Sir Elton John
and Prince Harry have left messages of support for fighting HIV/AIDS – while
attending the International AIDS Conference.
Prince Harry
has recently focused more of his engagements around HIV – even
taking a HIV test himself in a Facebook Live video earlier this
month.
The
fifth-in-line to the throne has
visited a number of HIV clinics in recent months, and has also spoken
about his late mother’s work on the issue.
He said: “She
started very punchy [on AIDS]. She smashed the stigma around HIV on more
than one occasion. It had a huge impact, and a huge impact on my life as well.”
Attending
the International AIDS Conference in Durban, he signed the UN AIDS
ProTEST wall alongside Sir Elton John, before the pair appeared together at a
panel.
The Prince
wrote on the wall: “Get tested! Why wouldn’t you? Harry”.
Sir Elton
wrote: “Together we can make a change”.
In
his speech to the conference, the Prince celebrated that HIV is no
longer a “death sentence” as it was when his mother famously championed the
cause.
He
said “At the time of the first International AIDS conference, HIV was a
death sentence. Treatment was not widely available in the developed world, let
alone in poorer regions.
“Stigma kept
HIV-positive people from talking openly about their condition and kept
vulnerable people from having the courage to step into a clinic and ask for a
test.
“But thanks to
the work of leaders in the fight against HIV – people like Nelson Mandela, Sir
Elton John, the brave activists of TAG and ACT UP, people like Dr Peter Piot,
and like my mother, Princess Diana – we have made huge progress.”
The Prince
continued: “When my mother held the hand of a man dying of AIDS in an East
London hospital, no one would have imagined that just over a quarter of
a century later treatment would exist that could see HIV-positive people
live full, healthy, loving lives.
“But we now
face a new risk – the risk of complacency.
“As people with
HIV live longer, AIDS is a topic that has drifted from the headlines. And with
that drift of attention, we risk a real drift of funding and of action to beat
the virus.”
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