HIV/Aids Part Two

With reference to my previous post under March 2007 (NGO Charities & HIV/Aids).

I have brought the subject up again, as I hope the information will reach out to many more people out there. Almost daily there is more and more information on this Virus.

If you have not gone for an HIV test, I suggest you go for one! I know many might think it is Taboo, but to start a New Life we must get tested. Not only for your benefit but for the protection of others around you. Even if a pregnant woman is HIV, she can still give her unborn baby a new life and not to contract the disease by going on anti-retrovirals. Also if you know your status you can protect yourself by either living a better sexual life and practising safe sex and also by not passing the virus onto to someone else intentionally or without knowledge of having it. It does not mean because you are on the pill that you must not still use a condom. YOU MUST USE A CONDOM (And remember a condom is not 100% effective in prevention of transmission of HIV/Sexually transmitted Diseases or Pregnancy) If sexually active and you are not married, try to have a monogamus relationship with your partner. And if married, try to stay faithful to your partner and find ways to improve your sexual relations if you feel you might be interested in someone else. And also communication in any relationship is important.

But even if you have HIV, it is not the end of the world, you can still live a positive life filled with happiness. By taking care of your health, having a social life and making use of your talents, eating the right foods and going on Anti-Retrovirals and gaining Spirituality.

Usually with HIV infected babies/children they are given Nevirapine.

Nevirapine (Viramune) is an anti-HIV drug that reduces the amount of virus in the body. Anti-HIV drugs such as nevirapine slow down or prevent damage to the immune system, and reduce the risk of developing AIDS-related illnesses. As with other anitretroviral drugs, HIV rapidly develops resistance if nevirapine is used alone, so recommended therapy consists of combinations of three or more antiretrovirals.

HIV/Aids is on the increase by the minute.

Reasons being:-
* Lack of knowledge on the virus
* Ignorance that it exists
* Belief that God will perform a miracle (THERE IS NO CURE)
* Sleeping with a virgin or an innocent baby/child/minor
* Prostitution (lack of protection)
* Poverty
* Rape/Abuse
* Sharing of Needles used with drug addicts
* Contact with contaminated blood
* Infidelity between couples
* Mother to baby transmission

* Blood Transfusions (if the blood is infected and not screened)

* INNOCENTLY contracting it because of an unfaithful partner or one that did not know they had the virus

TB and Pneumonia can be HIV related.

The list can go on and on, but they are all true.

NON OF US ARE SAFE FROM IT, AS IT DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE, WHETHER YOU ARE POOR, RICH, HAPPY, SAD, A CHURCH GOER ETC

Some people might have not experienced the effect of it first hand, but I have. Someone very special to me died from it. It affected me so much because I saw what it does to you. You can look like incredible hulk then one minute you look as if you are a 10 year malnourished child, unable to breath without an Oxygen Pump, unable to use the toilet without a Catheter and unable to eat without being on a Drip. It is not a sight for anyone, but it is around us and eradicating the human species. It eats at your body worse than a cancer. As I said before it is viciously deadly.

SO DO NOT BE IGNORANT!

Look after yourself and others, protect your planet and enjoy it to the maximum, filled with happiness and love.

A Quote for you:

God loves you, and He wants you to be His child more than you want to be His. In John 1:12-13, He explains that even more important to Him than how you were born physically is that you become His child by receiving Him: "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God." God wanted so much to give you the right to become His child that he left the wonders of heaven and died for you. He has added to your family and your blessings, because now you not only have your natural family, but also the family of God, with members like Abraham. Paul wrote in Galatians 3:9, "So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer."

WWF

Being that i'm an online campaigner with WWF. I have adopted and now will sponsor a Black Rhino from Kenya (in the Nairobi National Park), called Kinyanjui. It is an honour to help assist in the protection of his ntural habitat and from poachers.

So you too can help endangered animals, that face extinction by sponsoring one or making a one off contribution, every little penny counts. It's not how much you give, but what you can afford goes a long way.

Info on Black Rhinoceros

* The black rhino is a herbivore & has a narrow, hook-lipped mouth for browsing on shrubs & bushes.

*They have 2 horns made from keratin, which is the same protein that makes up human hair & nails.

* Black rhinos can charge at 40 miles per hour.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization for the conversation, research & restoration of the natural environment, formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in the US & Canada. It is the world's largest independent conservation organisation with over 5 million supporters worldwide, working in more than 90 countries, supporting 15,000 conservation and environmental projects around the world. It is a charity, with approximately 90% of its funding coming from voluntary donations by private individuals and businesses.

The group says its mission is "to halt and reverse the destruction of our natural environment". Currently, much of its work focuses on the conservation of three biomes (ecosystems) that contain most of the world's biodiversity: forests, freshwater ecosystems, and oceans & coasts. Among other issues, it is also concerned with endangered species, pollution & climate change. The organization runs more than 1,200 field projects worldwide in any given year.

Founders Julian Huxley, Max Nicholson, Peter Scott & Guy Mountfort.
Founded: 11 Sept. 1961, Morges Switzerland
Headquarters: Gland, Switzerland

Green Tips:

*Reuse plastic bags
*Use energy efficient light-bulbs
*Start a compost heap

*Don't leave your TV on stand by

*Use public transport when you can

*Use ecofriendly cleaning products

Cimate change, pollution, and over-use of natural resources are all capable of damaging the natural world.

By making small change to our everyday actions, we can help to protect the world's wildlife and the habitats it depends on.

AVERT

AVERT is an international HIV and AIDS charity based in the UK, working to AVERT HIV and AIDS worldwide.

AVERT has HIV and AIDS projects in countries where there is a particularly high rate of infection, such as South Africa, or where there is a rapidly increasing rate of infection such as in India.

