President — TT in AIDS crisis

President George Maxwell Richards yesterday warned of the impending HIV/AIDS devastation to lives and economies in the Caribbean. He said the situation is not “a far distance away” from the African continent, where the death toll from the virus is expected to rise in the absence of greatly expanded prevention, treatment and care efforts.

President Richards said TT had passed the stage of analysing causes and the imperative is for sustained, concerted, aggressive action. To stem the tide, he said the country had to come out of its apathy, complacency and ignorance about the issue. “Looking at the picture in TT, we should see immediately that we are in crisis,” President Richards said at the stamp launch commemorating World AIDS Day and the campaign against stigma and discrimination hosted by TTPost and the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre at Hilton Trinidad. President Richards quoted figures showing that the reported cases over the last ten years had risen from 607 in 1992 to 1209 in 2002, and there is significant under-reporting. His Excellency said even more disturbing is that the majority of reported cases occur in the 25-49 age group followed by people 15-24 years. He said HIV/AIDS is no longer just a health issue but represents a major development crisis.

The President said education has a critical role in the fight against the disease. Admitting a gap exists between knowledge and changing lifestyle, he said education must be used to promote the development of personal value systems and attitudes “backed by necessary knowledge and skills.” President Richards said much work needs to be done because stigma and discrimination can reduce effectiveness of such programmes. He said the purely medical approach must give way to the developmental approach where the well-being of society is central. Chairman of TTPost, Patt Christopher, said the company will be donating 50 percent of each World AIDS stamp cover to the fight against HIV/AIDS. She said TTPost staff  members were used in the images on the stamps and thanked them for volunteering.