President Asif Ali Zardari said expressed these view in his message issued here on Friday on the occasion of World AIDS Day being observed on Saturday (today) with theme 'zero discrimination against patients suffering from HIV'. He said the calls for stepping up efforts by all concerned may that be the governments, the health practitioners, NGOs or common citizens to ensure that those suffering from it were provided unhindered access to diagnosis and treatment without any discrimination. Indeed it is a wakeup call for all to act decisively and urgently, he maintained.
Medical research has shown that HIV cannot be contracted through routine daily contacts such as shaking hands and sharing of food or water. Unfortunately, however, the stigma surrounding HIV has contributed to discrimination against the patients and inhibited people from undergoing regular medical check-up for timely diagnosis. The President said that on this day therefore let us fight any discrimination against people with HIV and encourage people to undergo necessary diagnostic procedures for timely diagnosis and treatment.
Equally important in the fight against HIV & AIDS is access to the needed information about preventive measures and the available treatment programmes. It requires concerted efforts involving the parents, teachers, religious scholars, media, and indeed every segment of society to work together and thereby save millions from the consequences of this disease.
"On this day, I also call upon the international community to help the developing and under-developed world in reducing the risks of the disease by sharing knowledge and expertise and in assisting the governments in accessing the people of the far flung areas. As HIV is an issue of global concern it is important that the international community specially focuses on AIDS prevention and cure in the less developed countries," he added.-PR