They also take education and information to people in almost every country in the world through our highly successful web site, www.avert.org

AVERT's Work in Southern Africa

Some areas of Southern Africa have an alarmingly high rate of HIV infection and thousands are dying from AIDS. AVERT is concentrating on these areas not only to prevent new infections, but also to help those who are already directly affected by HIV and AIDS.

It is difficult to overstate the suffering that HIV has caused in South Africa. With statistics showing that almost one in five adults are infected, HIV is widespread in a sense that can be difficult to imagine for those living in less-affected countries. For each person living with HIV, in South Africa and elsewhere, not only does it impact on their lives, but also those of their families, friends and wider communities.

With antiretroviral drug treatment, HIV-positive people can maintain their health and often lead relatively normal lives. Sadly, few people in South Africa have access to this treatment. This means that AIDS deaths are alarmingly common throughout the country. It is thought that almost half of all deaths in South Africa, and a staggering 71% of deaths among those aged between 15 and 49, are caused by AIDS. So many people are dying from AIDS that in some parts of the country, cemeteries are running out of space for the dead. A recent survey found that South Africans spent more time at funerals than they did having their hair cut, shopping or having barbecues. It also found that more than twice as many people had been to a funeral in the past month than had been to a wedding.

As well as the death and suffering that HIV has caused on an individual and community level, South Africa’s AIDS epidemic has also had a substantial impact on the country’s overall social and economic progress.

It is clear that AIDS is having a devastating impact on South Africa. There are many possible reasons why South Africa has been so badly affected by AIDS, including poverty, social instability and a lack of government action.

SOS Children's Villages

SOS Children's Villages
http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/

SOS Children is the world's largest charity dedicated to giving a new family to orphans and supporting the remaining family of children orphaned by Aids. They help Aids Orphans and other orphaned children in almost every country in Africa (44 Countries to date).

Aids Orphans in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe has a high incidence of HIV/AIDS - nearly 25% of the adult population and one in five orphans are as a result of HIV/AIDS. The current political instability has resulted in a limited capacity for social support. This has been exacerbated by drought. The outcome has been an increase in the number of orphaned and vulnerable children. Nationally the National Aids council of Zimbabwe has set up District Aids Committees with the support of USAID.

SOS Children's Zimbabwe Projects

SOS Children works with the Ministries of Health and Child Welfare and the District Aids Committees to develop programmes that help to strength families.

In Bindura, the SOS Social Centre has, since 2003, been co-ordinating an AIDS outreach programme. This programme reaches out to 2,000 children a year and provides them and their families with food, school fees, basic medical treatment, counselling and psychosocial support. Families affected by HIV/AIDS are offered support to improve their housing and their living conditions. Priority is given to children who have lost both parents and now live with grandparents, older siblings or other relatives, as well as those whose parents are seriously ill.

In Bulawayo, the SOS Social Centre has, since 2003, been co-ordinating an AIDS outreach programme. This programme reaches out to 2,000 children a year and provides them and their families with food, school fees, basic medical treatment, counselling and psychosocial support. Families affected by HIV/AIDS are offered support to improve their housing and their living conditions. Priority is given to children who have lost both parents and now live with grandparents, older siblings or other relatives, as well as those whose parents are seriously ill.

In Waterfalls, Harare the SOS Social Centre has, since 2002, co-ordinated an AIDS outreach programme with the aim of supporting children and families affected by HIV/AIDS in their own community. Following consultation with the local authorities, Glen Norah, a heavily populated suburb of Harare was chosen. Priority is given to children who have lost both parents and now live with grandparents, older siblings or other relatives, as well as those whose parents are seriously ill. The most urgent need was to provide food, basic medical treatment and to support the education of children. In addition the programme aims to improve housing and living conditions. This programme reaches out to up to 2,000 children a year. The long-term goal of this programme is to develop within the local community - people and organisations - full understanding of HIV/AIDS , so that, in the future, the programme is self-supporting within the local community.

If you interested in helping the situation in the Zimbabwe you might like to consider how to sponsor a child in Zimbabwe.

SOS Children in Zambia

The republic of Zambia is in south central Africa. It was potentially one of the richest countries on the continent, but is now amongst the world's poorest. The average daily income is about 60p. The economy has been in serious decline since the mid 1970s due to civil unrest and corruption, and more than half the population lives below the poverty line. Cuts in government spending on social services mean that people now have to pay for basic health care and education. There is an extremely high number of children in need in Zambia, either orphaned or neglected, due to the rural exodus in search of employment which is destroying the traditional concept of extended families or because of the AIDS epidemic. At least 50 per cent of Zambia's population are expected to die of HIV related diseases in the next three years. Life expectancy is 32.5 years.

The charity began its work in Zambia in September 1999 when the first families moved into the charity's Lusaka community, situated about 4 miles from the city centre in a densely populated and very poor area. The 40 acre site was donated by the Zambian government. The 15 family houses have been built in groups of three in the local style, using red burnt clay bricks with green roof tiles, and are surrounded by eucalyptus trees. The grounds have been planted with ornamental trees, flowers and grass. As well as the family houses, there is a youth house and a nursery which pre-school age children from the local community also attend and are given two meals a day, with priority given to children from the poorest families. A primary school and medical centre, which caters for 10,000 patients a year, have since been added as well as a social centre whose main focus is a community outreach programme for children and families affected by HIV/AIDS.

In Zambia there are 75,000 children who are homeless orphans, many affected by HIV/AIDS. SOS Children is supporting a project in Lusaka which will help 1000 street children. This will provide mobile education facilities and encourage children to attend the social centre for training in vocational skills. The social centre provides hot nutritional food, washing facilities and clean clothes.

A second SOS Children’s Village has been opened in Kitwe, the capital of the Copperbelt region in northern Zambia, an area of increasing poverty due to falling copper prices. The village has 16 family houses for 190 orphaned and abandoned children. There is also a nursery which focuses on children from the local community who have special needs. There is also a primary school for 700 children. The SOS Social Centre provides practical help and counselling to 2000 families in the local community affected by HIV/AIDS. The SOS Medical Centre treats patients from 10,000 families in the local community.

