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Sikh girl becomes Malaysian
HIV/AIDS poster girl
WSN Network
Kuala Lumpur:
Kiranjit Kaur, a 35-year-old Sikh woman of Indian origin and an AIDS
victim, has become the poster girl for people living with HIV/AIDS
in Malaysia, after she became one of the first persons and one of
the few with the condition to go public about it.
Her emotional
and mental strength is considered amazing by many, but Kiranjit
feels that despite her condition "it is not the end of the road".
In fact, she
feels it is her purpose to put a face to HIV/AIDS. "I am here to
help the 'positive' community and empower them and tell them they
are not alone," nstonline.com quoted Kiranjit as saying.
Her emotional
and mental strength is considered amazing by many, but Kiranjit
feels that despite her condition "it is not the end of the road".
In fact, she
feels it is her purpose to put a face to HIV/AIDS. "I am here to
help the 'positive' community and empower them and tell them they
are not alone," nstonline.com quoted Kiranjit as saying.
She is happy,
healthy and passionate about her work with HIV/AIDS, especially with
the MyPlus network. She takes her medication every day to enable her
to live a normal life.
She said there
were many people who were under the impression that it would not
happen to them. "It only takes one time. Look at me," she said.
She contracted
HIV in 1996 through her husband, a former drug addict who has since
died.
In 2005, when
Perak mufti Da-tuk Seri Harussani Zakaria suggested HIV/AIDS
carriers should be cast away on an island to make sure that they did
not infect others, Kiranjit and four "positive" people had a news
conference and imparted information about the disease. "We are human
beings. We hold jobs and we are productive. HIV/AIDS is not about
people who go to prostitutes or drug addicts.
It's also about
housewives and children. It is in households. People say I'm a
victim because I contracted it from my husband. But to a prostitute
they say: 'Oh, she deserves it'. It's not about blame any more,"
said Kiranjit, who holds a full-time job with the Asia Pacific
Council of AIDS Services.
27 August, 2008
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