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March 13, 2005
'We Can Never Cover Up This Point'
Something tells me a young man who speaks six languages knows how to communicate. He and I shared Cokes at Mundo's one afternoon and he told me about an idea he had whipped up. "The way I talk about AIDS here in Maputo I would never use to talk about AIDS in the countryside," he said. "It’s very difficult to go to a small place and tell someone: 'You will die of AIDS.' You know what he will say? 'My father never told me about that.'" Without understanding the cultural context, my new friend said trying to talk about AIDS is nearly useless. Most traditions and languages in Mozambique don't have a word for AIDS, he said. In places where polygamy is customary, it makes no sense to lecture about multiple partners and the spread of disease.
My friend's mission: "Trying to convert the occidental model of communication into the African model of communication." He wants to survey the countryside to understand the culture in different communities. From that information, he thinks he can provide a plan that will enable educators, even Westerners, to communicate effectively. It comes through working with traditional leaders, such as witch doctors. "We consider more with traditional authority that with government authority," he said. "Before we invest we need to start with communication. Nobody is doing this job."
There's no stigma attached to AIDS in some places because people don’t even know what it is. This article in Slate illustrates one of several approaches in the pipeline that may help stop the spread of AIDS, but my friend suggests it will take a lot more. "This is a very big point, this culture. We can never jump, we can never cover up this point." Why is this easygoing guy from the countryside, who corrects my Portuguese without condescending and keeps dropping by to hang out, spending his free time on this plan? "It's very simple. I love my country. My country is one of the 10 most infected in the world. Five hundred people die a day. I can do something in my time."
Posted by Adam Graham-Silverman at March 13, 2005 12:43 AM
Comments
Actually, Anabalzinho has already been tried and convicted.
Posted by: Nanette at March 14, 2005 11:40 PM