A third SOS Children’s Village is planned to be built at Livingstone, about 300 miles south of Lusaka. It will have 15 family homes for 150 orphaned and abandoned children, nursery and primary schools and social centres focussing on family strengthening and helping children and their families affected by HIV/AIDS.
Aids Orphan Projects
See also more information on our Charity's African Aids Orphan projects in Zambia.

Samba / Brazil

Samba

Samba brings about happiness, peace and harmony as well as laughter and is definitely relaxing and fun.

Samba is one of the most popular forms of music in Brazil.

Samba's roots come from Africa.

Typical instruments used to create the samba sound: surdo, tan-tan, pandeiro, cavaco, violao, tamborium, cuica, repinique, caixa, chocalho, agogo, apito, timbale & banjo.

The Origin of samba music history in Brazil, which today can be seen in awe at the vibrant Brazilian carnivals, can be found in Angola,Africa, from where it was brought to Brazil with the slave trading in the interval 1600-1888.

The word Brazilian Samba comes from Quimbundo language (the language of the area that became Angola) as “semba” and can mean several things. One meaning is to pray, or invoke the spirits of the ancestors, or the Gods of African pantheon. Samba could also be a complaint, a cry, or something like "the blues". Still another meaning is something of a “navel bump” which depicts the intimacy and "invitation" to dance. Today the word can also be a verb in Brazil as in “sambar” which is to samba (To dance samba)

The origin of Samba music has a lot of similarities with Mambo and Salsa, which are undeniably linked to slavery and the religious traditions of West Africa.

Though the people of Africa, samba history evolved by singing, dancing and rhythms which had ties into rituals culture and religion. You also find the samba rhythms in Capoeira (Brazilian martial arts / dance) and the Candomble (Religion from Africa), which today are a part of Brazilian culture and Brazil religion.

As the West Africans were forced into slavery in the strange foreign land of Brazil, the origin of samba music was preserved in their religious traditions by making them part of their daily life.

The governing forces demanded Christianity of their slaves and prohibited executions of worship to their orixá (their god / saint, protector and helper). To the African, dance and song is worship. So what the slaves did was to camouflage the ceremonies as parties with dancing.

The authorities weren’t fooled that easily and even up until the early twentieth century, police often raided "suspect parties". The need for secrecy made it necessary to conceal the meaning of certain dances and songs from the uninitiated. At times, to the annoyance of the "tias" (Candomble priestess, means aunt in english), musicians revealed and at the same time preserved the secret rhythms by mixing them with more accepted musical forms.

Candomble and the mixing with other music gave rise to a series of dances in the twentieth century, among them the origin of Samba music. To adherents of Candomble, the word Samba, means to pray, to invoke your personal orixá (god).

With the abolition of Brazil slavery in 1888, came a greater mobility for the population of Bahia (The state in which the city of Salvador lies and which was the primary target of the slave traffic). Many fled south, using samba as a way to survive. Samba is believed to have spread to Rio some time after 1889

Christ the Redeemer

Iguacu Falls

Brazil

Capital: Brasilia
Largest Cities: Sao Paolo & Rio de Janeiro
President: Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva
Independence from Portugal 7 Sept. 1822, as a Republic 15 Nov. 1889

Brazil has the largest population in South America and is the fifth most populous country in the world. The people are diverse in origin, and Brazil often boasts that the new “race” of Brazilians is a successful amalgam of African, European, and indigenous strains, a claim that is truer in the social than the political or economic realm. More than half the population is of European descent, while another 40% are of mixed African and European ancestry. Portuguese is the official language and nearly universal; English is widely taught as a second language. Most of the estimated 150,000 indigenous peoples (chiefly of Tupí or Guarani linguistic stock) are found in the rain forests of the Amazon River basin; 12% of Brazil's land has been set aside as indigenous areas. About 75% of the population is at least nominally Roman Catholic there.

http://www.raceandhistory.com/cgi-bin/forum/webbbs_config.pl/noframes/read/96

African Union

"An efficient & effective African Union for a new Africa"

The African Union, established as AU on 9, July 2002, was previously known as OAU (Organisation of African Unity) since 25 May, 1963.

Head Office is located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and other administrative office is in Midrand, South Africa

Chairman: President Muammer al-Gaddafi of Libya (Jan 2009)

Commission Chairperson: Jean Pine of Gabon (diplomat and politician )


Previous chairman - President John Kufar of Ghana
Previous Commission Chairperson - Former President of Mali, Alpha Oumar Konare


The AU consists of 53 African Countries.

Languages worked in Arabia, English, French, Portuguese & Swahili.

The AU recognises to promote unity & peace among African Nations, Encourage democracy & good Governance and Economic growth.

AU Anthem

Let us all unite and celebrate together
The victories won for our liberation
Let us dedicate ourselves to rise together
To defend our liberty and unity


O Sons and Daughters of Africa
Flesh of the Sun and Flesh of the Sky
Let us make Africa the Tree of Life


Let us all unite and sing together
To uphold the bonds that frame our destiny
Let us dedicate ourselves to fight together
For lasting peace and justice on earth


O Sons and Daughters of Africa
Flesh of the Sun and Flesh of the
SkyLet us make Africa the Tree of Life


Let us all unite and toil together
To give the best we have to Africa
The cradle of mankind and fount of culture
Our pride and hope at break of dawn.


