Quilt that tells of heartbreak stories

Covering the walls of session room one of the Washington Convention Centre in DC yesterday was the Aids memorial quilt. Each patch tells a story of someone who lost the fight against the disease. But it also detailed that person's tribulations and courage to live even while staring death in the face. United States Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton, who spoke at the 19th Aids conference, described the quilt as a symbol of solace for HIV/Aids people around the world. She said: “This is a visible way to honour and remember... to mourn husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, sons daughters, partners. In 1996 was the last time the quit could be displayed all at once... it just got too big, too many people ke p t dying. “We are all here today because we want to bring about that moment when we stop adding names to the quilt. When we come to gatherings like this one and not talk about the fight against Aids, but instead commemorate the birth of a generation that is free from Aids.”

Clinton also urged leaders take “country ownership” in the fight against HIV/Aids, saying there was hope for a generation to be free of the disease. The conference has drawn close to 20,000 delegates and will end on Saturday. Saying HIV/Aids was still incurable, Clinton said reaching that goal of eradicating the disease was still in the distant future. But, she added it has already begun with mother-to-child prevention. She also urged governments to invest more in social worke rs. She added that with that task it must be ensured efforts and initiatives be properly led and implemented and would reach communities and civil society. Some people chose to live in the shadows rather than come and openly disclose their status, Clinton said.