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Beat It! 2000 Episode 11

In this episode the Beat It! team met up with the South African Trade Unions to see what they were doing and planned to do in the fight against HIV/AIDS. They impressed the team so much that we opted to give both the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the National Council of Trade Unions the Red Ribbon Award.

Paddy Nhlapo: Hi Mercy, nginibingelele nonke futhi emakhaya. {IsiZulu} [once again I welcome you at home]Welcome back to Beat It! – your guide to better living with HIV and AIDS.

Mercy Makhalemele: Sawubona {IsiZulu} [Hello] Paddy, well this is our World AIDS Day special and election special as well. This week we report on how trade unions are responding to the HIV and AIDS crisis. It’s no secret that we, as South Africans, have had a hard time with coming to terms with HIV and AIDS.

Paddy Nhlapo: That’s so true Mercy. It’s been like the story of the elephant who gave birth to a mouse; an elephant of AIDS plans, guidelines, councils, and what have you and a mouse, when it comes to effective action to stop the spread of the epidemic. We hope that, with the trade unions getting involved and mobilizing for World AIDS Day on December the first, we’ll be able to bring people together for a real day of action for treatment access and lower drug prices, and also voting for better life for all.

Mercy Makhalemele: With nearly three million members, the trade unions are the most important force of civil society; they have a vital role in shaping our response to HIV and AIDS, don’t you think so?

Paddy Nhlapo: After that, we join the support Group.

Mercy Makhalemele: But before that, let’s meet Sandile Gambeushe; this week’s youthful positive profile.