O Sons and Daughters of Africa
Flesh of the Sun and Flesh of the Sky
Let us make Africa the Tree of Life

www.african-union.org

Botswana and Nambia Visit

The National Museum of Namibia

Botswana

Formerley known as Bechuanaland

Capital: Gaborone
Native Tribes: Tswana, Ndebele [from Kalahari Desert]
Languages: English & Tswana
Indenpedence from British:30 Sept. 1994
President: Festus Mogae
Main Resources: Diamonds

Namibia

Formerley known as South West Africa

Capital: Windhoek
Native Tribes: Bushmen, Bantu, Damara & Namqua

Languages: English, Oshiwambo, German, Portuguese & Afrikaans

Independence from South Africa: 1990

Indepedence from British for Walvis Bay:1994
President: Hifikepunye Pohamba

Map of Namib & Kalahari Desert

Besides the deliscious food and magnificent art, the nature was most of all so beautiful and the tourist guides were Zimbabwean. Given the chance, i asked for his permission to add these pictures to my blog, so that many other people out there would might want to one day travel there themselves.

The Okavango Delta in Botswana is the world’s largest inland Delta

The Kalahari Desert is a large arid to semi-arid sandy area in Southern Africa covering much parts of Botswana and parts of Namibia & South Africa.

The Namib Desert in Namibia has the one of the largest Sand Dunes in the world, Dune 7.

Southern African Development Community

SADC - Southern African Development Community, has been in existence since, 1980, when it was established by 9 Government States of Southern Africa known as SADCC (Southern African Development Coordination Conference) formed on April 1, 1980 in Lusaka, Zambia, later transformed on August 17, 1992 to SADC.

SADC Head Quarters are located in Gaborone, Botswana.

It was created for Economic Liberation.

Working languages - English, French & Portuguese.

SADC and its member States are expected to act according to the following principles:
Sovereign equality of all member States;
Solidarity, peace and security;
Human rights, democracy, and the rule of law;
Equity, balance and mutual benefit;
Peaceful settlement of disputes

The objectives of SADC are to:
Achieve development and economic growth, alleviate poverty, enhance the standard and quality of life of the people of Southern Africa and support the socially disadvantaged through regional integration;
Evolve common political values, systems and institutions;
Promote and defend peace and security;
Promote self-sustaining development on the basis of collective self-reliance, and the interdependence of Member States;
Achieve complementarity between national and regional strategies and programmes;
Promote and maximise productive employment and utilisation of resources of the Region;
Achieve sustainable utilisation of natural resources and effective protection of the environment;
Strengthen and consolidate the long standing historical, social and cultural affinities and links among the people of the Region.

The ultimate objective of SADC, the Community is, therefore, to build a Region in which there will be a high degree of harmonisation and rationalisation to enable the pooling of resources to achieve collective self-reliance in order to improve the living standards of the people of the region.

SADC ANTHEM

SADC, SADC DAWN OF OUR CERTAINTYSADC, SADC DAWN OF A BETTER FUTUREAND HOPE FOR REGIONAL AND UNIVERSAL INTEGRATIONTOWARDS OUR PEOPLES UNITY AND HARMONY

CRADLE OF HUMANITY CRADLE OF OUR ANCESTORSLET US PRAISE WITH JOY, THE REALIZATION OF OUR HOPESAND RAISE THE BANNER OF SOLIDARITYSADC, SADC SADC, SADC DAWN OF OUR CERTAINTY

The SADC vision is one of a common future, a future in a regional community that will ensure economic well-being, improvement of the standards of living and quality of life, freedom and social justice and peace and security for the peoples of Southern Africa.

SADC has 15 member states:

Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Nambia [since 31 Mar. 1990], South Africa [since 30 Aug. 1994], Mauritius [28 Aug. 1995]
Democratic Republic of Congo [since 8 Sept. 1997], Madagascar [since 18 Aug. 2005], Seychelles [since 15 Aug. 2007]

www.sadc.int

Tostan

Tostan's mission is to empower African communities to bring about sustainable development and positive social transformation based on respect for human rights. Tostan means "breakthrough" in the West African language of Wolof.

Due a book i'm currently reading called Enslaved by Rahila Gupta. It has made me more aware of the issues young women are facing especially in Africa. As i am only on the first chapter of the book it is true experiences of a young Somali girl. But i have found a certain subject very disturbing for me called FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) and happens to young girls between the ages of 4 & 8 years old. For me to find out more information on this i read up more on the subject and came across, it happens in at least 28 African Countries due to Cultural beliefs and for some Religious.

I am not one to judge anyone for their beliefs or religion, this is just plainly on the humanitarian side of things. And i feel female circumcison is not right at all.I watched a clip on it too, and i actually became sick and teary eyed. I however searched on organisations that deal with the eradication of this practice and i came across Tostan, i am now a member of them too to campaign against such and assist in anyway i can as i am not in that much of a higher position to do anything. I have sent messages to other organisations like the UN, the African Union , WHO and many others to find out more on this and what has been done so far to put an end to this.

Tostan works towards Abandoning Female Genital Cutting, Ending Child/Forced Marriage, Protecting Maternal & Child Health and Preventing & Treating Malaria.

FGM is a social custom, not a religious practice.

Female Genital Mutilation

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a cultural practice that started in Africa approximately 2000 years ago. It is primarily a cultural practice, not a religious practice. But some religions do include FGM as part of their practices. This practice is so well ingrained into these cultures, it defines members of these cultures. In order to eliminate the practice one must eliminate the cultural belief that a girl will not become a women without this procedure.

What is Female Genital Mutilation?

Female Genital Mutilation is the term used for removal of all or just part of the external parts of the female genitalia. There are three varieties to this procedure.

Sunna Circumcision - consists of the removal of the prepuce(retractable fold of skin, or hood) and /or the tip of the clitoris. Sunna in Arabic means "tradition".

Clitoridectomy - consists of the removal of the entire clitoris (prepuce and glands) and the removal of the adjacent labia.

Infibulation(pharonic circumcision)-- consists of performing a clitoridectomy (removal of all or part of the labia minora, the labia majora). This is then stitched up allowing a small hole to remain open to allow for urine and menstrual blood to flow through.

