June 10, 2008

Zimbabwe’s Relief Ban Harms People With HIV

 In the aftermath of  Zimbabwe’s government recent suspension of humanitarian relief efforts, many nongovernment organizations (NGOs) that had been offering AIDS services in the country are now unable to provide sufficient care and treatment, the Agence France-Presse reports (afp.google.com, 6/8). An estimated 3,000 people in Zimbabwe die each week of AIDS-related illness.

According to the article, more than 4 million Zimbabweans rely on foreign aid for survival.  “One cruel direct impact of the ban will be that people living with HIV/AIDS will increasingly die since many NGOs provide assistance in [the] form of home-based care and antiretroviral medication to them,” said the National Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (NANGO) in a statement. “The crisis deepens due to skyrocketing food prices and bad harvest.”

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