Profile - Sandile Gambeushe

Sandile Gambeushe: Angikho clear ngalithola nini igciwane, kubani, kuphi, kanjani, kodwa ekukhona ngi HIV positive, anginankinga nalokho, ngiyakwamukela. Okulandelayo lapho, ngahamba ngayo kwenza i-blood test, ngasengithola ngiHIV positive. Akekho engimbleymayo ngalokho, ngoba ngayithola i-counselling. Ngabe sengizama ukhuluma ne-family yam ngalokho, ukuthi ngithole i-counselling, kwakunzima ukuthi bakwamukele lokho. Kodwa ngoba mina ngiyi-counsellor uqobo, ngasebenza lezodlela ukuthi ngiyicounsela. Umama wami ongihloniphayo, engimuhloniphayo, ongithemile, engimuthebile, kwabalula ukuthi akwamukele lokho. Emva kwalokho ngaba ne-challenge emphilweni yami, ukuthi kufanele ngisize abanye abantu. Azange ngize ngihlale phantsi, ngoba ngithi ngi-HIV positive, kodwa ngabamba inxaxheba ezintlelweni eziqhubekayo emphakathini, namanje ngisazibambile futhi. Nasentsheni sihlangane kakhulu. Ziningi izinto esiziyenzayo, umsebenzi wezandla, siyacula, siyenza ama-play stage, kuningi esikuyenzayo. Engikwezayo ngiyangenze ama-workshop emphakathini ohlukene, nama mini-workshop kuma block to block, ngihambe nezikolo,khulume netsha ezikolweni. Abantu engihlala nabo bayangamkela, abangixwayi. Ngoba ngaqala kubona ngaba counsellisha, emva kwalokho ngabaxoxela ukuthi I’m HIV positive. Ngisenamandla ami, ngiyaphila, ngi-right. Engikudingayo njengamanje ngidinga ukuthi abantu bangangidabukeli mina kodwa banginikeze i-support, yilikho engifisa abantu bakwenze. Ngifuna ukusiza umphakathi, ngifuna ukuba yisibonelo la emphakathini engiphila kuwona, ekugcineni umhlaba wonke ngibe yisibonelo, Ikakhulukwazi njengomfana ngifuna abafana nabanye amantombazana babe yisibonelo, ngibe yisibonelo ukuthi ukuba negciwane akusho ukuthi usuka ufikile ekupheleni komhlaba. Ngifuna ukuthi bonke ozakwethu abase kulesikhathi engikusona bangazithathi ngokuthi bangabantu abangasadingekile emphakathini. Nomphakathi usithathe singamalungu omphakathi. Okulandelayo lapho iinhlose engisenazo emphilweni yam number three, ngifisa ukuphila impilo ephilwa ngabantu bonke ephephile. Kunemidlalo engiyenzayo ngoba ngifuna ukuzigcina ngiphilile. Ngiya-gyma, ngiya-lifta, ngidlala i-soccer, ngiyagijima. Konke lokho uma ngikwenza, ngikwenza ngokuzilinganisela, angizikadli. Sikwenza ne-support group yami nama friends ami. Sibuya sihlangene ndawonye, nama-play stage siwenza ndawonye. Njengoba sisuke sicula, sicula imiculo eyahlukene, gospel, indlamo, mculo wama-choir, eyama-notes nemishado. Njenga manje isifo enginaso ngiye ngiphathwe yikhanda, kubebuhlungu umzimba wonke. Yilokho kanye kwangiyenza ukuba ngiyo-gyma. I-treatment njenga manje ayikho engiyisebenzisayo, ngoba anginawo amandla woku-afforda ukuthi ngithenge i-treatment. I-treatment ekhona iyabiza. Ongenza ngihlale ngiphilile since ngaba kwisimiselo njenga manje, sekune nhlobo ethile yokudla engikudlayo like ama-veg, ama-fruits, kwakhulukwazi ngisebenzisa ukudla okuboyiliwe. Uhlobo lwenyama engiyisebenzisayo njenga manje yi-chicken engiyisebenzisayo ne-fish. Abantu esengibatshelile ngempilo yami sebefikile ku-fifteen thousand endaweni ezahlukene. Ngifike ngixoxe ngempilo yami, bangamukele futhi. Baningi kakhulu engingekabatsheli ngoba ngiye ngibone ukuthi okokuqala abakafundiseki kahlehle noma angikabacaciseli kahle ngegciwane noma ngalesifo. Ngisazimisele ukuthi bazi abaningi. {IsiZulu} [I’m not sure when I got infected with the virus, from who, where or how. What I know is that I’m HIV positive. I have no problem with that. I accept it. Following up on that, I went for a blood test and I found that I’m HIV positive. I blame no-one for that because I got counselling .Then I tried disclosing to my family. It was difficult for them to accept it but because I am a counsellor myself, I used my counselling skills. My mother is a woman I respect, and who respects me also, who trusts me, and whom I trust. It was not easy for her to accept that. After that I had a challenge in my life. I needed to start helping others I didn’t hesitate, just because I’m HIV positive. I took part in programmes taking place in the community. Even now I’m still doing that. Even with the youth, we are involved seriously. We do a lot of things. We do crafts, like I said before, singing and stage plays. We do a lot. I do workshops in different communities mini workshops from block to block. I go to schools; I speak to the youth at schools. People I live with accept me. They don’t reject me because I disclosed to them early on. I counselled them, after that I told them that I’m HIV positive. I still have my strength, I’m living and I’m all right. What I need right now is for people not to pity me, but to give me support. That is what I want people to do. I want to help the community. I want to be a role model in my community. In my community and eventually the whole world I want to be a role model, especially as a young man. I want other young men and women to be role models. I’ll be a role model to show that living with HIV does not mean that it’s the end of the world. I want to say to all others living with HIV, who are already in the same situation as myself, they shouldn’t think they are no longer needed in the community. And the community should take us as members of the community. Following that, my life’s ambition is I want to live the same as everyone else; a safe life. I do exercises. I want to keep myself healthy, I work out and I lift weights, I play soccer, I jog. I do this all with caution I don’t exert myself. I do this mostly with my friends and my support group; we do everything together. Even the stage plays, we do together. When we sing, we sing different types of music. We sing gospel, Zulu traditional, choir from scores and wedding songs. Right now, the illness I have is a headache. That’s when my body aches. That’s what motivated me to work out. At the moment I’m not using any treatment. This is because I have no resources to afford treatment. HIV treatment is expensive. What makes me stay healthy, since I got this condition, I’m using certain foods. Like I use vegetables, fruit, and mostly I eat boiled food. The type of meat I eat is chicken and fish. People I’ve disclosed my HIV status to are close to 15 000 by now in different places. I get there and discuss with them about HIV and I’m accepted. There are many I’ve not disclosed to. That’s because I notice they don’t have enough information about HIV. I’m determined to inform many more.]

Special Report - HIV/AIDS – A Union Fight!

Person: Truckers are moving. They are moving from district to district, from country to country, and I don’t see why they should not be given these for free to protect the whole community.

Jason Wessenaar: Now what I have here for you now is basically information on HIV/AIDS. You get that: how to use female condoms, HIV/AIDS in the workplace and then something else from Engen which talks about trucker’s health and then first aid for truck drivers. Okay, in here there’s condoms, male condoms, as well as female condoms.

Pozo Zondo (South African Transport and Allied Workers’ Union, SATAWU, Branch Secretary): We felt it was important to assist those workers who are already infected. We are currently working towards establishing the clinics at the truck stops, where we feel the truckers are more vulnerable, and then they will provide the medical treatment for the truckers, as well as the commercial sex workers.