In Africa 85% of FGM cases consist of Clitoridectomy and 15% of cases consist of Infibulation. In some cases only the hood is removed.

What is the age, the procedure used and the side effects?

The age the procedure is carried out varies from just after birth to some time during the first pregnancy, but most cases occur between the ages of four and eight. Most times this procedure is done with out the care of medically trained people, due to poverty and lack of medical facilities. The use of anesthesia is rare. The girl is held down by older women to prevent the girl from moving around. The instruments used by the mid-wife will vary and could include any of the following items; broken glass, a tin lid, razor blades, knives, scissors or any other sharp object. These items usually are not sterilized before or after usage. Once the genital area for removal is gone, the child is stitched up and her legs are bound for up to 40 days.

This procedure can cause various side effects on the girls which can include death. Some of the results of this procedure are serious infections, HIV, abscesses and small benign tumors, hemorrhages, shock, clitoral cysts. The long term effects may also include kidney stones, sterility, sexual dysfunction, depression, various urinary tract infections, various gynecological and obstetric problems.

In order to have sexual intercourse the women have to be opened up in some fashion and in some cases cutting is necessary. After child birth some women are re-infibulated to make them (tight) for their husbands.

Is this practice a cultural or religious practice?

In an FGM society, a girl can not be considered to be an adult until she has undergone this procedure. As well as in most cultures a women can not marry with out FGM. The type of procedure used will vary with certain conditions and these conditions could include the females ethic group, the country they live in, rural or urban areas, as well as their socioeconomic provenance.

FGM is a culture identity practice. The fact that the procedure helps to define who is the group, is obvious in cultures that carry out this procedure as an initiation into womanhood. Most FGM societies feel that unless a girl has this procedure done she is not a woman as well as removal of these practices would lead to the demise of their culture.

FGM societies have many claims of why this procedure should be done and these are as follows:
In most FGM societies one important belief is that this procedure will reduce a women's desire for sex and in doing so will reduce the chance of sex outside the marriage. This is vital to this society as her honor for the family is depended on her not to be opened up prior to marriage.
Some view the clitoris and the labia as male parts on a female body, thus removal of these parts enhances the femininity of the girl.

It is also believed that unless a female has undergone this procedure she is unclean and will not be allowed to handle food or water.

Some groups believe that if the clitoris touches a man's penis the man will die. As well as the belief that if a baby's head touches the clitoris that the baby will die or the breast milk will be poisonous.

The belief that an unmutilated female can not conceive, therefore the female should be militated in order to become fertile.
Bad genital odors can only be eliminated by removing the clitoris and labia minora.
Prevents vaginal cancer.
An unmodified clitoris can lead to masturbation or lesbianism.
Prevents nervousness from developing in girls and women.
Prevents the face from turning yellow.
Makes a women's face more beautiful.
Older men may not be able to match their wives sex drive.

Intact clitoris will generate sexual arousal and in women if repressed can cause nervousness. FGM does predate Islam, but most Muslims do not practice this. FGM was also practice by Falasha (Ethiopian Jews).

The Creator apparently created the clitoris for the sole purpose of generating pleasure. It has no other purpose. There is no instructions in the Qur'an or in the writings of the Prophet Mohammed which require that the clitoris be surgically modified. Thus the Creator must approve of its presence. And also, it should not be removed or reduced in size or function.

Mutilated genitalia reduces or eliminates a women's pleasure during the act.
There is an estimated 135 million girls and women that have gone through this procedure with an additional 2 million a year at risk. This procedure is practiced in Africa (28 countries), Middle East, parts of Asia It is now believed that the practice originated in Africa and is a cultural practice.

Amnesty International now has taken up the fight to do away with this practice that mutilates millions of girls each year. Today FGM is seen as a human rights issue and is recognized at an international level. FGM was in the universal framework for protection of human rights that was tabled in the 1958 united Nation agenda. It was during the UN Decade for Women (1975-1985) that a UN Working Group on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children was created. This group helped to develop and aided to the development of the 1994 Plan of Action for the Elimination of Harmful Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of women and Children. the World Health Organization, the United Nations Children's' Fund and the Untied Nations Population Fund, unveiled a plan in April 1997 that would bring about a major decline in FGM within 10 years and the complete eradication of the practice within three generations.

I do hope one day this practice will be eradicated and people should stop treating people as objects but as a human being.

United Nations

Currently i am an online member of the United Nations Foundation, they strive to promote a peaceful and prosperous world. By being a member, they keep me up to date with current UN developments from all sectors and news from around the world.
http://www.unfoundation.org/

One of the main topics is Global Warming. It is a very complex situation as i am not a scientist do not have very much knowledge on it, so after reading a book called Global Warming, by author Mark Maslin, i now seem to have a much better view on the subject.

Global Warming:

Is caused by massive increase of greenhouse gases i.e. CO2 in the atmosphere resulting from burning of fossil fuels & deforestation.

Global warming affects economics, sociology, geopolitics & local individuals and results in climate change - change in global temp, rainfall pattern, expansion & contraction of ice sheets, sea level variations.

IPCC - est in 1988 by UNEF (United Nations Environmental Panel) & World Metrological Organisation

IPCC - Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, shows evidence of 0.6˚C in global temp & 20 cm rise in sea level and by 2100 there could be 1.4-5.8˚C global temp and 20-88cm sea level increase. Increased temperatures causes flood and storms & huge reserves of methane underneath the ocean could actually release and cause catastrophe.
The temperature of the earth is controlled by balance between input of energy of the sun & loss of this back into space. 1/3 radiation is absorbed in space, the rest absorbed by land & oceans
Earth’s surface warms & emits long-wave ‘infrared’ radiation.

