If I kept it to myself - World YWCA

If I kept it to myself
Promise Mthembu
Many young people shy away from being tested and
from talking openly about HIV infection; thus we have a
silent, underground epidemic. These young people are in
school, in tertiary institutions, and in the productive and
reproductive years of their lives.
My name is Promise Mthembu, a 31-year-old
South African women living with HIV. I learnt
about my HIV status in 1995 when I went for
my tuberculosis (TB) check up. I was 20 years
old at the time. I think I was infected when I was
15 years old as my child, who is now 14, is also
living with HIV. Doctors speculate that she was
infected at birth. When I received the result of my
test, I was shocked and angry. I had been part of
an HIV and AIDS project while in school, I knew
about HIV, but I did not think it could happen to
me. I had only one sexual partner and was from
a religious family.
Anger led me to start attending HIV and AIDS
meetings. I wanted to change the way HIV and
AIDS work was done. The campaigns at the time
were not working; after all, if they were, I would
not have been infected.
Five months after receiving the devastating
news of my HIV status, I began to talk openly
about living with HIV. In an effort to challenge the
approach of organisations working in the field,
I decided to actively participate in those areas
I found lacking. I began with the Department
of Health Regional Office offering one on one
counselling and handling written requests on HIV
and AIDS education. Later, I volunteered for the
Prince Mshiyeni Hospital as a counsellor and
educator. During my time there, I established a
support group, the first of many I was to initiate in
the coming years.
Between September 1996 and April 1997,
I acted as the Durban regional coordinator
for the National Association of People Living
with HIV and AIDS (NAPWA). With NAPWA, I
coordinated support groups in the Durban region,
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giving lectures and presentations. I also carried
out office administration as required. During
my tenure with NAPWA, The National AIDS
Convention of South Africa KwaZulu Natal offered
me a full-time position as a regional advocacy
task team coordinator. It was in this position, as
I organised advocacy team meetings and gave
presentations to provincial parliament, that I
established myself as an activist.
In 1998, the South African Youth Commission
offered me a position as a project coordinator for
Positive Ambassadors. Although there has been
plenty of HIV and AIDS education in South Africa,
it had not managed to change the behaviour
of young people. The South African Youth
Commission identified its role in the campaign
against the AIDS epidemic, and decided that
it would adopt the Commonwealth Youth
Programme’s concept of Young Positive Living
Ambassadors. YPLA is aimed at young people
between the ages of 14 and 35.
It had become evident that many programmes
aimed at young people were not owned or driven
by young people. In response to this gap, young
people living with HIV drove the YPLA project. Its
focus is behavioural change and positive living;
working not only with HIV infected youth, but also
with untested youth, vulnerable youth, and HIV
negative youth as well.
HIV infections among women younger than
20 years of age have been increasing in the
KwaZulu Natal region. Young people who have
tested HIV positive face huge discrimination in
many sectors of society. Many young people
shy away from being tested and from talking
openly about HIV infection; thus we have a silent,