Former Ghanaian President Jerry John Rawlings has wrapped up a weeklong visit to Botswana where he urged citizens to be blunt about matters of sexuality and break taboos hiding the reality of HIV/AIDS.
On his first mission as Eminent Person for the International Year of Volunteers (IYV 2001), Mr. Rawlings said called on the people of Botswana to take the "voluntary act" of having safe sex in order to ensure the future of the southern African country. About one-third of the population aged 15 to 49 is HIV-positive.
He commended the Botswana government for putting in place comprehensive HIV/AIDS programmes and urged Botswana to use them to combat the killer disease.
Mr. Rawlings met key government policy-makers such as President Festus Mogae and ministers of foreign affairs, education and health to talk about HIV/AIDS and the country's voluntary sector.
The former Ghanaian leader said developing nations could contain the spread of HIV/AIDS just like countries in the developed world.
He wondered why HIV infection rates were skyrocketing in Africa and declining in some parts of the world. He concluded that perhaps Africans did not take the HIV/AIDS issue seriously when it was first talked about in the 1980s, and to some extent, to some "irresponsible behaviour".
He said it has taken the deaths of "brothers, sisters, cousins, husbands and wives for us in Africa to wake up to the reality of the scourge".
Mr. Rawlings also toured hospitals, clinics and local projects in Maun (northwestern Botswana) and Lobatse (southern Botswana) and spoke to volunteers who have sought to reduce others' suffering by offering counseling and home-based care.
He also cautioned youngsters against the dangers of becoming sexually active at an early age and adults, especially males, against having sexual relations with young girls. He condemned defilement, incest and rape, calling them inhuman.
During his talks Mr. Rawlings emphasized the importance of volunteering especially in the fight against HIV/AIDS. He underscored the importance of behavioural change and the issue of respect between and among partners in HIV/AIDS prevention.
The former president also meet with UN Volunteers serving in Botswana, volunteer agencies and Botswana's IYV 2001 National Committee to encourage them to continue their efforts to combat the epidemic.
His visit to Botswana marked the beginning of his activities as an IYV Eminent Person. He will also speak on the potential of volunteering for development at the Third United Nations Conference of Least Developed Countries in Brussels in May and visit several African countries to mobilize volunteers in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
Other IYV 2001 Eminent Persons, nominated by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, are Spain's Crown Prince of Asturias, former Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Dr. Nafis Sadik, and the founder of the Body Shop, Anita Roddick.
They are working on behalf of the United Nations Volunteers to attract the attention of the media and the public at IYV events and initiatives to raise the profile of volunteering around the world.
Mr. Rawlings was selected because, in his 19 years as President of Ghana, he worked to help community groups and volunteer services to improve social and economic conditions in his country. Mr. Rawlings voluntarily left office in January 2001.
Botswana's Foreign Affairs Minister, Lt-General Mompati Merafhe, paid tribute to Mr. Rawlings for extending his services to the United Nations as an IYV 2001 Eminent Person, proving that there was "still life after retirement". "We need many of these examples in Africa," the Minister said.