Naturally occurring greenhouse gases - water vapour, ozone, methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N20), CO2
First measurement of CO2 was taken in 1958 on Mauna Loa, Hawaii

Earth has 1% other gases, 78% nitrogen & 21% 0xygen

CO2
1st . Burning fossil fuels (Energy production industrial gassers & transport)

2nd Deforestation (Cutting forests for agriculture, urbanization of roads, land use change)

1896 Swedish scientist Svante confirmed by Thomas Chamberlain that human activity could warm the earth

And the CO2 molecule is absorbed after 10 years into the sea. What an interesting fact!

Basically it makes me wonder if Global Warming is due to us humans or is it just nature evolving because the book stated that we could experience another Ice Age in 5,000 years but if the warming continues we could experience the next Ice Age in 45,000 years.

However, now i make sure i do not leave appliances on stand by and only switch on the lights in the room i will be at that present moment.

I hope you all try to help save the Mother Earth.

UNICEF - United Nations Children Fund

I have enquired on joining the UNICEF Youth Group, so am currently awaiting feedback, but once i do i will be excited, because it will give me the opportunity help add an optimistic change in other peoples lives.

UNICEF strives to promote health, education, equality, protection and humanity for children around the globe.

Some of their tragets are improved sanitation facilities, better education on HIV & Aids and the right for all children to receive basic education inorder for them acquire skills so that they may know-how to stand on their own two feet and seek an optimistic future.
http://www.unicef.org/

Interact Worldwide

Interact Worldwide


Interact Worldwide is an international non-governmental (INGO) charity, which works on issues of sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS throughout Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Interact Worldwide has adopted the following core values:

* Valuing human life
* Respecting the dignity of all people
* Respecting diversity and promoting the equality of all people without distinction of any kind, such as sex, race, colour, age, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, physical or mental disability, health status (including HIV/AIDS), sexual orientation or civil, political, social or other status
* Preventing and eliminating human suffering
* Supporting community values that encourage respect for others and a willingness to work together to find solutions, in the spirit of compassion and mutual support
* Addressing social and economic inequities and fostering social justice
* Striving for technical excellence.

To learn more on the charity, and find ways to help fund raise not necessarily financially but by other means for example sponsored marathons or walks or just for basic curiosity, please log on to http://www.interactworldwide.org/

There are so many charitable organisations, too many to mention but if you can make a difference to one person in life of any charity of your choice, you can definitely make a difference and help save someone's life and put a smile on their face.

Inspiration

Firstly, I would like to thank everyone whom has viewed and taken time to read the information on my site.

All my life i have being a very ambitious but shy or reserved person. Only now at a later stage in life i have developed more confidence in myself and working at my dreams, performing dance and hopefully one day to be an entrepeneur with the aim to have an urban afro fashion label. I am generally a benevolent person and always with a big smile, I am not perfect but i always have respects for others. I grew up an average life and appreciated all i was given. I went to a private school in Harare which gave me a fabulous education and makes me part of the person i am today.I do not have one person in particular that inspired me but too many to mention including my the Lord, Myself, my Mother, my Father,mi hermoso, my 2 fav Uncle's, my aunt whom i call the 'the unsung heroine', she has dedicated her life to helping improve other people's lives through numerous ways, Marcus Garvey, Molly Melching whom through Tostan has helped to educate people in West Africa on the dangers of female genital mutilation and Bob Marley as not only is he a legend but his music touched peoples hearts and he used his music to fight against racism, cultural imperialism and apartheid, but he also used it to promote love amongst everyone in the world and for people to coalesce . I also admire Princess Diana for her humanitarian work, her charisma and with helping to decrease discrimination against victims of AIDS. She showed the world that people with AIDS deserve no isolation, but compassion and kindness. It helped change world's opinion, and gave hope to people with AIDS. And last but not least Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (former President of South Africa). He was an anti-apartheid activist and leader of the African National Congress and its armed wing Umkhonto we Sizwe. He has received many awards over four decades, most notably the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993. Since his retirement, one of his primary commitments has been to the fight against AIDS, therefore this shows his compassion. It’s not only important to look for ways to make our life better but also the life of others.

My dream in life was to go to the ultimate in life but to always have people dear to me in my heart.

Being overseas has broadened my mind so much that i thank all that have contributed to my current stay and life. I hope one day i can be in a position to not only promote Zimbabwe but other countries as well including charitable organisations. My heart goes out to those that are not well off especially children that are innocent or go hungary.Africa is a continent still developing but suffering from poverty, economic challenges and the deadly disease AIDS. No matter how hard your life is we must never give up on hope, there will always be someone to asisst you in ways that you can not help yourself.If only more people in Africa were educated, especially the girl child. They would be able to know there is no cure for Aids, and on preventative measures to be undertaken so they do not contract the disease and the event if they are widowed to be able to work for their children and give them a plate of food. I would like to thank all those people in the world that are fighting towards improving Africa and helping it's people.

We however, all need to live as a peace loving nation and work for world peace and security. We need to promote people's general welfare and to support liberties and rights of individuals to determine their own future.Basically the best gift we all have been given is the gift of 'love' and we should all cherish that.
My goal is to encourage optimism and belief in one’s self, the choices we make, determine our life’s course, we are all unique and different in our own ways and this is a treasure to be celebrated. We must live in a way that allows us to achieve our goals.

Bless!

NGO Charities & HIV/AIDS

Save the Children

http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/

Over 10 million people in Southern Africa are at risk from a severe food crisis caused by a combination of drought, poverty and HIV/AIDS. The crisis is affecting approximately 4.8 million people in Malawi, 3.8 million in Zimbabwe, 0.8 million in Mozambique, and 1 million in Zambia

Jairos Jiri Association for Rehabilitation of the Disabled and Blind

401 Southampton House,
Main Street/9th Avenue,PO Box 1529, Bulawayo, , Zimbabwe.
Tel: +263 9 74331 Fax: +263 9 74333
Email: jja_cbr@telconet.co.zwContact: Mr. Ruvhere

The association was set up to assist, treat and rehabilitate persons with physical, visual or hearing impairments; to establish clinics, schools, centres, and other institutions for the education and welfare of the handicapped; to liaise with the government of Zimbabwe, local and international agencies for the benefit of the handicapped.

