29 Nov 2012

Wave of AIDS education planned in American Samoa

4:22 am on 29 November 2012

A group raising awareness about AIDS is launching a campaign in American Samoa, including awareness workshops in the villages and a church service.

The AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Disease Prevention Coalition has planned the activities, which start today, to mark World Aids Day on December the first.

The theme of the day is zero tolerance, meaning the goal is to achieve zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths.

American Samoa has two HIV cases, people who contracted the virus off the island.

Coalition member Representative Tapumanaia Galu Satele says people tend to think that AIDS will not happen to them.

"We're looking forward to this week, making sure that we get the awareness programs out there, making sure that people get a better understanding of it. Because as much as it's been out there for a long time now, it's been out there for a long time, when we go and do the outreach programs we give out these surveys and we find out that even though people understand what AIDS is, they don't know what it is."

Tapumanaia Galu Satele says it's very important to keep educating the public about how the disease is spread.