Henry Ma
Ms. Bennett
World Literature Honors 6
13 Friday 2015
The Shocking Truth Behind AIDS Prevention in Africa
Two men are trapped in a prison. The first man, a wealthy, white businessman, effortlessly obtains the key to his cell and leaves the prison to return to his daily life. The second man, a poor, black worker, spots a key on the floor, just beyond the bars of his cell. But, no matter how far he stretches his arm, the key is just beyond his reach.
This is no ordinary prison. These two men are just two of the twenty-three million Africans living with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, commonly referred to as AIDS (AVERT). Over the past decades, technological advancements have led to the development of effective treatments for AIDS. However, none of this matters in Africa; due to internal and external factors, treatments for AIDS only go to the wealthy, leaving millions of poor Africans struggling for access to these resources.
Governments and foreign companies have hindered the treatment of AIDS in Africa. During the early 2000s, the South African government, led by President Thabo Mbeki, rejected the use of Western antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) that disrupt the reproduction of the AIDS virus (Shostak) (Ntambirweki). Mbeki believed that the drugs were too unsafe and untested to be used in the public health system. He preferred to approach the AIDS epidemic without outside intervention, by attempting to research AIDS inside South Africa’s borders. By refusing the ARVs, 5500 Africans continued to die every day of AIDS, while the research made little to no progress (Shostak). Furthermore, foreign pharmaceutical companies charged “$10,000 and $15,000 per patient” yearly for the ARVs, and refused to lower the prices (McGreal). Only wealthy citizens could afford to circumvent Mbeki’s policies and buy the expensive ARVs , while millions of impoverished Africans perished without the treatment they needed to survive AIDS.
However, in recent years, cooperation by the government and companies has promoted the distribution of ARVs. In 2014, the South African government has opened up to foreign ARVs, and they will spend 2.2 billion dollars to distribute these drugs to public hospitals (BBC). Thus, even the poorest citizens will have easy access to the treatments that were once impossible to obtain. Additionally, as global awareness of this issue increases, drug companies have become more aware of the needs of the poverty-stricken and have reduced the costs of ARVs (Ntambirweki). This is partially due to the competition between companies; as the companies fight for the privilege to distribute treatments, their prices inevitably decrease. In fact, some companies have even provided ARVs free of charge (Ntambirweki). When both the government and the companies work together, ARV treatment can finally be extended to those in need.
Though the treatment of AIDS has become more widespread in Africa, there is still work to be done. Even with the government’s increased acceptance of ARVs and the decrease in costs, over one million Africans are still dying of AIDS every year (AVERT). In fact, 70% of all AIDS-related deaths in the world occur in Africa (AVERT), which highlights the number of people in poverty that are still struggling to get access to life-saving treatments. For many Africans, AIDS may seem like an inescapable prison. But, little by little, Africans are finally reaching the key to free themselves from the suffering of AIDS.
Works Cited: Prevention of AIDS in Africa
Works Cited: Prevention of AIDS in Africa
"Africa HIV & AIDS Statistics." Africa HIV & AIDS Statistics. AVERT, n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2015.
McGreal, Chris. "Aids: South Africa's New Apartheid." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 30 Nov. 2000. Web. 13 Mar. 2015.
Ntambirweki, Pelucy. "HIV/AIDS in Africa." Encyclopedia of Science, Technology, and Ethics. Ed. Carl Mitcham. Vol. 1. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. 27-31. Student Resources in Context. Web. 13 Mar. 2015.
Shostak, E.M. "South Africa's Struggle with AIDS." History Behind the Headlines: The Origins of Conflicts Worldwide. Ed. Sonia G. Benson, Nancy Matuszak, and Meghan Appel O'Meara. Vol. 3. Detroit: Gale, 2002. N. pag. Student Resources in Context. Web. 13 Mar. 2015.
"South Africa to Spend $2.2bn on HIV/Aids Drugs." BBC News. BBC, 18 Nov. 2014. Web. 13 Mar. 2015.
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ReplyDeleteI like how you not only focus on the lack of access to aid medication, but also what is being done in the status quo to combat it. Domestically, we also face problems from these diseases, although they are not as widespread, and medication price is an issue here as well. Did the South African government have any success with its medication research? What political movement or party was the person who refused to deliver the AIDS medicine from?
ReplyDeleteI like how you use a metaphor at the beginning. It really draws the reader in and makes the reader want to keep reading it. While I also liked how at the end you tied the metaphor back to the beginning . With everything that has been done, why is it still hard for some people to get the medication they need? If they still can't get there hands on the medication, what is going to be done?
ReplyDeleteThe metaphor in your introduction was really interesting and really engaged me in your paper. Also, your main points really connected to each other. Why is it so hard for people to get the medications they need even with all that has been done? What can they do to make it easier for everyone to get the right medications?
ReplyDeleteI thought your hook was very interesting. Instead of describing a person's encounter with AIDS, you used a metaphor of a person in prison as your example. I liked how the idea of the person who couldn't reach the key tied in with the African citizens who could not get treatment. Assuming that the rich man who metaphorically obtained the key received the cure for AIDS in the actual world, are you saying that the African government is unwilling to give their own citizens the cure? If so, what can we, as individual citizens of America, do to help Africa solve this issue?
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