Zimbabwe National Association for Mental Health (ZIMNAMH)

Physical address TBA Postal address P.O. Box A196, Avondale, Harare, Zimbabwe Telephone +263-(0)4-731272,792946,728538
Fax +263-(0)4-792946
Email address zimnamh@africaonline.co.zw
Contact: Mrs. E. Mutare

Objectives
• To represent the interests of people who suffer from mental health problems and facilitate their participation in issues which directly affect them;
• To work towards better care, treatment and rehabilitation of people who suffer from mental health problems and
• To promote mental health for all throughout Zimbabwe.

National Association of Societies for the Care of the Handicapped (NASCOH)

Physical address 11 Peebles Rd, Eastlea, Harare, Zimbabwe
Postal address P.O. Box UA504, Union Ave, Harare, Zimbabwe
Telephone +263-(0)4-746967, (0)11- 862072, (0)91-385417
Fax +263-(0)4-776683 -
to be transferred Email address nascoh@zol.co.zw
Web address http://www.nascoh.org.zw/
Contact: Mr. Mukuta – Director

The mission is to lobby and advocate with and for people with disabilities to uphold their rights in line with international conventions, e.g. the UN Standard Rules in order to improve the lives and well being of people with disabilities in Zimbabwe. This is done through facilitation of co-ordination and co-operation between CBOs, NGOs, government departments and other stakeholders.

St. Giles Medical Rehabilitation Centre
P.O.Box A 224, Avondale, Harare
Tel: 04-704691/3/5, 04-726777
Fax: 04-704691/3
Email: giles@technopark.co.zw
Contact: Mr. P Rukodzi
St Giles is a medical rehabilitation centre dedicated to the rehabilitation of adults and children with all types of physical disabilities. It aims to be the leading provider of rehabilitation services in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe Widows and Orphans Trust,
Mrs. Susan Zwinoira,
114 Eastern Road,Greendale,Harare,Zimbabwe.
Telephone:
(263) 4 - 494416
Email:
info@zwot.com
http://www.zwot.com/

The Zimbabwe Widows Association, formed in 1996, later to become the Zimbabwe Widows and Orphans Trust (ZWOT), was established to assist grief and poverty- stricken widows and orphans. ZWOT has in excess of 25,000 members and new members continue to join daily. These members live in all provinces of Zimbabwe.

At present, there are over 1 million widows and 4 million orphans in Zimbabwe. Many of these women and children owe their plight to the HIV/AIDS epidemic sweeping sub-Saharan Africa.
Mrs Susan Zwinoira President & Founder

ZWOT is a non-denominational, non-political, non-racial, voluntary organisation. It is a registered Trust, welfare no. MA 755/99, with its headquarters located in Harare. An executive committee, which is comprised of a President, five Trustees, and several volunteers, administers the organisation. Each member of the executive committee is a widow.

United Nations

http://www.undp.org.zw/

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Zimbabwe is an impartial and trusted development partner. The organisation strives to contribute within the scope of its overall mandate and in full use of its comparative advantages to national priorities and to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/zimbabwe_contact.html

UNICEF seeks to make a difference in the lives of children affected by AIDS by: (1) preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV and providing paediatric treatment, (2) preventing infection among adolescents and young people, and (3) by protecting and supporting children affected by HIV/AIDS.

HARARE
Field Office
Mail address

UNICEFP.O. Box 1250Harare, Zimbabwe
Visitors' address

UNICEF6 Fairbridge AvenueBelgraviaHarare, Zimbabwe
Telephone

Country code
263
City code
4

703.941703.942721.692731.840730.093730.094
Facsimile

731.849727.661727.662
Email

harare@unicef.org

World Vision International

http://www.wvi.org/wvi/country_profile/profiles/zimbabwe.htm

World Vision International is a Christian relief and development organisation working for the well being of all people, especially children. Through emergency relief, education, health care, economic development and promotion of justice, World Vision helps communities help themselves.
Established in 1950 to care for orphans in Asia, World Vision has grown to embrace the larger issues of community development and advocacy for the poor in its mission to help children and their families build sustainable futures.

Working on six continents, World Vision is one of the largest Christian relief and development organisations in the world.

The heart of World Vision's work is in helping communities build stronger and healthier relationships. The absence of such relationships impoverishes communities.
Who we are (English pdf)
Who we are (Spanish pdf)

World Vision focuses on children because they are the best indicator of a community's social health. When children are fed, sheltered, schooled, protected, valued, and loved a community thrives.

AIDS in Zimbabwe

1,700,000: Estimated number of people living with HIV/AIDS by the end of 2005

160,000: Estimated number of children (ages 0-15) living with HIV/AIDS by the end of 2005

180,000: Estimated number of deaths due to AIDS during 2005

1,100,000: Estimated number of children who have lost one or both parents to AIDS and who were alive and under the age of 17 end of 2005.

Hello All,

Please take the time to read!

Just would like to share a bit of what I learnt from a television program I watched recently. It was about HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome) 7 hr program split into 2.

Where did it come from?

The earliest known case of HIV-1 in a human was from a blood sample collected in 1959 from a man in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. (How he became infected is not known.) Genetic analysis of this blood sample suggested that HIV-1 may have stemmed from a single virus in the late 1940s or early 1950s.
It is now generally accepted that HIV is a descendant of a Simian Immunodeficiency Virus because certain strains of SIVs bear a very close resemblance to HIV-1 and HIV-2, the two types of HIV.
HIV-2 for example corresponds to SIVsm, a strain of the Simian Immunodeficiency Virus found in the sooty mangabey (also known as the green monkey), which is indigenous to western Africa.
How did it Spread?

