masebo, lead journalists and Lusaka’s Chawama township residents undergoing Counselling and Testing as a way of demonstrating leadership in the fight against AIDS.

Miriam Banda, National chairperson of the Network of People living with HIV (NZP+), challenged top political and government leaders to declare their HIV positive status noting that it was one way they would help demystify HIV and AIDS as a poor man or woman’s disease.

The inadequacy of financial resources to mount sustained campaigns are hampering the NZP+ initiatives said Mrs. Banda who lamented that in real terms there was no funding for collaboration activities.

WAD is an important day for civil society as it provides an opportunity to reflect on failures and successes and demand action and accountability while interacting with government.

One of the biggest challenges for civil society is the need to eradicate duplicity of activities.

Zambia’s multi-sectoral approach is guided by the framework under which all constituencies should have coordinated efforts under the National AIDS Council. Collaboration is facilitated by several networks that exist on the ground segmented by individual organisations and interest groups.

ENDS///

By Arnold Tutu