NONGPOH:
The Meghalaya State Network of Positive People (MSNP+) in collaboration with the Sur Jingkyrmen Society on June 6, organised the 40th AIDS International Candlelight Memorial Service at Assumption Catholic Church Auditorium, Nongpoh.
The theme of the event was ‘Spread love and solidarity to build a stronger community.’
The programme was attended by Balajied Rani, MDC Nongpoh Constituency, as Chief Guest, along with Shri. Peter Kharnari, DMHO Ri Bhoi, as Guest of Honour, and students, among others.
Speaking during the event, Deputy Superintendent of Police Crime branch, Ri Bhoi, Pherbak Sing Marwei talked about his experience with sexual abuse cases, including the POCSO Act. “Some of the cases are not actually real rape cases, but the couple is in a relationship, and since they are young and active, they cannot control their sexual desires. But after the pregnancy test is positive, the real problem starts. Sometimes the girl or the boy doesn’t know about their partner who is HIV positive because of the short span of their relationship. Therefore, for you guys (students), stay away from sex, not only unprotected sex; you should avoid sex completely; your time will come to get married.”
The District Social Welfare Officer, E. Kharshandi, appreciates the HIV-positive people who have lived with this virus for more than 10–15 years. In our district, we have more than 300 domestic sex workers, among who are also HIV-positive. We encourage schools to promote sex education for the students because schools are the best place to give them the knowledge”.
DMHO of Ri Bhoi Said “Today we are here in solidarity for the departed souls who were infected from this virus, and we appreciate these people who were brave enough to share their experiences, which is an inspiration for other infected people to fight against this virus.” There’s a lot of misleading information about HIV or AIDS, but if someone takes medicine accordingly, these medicines can help them live a normal life. Either protected sex or unprotected sex, avoid it before marriage because you don’t know about the other person.”
“HIV can spread in four ways, but it is commonly spread by drug addicts and sex.” To conclude, I advise you (students) not to taste or touch the bad habits because they will turn into addiction. I can understand why most of the youth fall into this trap because they want to experience life, but this is not the experiment lab; it’s life.” Kharnari Concluded.
The Chief Guest, Balajied Rani, said, “This is an inspiration not only for the infected people but also an awareness for those who are not yet infected; they should avoid using used needles, unprotected sex, and know before blood transfer whether that person is healthy or not. But if you’re infected too, you should not lose hope but instead be strong. There’s a lot of stigma for the infected person; some call them sex workers or drug addicts, but to be clear, it’s not only sex workers that can be infected; they get infected for other reasons as well. Therefore, we should stop stigmatising them and instead support them”.
During the event, the infected people shared their testimony about their experience and how they came to know about their health issues. There’s also a candlelight vigil for the departed souls.