Willie Madisha (Congress of South African Trade Unions, COSATU, President): Amandla … Awethu. Thank you, comrades. Our national congress poses to all members of COSATU momentous challenges; challenges to which we must find adequate answers and viable responses. The current debates in public on the causal link between HIV and AIDS, is confusing. For COSATU, the link between HIV and AIDS is irrefutable and any other approach is unscientific and, unfortunately, likely to confuse people. As a result it can undermine the message that all South Africans must take precautions to avoid infection. We do accept that poverty aggravates the situation, and creates favourable conditions for the disease to spread.

Musi Buthelezi (Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood and Allied

Workers’ Union, CEPPAWU, General Secretary): We’re already gathering information about the campaigns in other countries, what the pharmaceutical industry is doing to address in terms of providing accessible and cheap medicine.

Monica Ishmael (South African Clothing and Textiles Workers’ Union, SACTWU, Shop Steward: I negotiated with the company directors for two hours, production time, to run an HIV awareness programme, at the factory.

Musi Buthelezi: We have people that have passed away because of HIV/AIDS, although people tend to hide that, but the truth is, people are dying, and we are losing them every day.

Monica Ishmael: I’ve lost already 12 workers from the beginning of January on HIV. You’ll find that the employer has to employ other people and train them to fill that gap of that worker. So it does have a great effect as far as productivity is concerned within the company.

Johannes Mavuyo (National Union of Mineworkers, NUMSA, Shop Steward): They must provide those AZT to pregnant women. We cannot afford by postponing debates and legislation with just a mere excuse that we are having, we cannot afford that. Our people are dying we must make sure that we take care of them.

Blade Nzimande (South African Communist Party, SACP, General Secretary): Where workers have got an important role to play also is with regards to pharmaceutical companies. These pharmaceutical companies are thriving on HIV/AIDS in fact.

Shireen Pagdeshi (South African Democratic Teachers’ Union, SADTU, School Principal): What has been established here in South Africa we’ve got hundreds of teachers that are dying of HIV and AIDS related illnesses, but we’ve also got many learners who are HIV and AIDS positive.

Blade Nzimande: The projection is that the number of teachers that we are training now will not be adequate at the rate of which the teachers for instance are being affected.

Shireen Pagdeshi: So there could be a possibility in the future where you’d have classes without teachers, because far too many of them will die of the disease. From the union perspective, if we have to ask our members to declare their status, then we need to follow that up or prepare them for some kind of support structure, and that does not exist right now.

Wille Madisha: We proposed to congress that we fight for the alternative importation of drugs. If government is unable to do that, we must be able to do that as a starting point. But, actually, force government as well, so make sure that they are able to avail drugs, particularly to deal mother-to-child-infections. Yeah.

Blade Nzimande: Maybe we need to set a day of action as part of the HIV/AIDS campaign, to demonstrate against these pharmaceutical companies in terms of holding us at ransom.

Shireen Pagdeshi: At SADTU we believe that the poorest of the poor in this country still remain without a coherent system of support on HIV and AIDS. We want to add further by saying that the poor, with specific reference to women, in the rural areas, are the most vulnerable.

Vuyo Waxhaxha (National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union, NEHAWU): NEHAWU, here in the congress, is also supporting the resolution on access to antiretroviral treatment. Also on the mother-to-child-transmission, that all the unborn babies have got the right to have, they have got the right to life. If AZT and any other Nevirapine is available; let it be given to those children so that they can be given a chance to life.

Dumasi Mketwalo (COSATU): One of our objectives was that this congress, we should get as many members from this congress signing in as activists within the Treatment Action Campaign. We call on the alliance, structures and progressive NGOs to engage on a massive, a nation-wide campaign on the national HIV/AIDS, which will culminate on the first of December.

Willie Madisha: Remember comrades what Madiba said, what he said to us at our 1994 congress. And I quote him, he said: “If we violate worker rights, you must do to us what we did to the apartheid regime.” And therefore, let us say to our government and business, today, as we close this congress, that if they violate our rights, we’ll do to them what we have done to the apartheid regime.

Mercy Makhalemele: You know, some of our viewers have been asking if people in the support group are actors. That’s because people expect us to look sick, thin, or weak.

Paddy Nhlapo: It really is time people realise that you cannot tell if someone has HIV from the way they look. Come on guys, you know that most people live with HIV for many years without showing anything, like me. The slim phase of the disease is only when people are very sick.

Mercy Makhalemele: So let’s go visit the support group, who are all people living with HIV.

