The scariest horror story I've ever come across

There was a recent news report that's been circulating by word of mouth here at the hospital regarding HIV prevalence amongst university students in South Africa. I didn't quite believe what I was hearing and assumed that people were just making up the astronomical numbers I was hearing. However, after a quick internet search, I would like to point you to the following article from the South African Broadcasting Corporation. I encourage you to sit down before reading on:

At least 60% of SA tertiary students HIV positive
March 09, 2007, 12:00

At least 60% of students in South Africa's tertiary institutions are HIV positive, according to the South African Union of Students, who presented these figures at the launch of an HIV/Aids programme for tertiary students.

Samora Mohaka, a spokesperson, says students at tertiary institution are struggling to get the necessary support to deal with the HIV/Aids pandemic.

The health ministry yesterday called on the education department to review its life-orientation programmes, as they seem ineffective in preventing the high teenage pregnancy rate.

Nosizwe Madlala-Routledge, the deputy health minister, said the situation raises concerns about risky sexual behaviour among schoolgirls. She said such behaviour renders them
vulnerable to this pandemic.

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And that absurd final paragraph about promiscuous schoolgirls? Just another piece of evidence that South Africa doesn't understand the nature of the epidemic in any way that will allow them to overcome it in the near future. It quite sad when you think about it.