If I kept it to myself - World YWCA

If I kept it to myself
Princess Kasune Zulu
The Lord will turn something that was meant to break
you into a breakthrough
In 1986, I lost my baby sister to an AIDS related
illness. Then AIDS claimed my mother and
father. In 1994, at the age of 17, I dropped out of
school; I got pregnant and married my boyfriend,
a man 25 years older than me whose previous
wives may have died from AIDS. Two years
later, I gave birth to my second daughter. Now
I am a divorced young mother and have just
completed my high school diploma at the age of
29. I tested HIV positive in 1997. When I received
my test results, I was not traumatised but rather
filled with overwhelming peace. The doctor who
was counselling me was more traumatized, so
we ended up switching roles! Thankfully, my
daughters, Joy (11) and Faith (10) are both HIV
negative.
My diagnosis was a spiritual awakening and
I decided to go public with my status, against
the wishes of church leaders and my former
husband. I embarked on a campaign to educate
other Zambians to protect themselves from HIV
and AIDS. I would hitchhike with truck drivers
and talk to them about HIV and AIDS. I gave
seminars to major employers and worked with
primary and secondary schools. At that time HIV
and AIDS was rarely discussed, and my actions
exposed me to painful stigma and discrimination.
World Vision International’s Special Assistant
to the President on AIDS, Mr. Ken Casey,
was visiting my village when he first heard my
testimony. He was impressed by my story and
my ability to tell it. He said that when I tell my
story, the pandemic becomes real. As a result,
I became the international spokesperson and
AIDS educator for World Vision’s Hope Initiative,
a nationwide campaign to mobilise Christians
and the general public to take action against the
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global HIV and AIDS pandemic. I train staff to
care for those with AIDS and teach prevention
measures to Zambia’s children and young
people.
I am the founder and chairperson of Fountain of
Life ministries, a charitable organisation for young
AIDS orphans and vulnerable children. Currently
we have more than 500 children. I am also a
co-founder and the current Vice Chairperson of
the African Extended Family Support for Orphans
and Vulnerable Children (AFFESS-OVC).
My radio programme called ‘Positive Living’, is
one way we help Zambian listeners address the
challenges of living with HIV and AIDS and caring
for their loved ones. We discuss and respond
to listeners’ questions on various topics. This
year the role of the church was one of the topics
we discussed and it attracted a big audience
and much enthusiasm. The church has a role
to play in the response to HIV and AIDS. They
have moved from discriminating to participating
but we want them to talk about HIV and how it
is affecting people, especially the church-going
community. Different denominations are coming
together to address HIV and AIDS. I have come
to realise that people from all walks of life are
affected and united by the AIDS epidemic.
This radio programme received honours from
the US Embassy in Zambia for excellence in
broadcasting on HIV and AIDS.
I continue to work with World Vision as an
international AIDS advocate who has dedicated
her life to fighting the global epidemic that has
claimed the lives of over 20 million people. I
have taken my message to the UN, across the
USA and Africa, to Spain, Romania, the UK,