The Strategies for Hope Trust has launched a new video, designed to combat HIV-related stigma, shame, discrimination and denial in churches. The video features Rev. Canon Gideon Byamugisha from Uganda - the first African priest to disclose his HIV-positive status.

While churches throughout the world have provided health care, counselling and material support to many people living with HIV/AIDS, they have been less effective in addressing issues such as HIV-related stigma and discrimination. Many churches have ignored HIV/AIDS as an issue affecting their own members, or have expressed judgemental attitudes towards people living with HIV.

In this video, entitled 'What can I do?', Canon Gideon talks about the need for his fellow Christians to do away with judgemental attitudes towards HIV-positive people, and instead to offer them love and support. 'Churches need to spread hope, not fear,' he says. He goes on to tell how his wife died of an HIV-related illness and that he too found out he was HIV-positive. He accepted his status and disclosed it to his family and friends, and also to his Bishop. Later he married a woman who was also HIV-positive.

Canon Gideon speaks on the video about the difficulty he has faced when buying condoms, because people usually associate condoms with immorality. He describes how he has turned these situations into impromptu AIDS education sessions.

With the support of his family and friends, his church and World Vision International, Canon Gideon has taken his unique HIV/AIDS ministry to many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as to Asia, Europe and North America. He is driven by the conviction that HIV/AIDS is both a preventable and a manageable illness - providing the barriers of stigma, shame, denial, discrimination and ignorance can be broken down. He wants to encourage others, especially religious leaders, to get this important message across to the general public.

The video is 49 minutes long and is divided into short segments on topics such as 'Coping with stigma', 'Why be tested for HIV?' and 'Challenges for the church'. It is accompanied by a 48-page Facilitator's Guide, to enable groups to explore in greater depth the issues which it raises.

The production of the video and the Facilitator's Guide has been supported by Christian Aid, World Vision International, The World Bank and Lutheran World Federation.

The video and the Guide can be ordered from TALC: e-mail: [email protected] [5]; Web site: www.talcuk.org; [6] telephone: +44 (0) 1727 853869. For general enquiries about these or other Strategies for Hope materials please contact Glen Williams: [email protected] [7]; telephone: +44 (0) 1865 723078.