HIV and AIDS: The Global Inter-ConnectionPREFACE The origins of this book lay in a desire to stimulate people to think of the ways in which the HIV epidemic might impact on their lives, their work and their communities in the years to come, a span of time similar to that which separates one generation from another. In what ways would their children be affected? How would it feel to live in their communities? Would the nature of their work be affected, its political setting, its economic base? As we worked with the contributors, we early discovered a striking fact about the epidemic. As one comes to live within this epidemic, one realizes that the future will not ever again resemble the pre-HIV past. The virus is here in our midst. Change is now an imperative for survival. However, at least at this stage in our consciousness, there seems to be in each of us a deep reluctance, or an incapacity, to see the future. And so what was to have been a book of reflections on its impact is now a book of reflections on the epidemic itself. It is also a book of reflections of the epidemic. The epidemic is a reflective surface. It throws into stark relief the fault lines of a society: the way power is exercised, gender constructed, socio-economic stratification exploited, the moral ambiguities, the inter-personal slippages. But it also highlights the strengths: empathy, courage, compassion, commitment, intelligence, solidarity, faith. It makes us think, challenging us less with our mortality than with our living interdependence. The voices you will hear in these pages come from a variety of backgrounds, experiences and concerns. They reflect where the virus has penetrated and what is has unearthed. Each has its point of view and its focus of concern. This gives the book texture and diversity. The thread that weaves through them together is a sense of urgency and of passionate concern, even outrage against self and others, that so little has yet been achieved, so much remains to be done. The voices are somewhat loosely organized in the book from the outward turning, the analyses of the settings of the epidemic and their impact on where and how quickly the virus spreads, through the inward turning, the impact on self and those one loves, to the voices that are pointing out the paths we must travel, now and into the future. These same voices also underscore the critical importance of language in describing and discussing the HIV epidemic. They have informed UNDP's language policy and tell their own stories of how the use of language can fuel intolerance and misunderstanding or, alternatively, foster compassion and acceptance. In undertaking to bring this book about, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) wanted the voices of the developing world to be more widely heard, to be a part of the global activism. This book would not have been possible without the unstinting support, in time, encouragement and advocacy, of Timothy Rothermel, Director of the Division of Global and Interregional Programmes within which the HIV and Development Programme is nested at UNDP. In its inception, the book was guided by an Advisory Board consisting of Tim Rothermel, Ingar Bruggermann, Director of WHO New York Liaison Office, Lloyd Garrison, Jehan Raheem, Frank Hartvelt and Mina Mauerstein-Bail, all of UNDP, who provided guidance on approach, suggested contributors and interviewers, and helped with the technicalities and formalities of the publishing world. The initial management of the project was provided by the Ms. Foundation for Education and Communication, Inc. and their editorial team, directed by Marcia Gillespie as Project Coordinator and editor, who commissioned and edited the writings on behalf of UNDP. The final editing was done by Kakuna Kerina who brought her knowledge of her own newly independent country, Namibia, and of Africa in general, to her work and enriched it and us thereby. Under their guidance the text has emerged as differently weighted blends of the public and the private, the subjective and the objective, a complexity which reflects that of the epidemic itself. Special thanks are due to Mina Mauerstein-Bail, Michael Bailey, Kasia Malinowska, Darlene Chavis, Gail Learner and the other members of the HIV and Development Programme, past and present, who kept the project going despite their own demanding responsibilities in the Programme. Berl Francis, Edison Maciel, George Orick and Wasant Techawongtham interviewed some of the contributors. Professor Norman Miller served as a consultant to the project in its final stages. Finally, Ms. Krishna Shondi and Ms. Trish Reynolds of Kumarian Press are also to be thanked, for their efforts in shepherding this book through the production process. We would like to thank everyone who contributed their thoughts, whether or not their reflections were included in this volume. Each contributor gave new insights into this complex phenomenon that now faces the world. Our work is the richer. Their insights appear in our writings, their ideas guide us. Finally we would like to thank Bill, Brett, Bill, Noerine, Troy, and his dad, Vince, Stephen, Cindi, Mianda, Auxilla, David, Michael, Robert, Herbert and many others, too many to name, sadly, who are the reason why we care and to whom this book is dedicated.
Elizabeth
Reid
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