Yat Sen Secondary School Aditi Naidu is stepping up to raise awareness about Fiji’s escalating HIV epidemic, urging communities to break the silence, challenge stigma, and take immediate action.
While speaking at an oratory contest held at Ratu Sukuna Park — as part of the Suva City Council’s ongoing awareness campaign, Naidu shared how HIV awareness is deeply personal to her.
Delivering a speech on the theme “My Commitment to the Prevention of HIV in Fiji,” she described HIV awareness as an integral part of her life, noting that she sees the impact of the virus through her father’s work as a doctor caring for patients with advanced HIV.
She says that although he never discusses his cases due to medical confidentiality, the look on his face tells a thousand stories.
The 16-year old says that while HIV-related deaths have dropped globally due to advancements like antiretroviral therapy, Fiji is seeing an alarming rise in new infections.
She adds that the Ministry of Health reported 1,583 cases from January to September last year, making Fiji one of the countries with the highest HIV rates in the Pacific.
Naidu also challenged the common misconception that HIV is only sexually transmitted, pointing to a surge in cases linked to injectable drug use, particularly methamphetamine, among young people.
She says many of these young people were just first or second-time users, but small decisions have led to lifelong consequences.
While speaking to fijivillage News, the winner of the secondary school contest stressed the need for support and understanding rather than judgement for people living with HIV, saying stigma is one of the greatest enablers of the virus.
She says young people across Fiji need to speak up and take action against HIV.
She adds that these issues are not talked about enough, and more awareness and genuine community support are needed to show that there are better choices and opportunities beyond drug use.
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