Support Group - Homeopathy

Adeline Mangcu: We have someone today who’s come to see us, her name is Dr Florrie Kerschbaumer, and she’s a homeopathic doctor and she would like to tell us exactly what she does.

Dr Florrie Kerschbaumer (Homeopath): Please ask me anything that you would like to know.

Mercy Makhalemele: Doctor, I don’t know, we are HIV positive here, and really one is trying to look at other alternatives. I would like to know what you prescribe in cases of diarrhoea, as you have mentioned?

Dr Florrie Kerschbaumer: If you have diarrhoea you, there are certain remedies that are extremely useful for diarrhoea that is suffered by people with HIV/AIDS. And one of them would be Podophyllum, that’s a herbal … that’s a plant in other words. The other thing would be your merc cor that is a chemical compound; the other would be Ossal which is also a chemical. So, depending on what your symptoms would be, you would choose between them. Your remedies, like Podophyllum is a broad-spectrum remedy, would work in most cases, but now how are you going to use it? What strength are you going to ask for? That is what is important. So I would suggest for people who would need that, that they use a 30 potency, and that they would go, if it’s acute, two to four hourly, if it gets better they stop the medicine. You don’t continue using homeopathic medicine day in and day out, because if you do that, that is when you hit problems, then things stop working.

Busisiwe Maqungo: Now ndifuna uqonda, ingaba lana ke amachiza enisebenza ngawo akhe a-reacte kakubi, mhlambe umntu abene-side effects? {IsiXhosa} [I want to know if your medicine has bad reactions or side effects?]

Dr Florrie Kerschbaumer: We would like to keep people in the workplace, in the family, and in as good health as they possibly can be without side effects. And that’s important because homeopathic medicines do not have side effects. When we talk homeopathic medicine, it’s very cheap. It’s the cheapest, most effective medicine that you can have today.

Mkhanyiseli Mpalali: Like into endifuna ukuyibuza, ndifuna ubuza kugqrirha like since esithi mhlambe xa i-immune system yakho i-weak, so then bayakwazi ukuyibuyisela back to normal, then basebenzisa ntoni. Ingaba ngamayeza esixhosa abawasebenzisayo okanye ngamayeza okwaziyo ukuthi uwafumane nakwenye indawo, okanye asebeziswa ngabo bodwa? {IsiXhosa} [I want to ask the doctor, since she said if the immune system is weak, they can return it to normal. What do they use? Is it traditional medicine? Is it medication you can get anywhere or is it strictly their own?]

Dr Florrie Kerschbaumer: It’s readily accessible, all you really need to do is to take your listing of homeopaths, or ask in a pharmacy for it. There are certain pharmacies that will make available homeopathic medication. There are doctors that work in the townships; I do know that there’s colleagues that do work there. But we get people from the townships that come regularly to us.

Red Ribbon and Red Noose Awards

PaddyNhlapo: Siyanamukela futhi ku-Beat it! Njengoba kwiyinhlalayenza {IsiZulu} [We welcome you back to Beat It! as always] every week we present a Red Ribbon to someone or group who has helped struggle against HIV and AIDS.

Mercy Makhalemele: And red noose yona, eya hobatho baleng busy hohatelela malukelo yabatho baHIV positive, le batho bakulang kaAIDS. {Sesotho} [And the Red Noose goes to someone or a group that has disregarded the human rights of people living with HIV and AIDS.]

Paddy Nhlapo: Last week, we hung the idea that pre-employment testing was in no way necessary or justified, but the worst offender in this regard is the South African National Defence Force and the National Intelligence Agency. They think that because they’re exempt from the labour relations act, and the Employment Equity Act, they can still test for HIV and refuse to renew people’s contracts on that ground. So this week, we say to the South African National Defence Force and the National Intelligence Agency: “Get your act together. You guys should be an example to the rest of the country, not lagging behind.”

Mercy Makhalemele: And this week we’d like to recognize the work of COSATU and NACTU (National Council of Trade Unions) and give a heartfelt Red Ribbon to Willie Madisha, the president of COSATU, Joyce Pakane, the Deputy President, and all the trade unions HIV and AIDS projects. The NUMSA Carltonville Project, Trucking Against AIDS, the SACTWU Peer Educators Project, for making HIV/AIDS a union issue. That’s how it goes, that’s the spirit. Keep it up guys.

Paddy Nhlapo: Make sure you attend the World AIDS Day event wherever you are, and remember that voting, it’s your democratic responsibility. Go out there and vote.

Mercy Makhalemele: That’s our programme for this week; we really value your comments, feedback and suggestions. So please contact us on the number below if you want to get hold of a copy of this programme.

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