Blame & Banishment - Médecins du Monde

Blame and Banishment: The underground HIV epidemic affecting children in Eastern Europe and Central Asia
SECTION IV Living with HIV:
Society, systems and
a daily search for hope...
“My husband beat me, turned his back on me and told me to go and live where I found
AIDS. He threw me out of the house with my sick child and the rest of the children. My former
colleagues did not allow me to go back to work. Everyone in the village made gestures with
”
fingers and crossed the street. I was banished from the village... I barely survived...
From an interview with Dilfruz, a young mother whose child was infected
with HIV at a local hospital in Kyrgyzstan.
“When Olimbi tried to enrol her HIV-positive children into school, she faced massive
protests from other parents. She was even physically threatened. The words of one of the parents
still haunt her: ‘You should take your children with you and kill yourselves, all of you, and
leave us and our children alone.’ That hurt. ‘It is part of our lives now. In every step we take,
”
we face this kind of mindset.’
From an interview with Olimbi, an HIV-positive mother from Albania.
The challenges faced by Dilfruz and Olimbi are typical of the region where many children
and families affected by HIV face stigma and isolation. In the cases of Dilfruz and Olimbi,
their stories took new turns. Dilfruz was lucky as her father-in-law came to look for her in
the village where she took refuge. He brought her and her three children back to his house
and now treats all of his 12 grandchildren with the same love and care. Dilfruz is proud to
have been able to give support to other women facing similar situations to her and who
have contacted her for advice and counsel. As for Olimbi, she was able to convince the local
school authorities and the Ministry of Education to take action. A number of information
sessions were organized for parents and her children were subsequently admitted to school
on equal terms with the other children. But Olimbi’s courage went beyond fighting for her
own children. She established the Albanian network of people living with HIV and has been
a key advocate of HIV care, treatment and support. Her main concern recently has been how
to go about helping parents disclose HIV status to children.
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