Basically, everyone is very clueless to how it spread but there are theories that many people came up with:-
1. Being that an African Hunter in Congo could have become infected whilst killing a primate for a meal and therefore his blood being contaminated by SIV then developing into HIV, what I would like to know is how come the chimpanzees do not die like the humans.
2. Some believe that we evolved from monkeys into humans so therefore carry it our bodies but! Takes something to trigger it off.
3. Some believe that the CIA developed a ‘Cancer like Virus’ to wipe out Africans and homosexual men.
4. Some believe that back in the colonial days, if a hunter was infected, people didn’t know back then so the sharing of needles to immunize slaves from certain diseases, but meanwhile that sharing was infecting many slaves.
5. Some feel it’s a curse from God because of immoral sexual practices because it was first found in a homo-sexual man in the early 1980’s in America
It is likely that we will never know exactly how or when the AIDS actually originated. Scientists investigating the possibilities often become very attached to their individual 'pet' theories and insist that theirs is the only true answer, but the spread of AIDS could quite conceivably have been induced by a combination of many different events. Whether through injections, travel, wars, colonial practices or genetic engineering, the realities of the 20th Century have undoubtedly had a major role to play. So perhaps what we should be focusing on now is not how the AIDS epidemic originated, but how we can treat those affected by it, continue to prevent the spread of HIV and change our world to ensure a similar pandemic is never allowed to occur again.

How is the Virus affecting us in today’s lives?

Firstly, HIV transmission is on the increase daily. Because

1. We are in denial (not getting tested, mother to baby transmission)
2. We fail to be more educated on the lethal death sentence
3. We are not morally focused (many sexual partners, prostitutes, orgis in call houses, unprotected sex)
4. Drugs (sharing of needles for heroine and cocaine, razor blades)

What is best for us to suggest is:-

Get Tested even if you are a virgin or married etc……..Because HIV doesn’t discriminate any human, it infects anyone regardless of Age, Wealth, Colour, Religion etc.

HIV is a massive pandemic causing destruction.

One phrase someone said on the program was that even though we had 2 million people on anti retrovirals, another 15 million got infected in that short space of time that they managed to help 2 million. So that just shows the impact of this deadly virus.

So please everyone get tested as well as your partners and learn to talk open about HIV

Practice safe use of condoms if sexually active, remember male condoms
Check expiry date
Open the packet without tearing condom
Blow the condom to put air and when you slide it on pinch the top and leave a little gap so that the friction does not cause it to tear

Try to be faithful, if not please use protection

They did not say about the female condom, so sorry don’t have much info on that as yet.

Do not sell yourself for money either.

Back to transmission

Since people did not know much about HIV, haemophilacs needed blood transfusions therefore back on the days people donated blood for money and so many children got infected too causing havoc in the states and discrimination and ill treatment of people with the Virus as due to lack of knowledge. So this added to the spread.

Sometimes it’s not always someone fault, like one lady in SA was gang raped and she didn’t know she had HIV till when her baby was born and was ill all the time. Sometimes it’s not fair!! But this one woman from Uganda was lucky, her husband had HIV but bcoz they used condoms instead of the pill she didn’t get infected, because he was unfaithful to her.

But as the next generation of people we should try to reduce HIV together by telling others and trying to practice safe sex unless u are both faithful and have being tested.
Encourage people to get off hardcore drugs and needles getting help, improve your sexuality with your partner instead of going to look for a prostitute, she might be beautiful as gold but is it worth it

The reason why I shared this with you all is because I care for you all , none of us are perfect as we are humans, but to help in the fight against AIDS we can change the world.

Some people had to take about tablets form 20 to 36 a day jst to control the virus.

We also have to thank the scientists that are working hard to find a cure and for the anti-retrovirals, because they thing is HIV does not stay the same, it mutates therefore causing some drugs not to work, that jst shows the impact of it. So scientists have to always be making up new ones, but for how long??????

You can not catch aids from hugging someone or a handshake. Only if you are in contact with their blood or bodily sexual fluids. There is HIV in Saliva but not enough to infect someone. You can get HIV by kissing if both partners have open sores or cuts in the mouth because that would be via blood contact.

But even if one has HIV do not ever stop loving them!

My greatest fear in the world is to get the disease, and I wonder if the whole world will b contaminated with it in time to come if things do not change.

I hope I have made everyone more aware on the disease and hope it has helped everyone. Please do not feel offended by me posting this, all I was doing was just helping to fight against Aids.

Instead of looking for someone to blame for the disease, we need to help fight it!

Thank you for you time spent reading.

God Bless!

http://delbanella.blogspot.com/2007/12/hivaids-part-two.html

http://delbanella.blogspot.com/2007/12/avert.html

Victoria Falls [Mosi-oa-Tunya] “ the smoke that thunders”

One of the seven natural wonders of the world. The rare taita falcon and black eagle breed in the Batoka Gorge. The Falls have a width of over 1,7 km, plunging some 70-108 metres into the gorge below at the rate of 550 million litres per minute during the high-water season. Dr. David Livingstone (1813-1873), Scottish doctor and missionary, also a pioneer for the abolition of the slave trade, discovered the waterfall on his voyage in Africa. He was popular among the native tribes in Africa. It was named after Queen Victoria.
Hotels & Lodges in Vic Falls:-
http://www.afrizim.com/Places/Victoria_Falls/Accommodation/Hotels_&_Lodges/

Victoria Falls Safari Lodge (One of the best Lodges in Victoria Falls)

Batoka Gorge

Seven Natural wonders

Great Barrier Reef
Harbor of Rio de Janeiro
Mount Everest
Polar Aurora
Parícutin volcano
Victoria Falls