As new treatments are developed and they become more accessible, the HI virus loses some of its mysterious power. A positive test result no longer means a death sentence. However, the news still brings up two unsettling questions for most of those infected: Will I be abandoned? Will I receive treatment?
CUAHA encourages its members to participate in HIV work in all of its different areas. There's need for both prevention and care, not to mention the work there is to be done to eliminate poverty and discrimination. When CUAHA works in these different but related fields, its efforts are always based on the respect for human rights and human dignity.
Sensitive HIV education saves lives.
Fear and judgement have been far too common sentiments in HIV education. It harms the millions of people who are already living with the virus. The educators' hateful attitudes affect the society, casting HIV positive people as a pariah class.
CUAHA wants to prevent new infections, but with the help of HIV positive people, not at their expense. And while we're distributing information, it's also essential to evaluate whether the target group - rural women, for example - has enough power in their community to actually put their knowledge into practice and protect themselves from the virus.
Participation prevents stigma.
The stigma and isolation associated with HIV can be a heavy burden to bear - even heavier than the actual physical illness. CUAHA encourages churches to involve their HIV positive congregants in their activities, including (but not limited to) HIV work. CUAHA members must also pledge to become exemplary employers to HIV positive staff members.
CUAHA's Ambassadors of Hope [link] are people who are living with HIV or whose families have been affected by the virus. Their work combines HIV education and the struggle against stigma.
Hope, care and practical support.
In CUAHA's point of view, churches are important providers of health services. The networks supports care projects that answer to those needs that tend to be forgotten by governmental initiatives: projects that, for example, support orphans, child-headed households and other vulnerable families. When needed, CUAHA also supports projects related to homecare, food security and medication.
Against poverty, for human rights.
HIV, human rights infringements and poverty can often be just different faces of the same underlying issues. One of CUAHA's missions is to reduce poverty and empower individuals to assert control over their own health.
Poverty, discrimination and lack of information hurt those who have been cast to the margins of society. That's why CUAHA considers that HIV work among, for example, poor women and children has a special value.