Neighbors Kill an HIV-Positive AIDS Activist in South Africa

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1998. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Neighbors Kill an HIV-Positive AIDS Activist in South Africa

New York Times (12/28/98) P. A5
McNeil Jr., Donald G.

Gugu Dlamini, an HIV-positive volunteer field worker for the National Association for People Living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa, was beaten to death last week by her neighbors after a mob attacked her in her home. Dlamini, who publicly announced her infection over the radio and television on World AIDS Day this year, was accused by her neighbors of bringing shame on their community by revealing her HIV status. As many as 30 percent of adults in Dlamini's province of KwaZulu-Natal are reported to be infected with HIV, according to the United Nations, making it the worst-hit province in South Africa. Activists are divided over whether Dlamini's death will raise consciousness about AIDS or whether it will set the AIDS movement in the country back a step.

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