People urged to educate family members on HIV/AIDS

By PISAI GUMAR
PEOPLE should educate family members to prevent the spread of the HIV-AIDS, an activist says.
Launching a HIV/AIDS go-rural drive billboard at Ngaruburam village, Umi-Atzera LLG, Markham district, Morobe, national AIDS council secretariat deputy director prevention Philip Tapo said to promote and prevent the virus, “it all starts within individual persons, family settings and the community”.
“Humans need to be responsible because when we say tingim laip, we are talking about taking care of one’s human soul and not our physical being,” he said.
He said in the family setting, parents needed to share with their children some food for thought to guide them to be responsible.
Tapo said the Markham district had taken a bold step to initiate a “go rural drive” approach and erect a billboard at “Zero Ngaruburam”, formerly Zero Tavern, a high-risk spot for truck drivers and sex workers along the highway.
“The purpose was to communicate the message of hope and responsibility to educate rural people, including individual travellers along the highway to the 
highlands and the Momase regions, to take care of human lives,” Tapo said.
Realising the spread of the virus into rural areas, the Tingim Laip, a non-government organisation, has been committed to travelling into the rural areas of the district to educate the locals.
To show his support, the landlord of Zero Ngaruburam, Godfrey Sonley, hired a vehicle and transported 150 sex workers to the VCT centre in Kainantu for a blood test.
On behalf of local MP Koni Iguan, Peter Phil said: “We do not know what tomorrow brings.
“It is now or never and we need to think right, educate our people to act right and save this
nation before it falls apart.
“Despite the mining boom in the country, it’s critical to consider its impacts on human lives because if there should be no human lives, economic activities will perish,” Phil said. 
Tingim Laip regional coordinator Kevin Gubag, field manager Bisibisera and Morobe provincial AIDS council marketing manager Margaret Munjin attended the two-day event which ends today.