Walking in the Light in South Africa

Our team met with several different groups within the Walk in the Light Ministry, one of which was a very lively group of ladies who meet once a week to knit. During one of our meetings with the knitting group, a teenage girl named Thandeka pulled me aside. She was very interested in learning more about AIDS because, as she explained to me, she is living with someone who is HIV-positive. I began to give Thandeka advice about how to care for this person, a girl named Mbali, and said that if Mbali was still sexually active, she should cease. At that point, Thandeka interrupted me: "I don't think you understand. Mbali is only 8 years old." Thandeka went on to explain that when Mbali was 4, she was gang raped by a group of men, at least one of whom was HIV-positive. The police have supposedly found the man responsible but have done nothing to bring him to justice.

To make matters worse, Mbali's mother abandoned her at 2 weeks and cannot be found. Because her birth mother is not acting as her guardian, the South African Department of Home Affairs will not issue Mbali's birth certificate. And without a birth certificate, Mbali cannot receive the ARV medication she needs to give her a longer and healthier life. As Thandeka and her aunt wept and begged me to do something to gain access to a birth certificate for Mbali, I realized that I had never felt more helpless in all my life. I was also filled with rage over the incredible injustices done to this innocent little girl.

I have been researching the AIDS pandemic for over a year now. I have friends who are living with AIDS. Even so, I am constantly amazed at how fighting the effects of AIDS in Africa is far from a simple matter. AIDS is deeply enmeshed with issues of culture, government, and family dynamics, among other things. I feel as if I am only beginning to see what a complex issue it truly is. And my prayer is that the two weeks we spent in Pietermaritzburg have somehow served to turn the tide in at least one person's life, if not an entire community. It is reassuring to know that Walk in the Light is committed to continuing this community-changing work every day.

-Allison Hennessey

Check out the South Africa Scrapbook