''cptcmber'
Fricl.u September 7, 2001
outh Africa
ights for survival
FHE BATTALlO'
Taman fra*
ry
ar removed from the
world of academia, foot
ball games and beer,
tihere is a place where once
Hopeful youth have surren
dered their will to live. They
Struggle against an incom
prehensible illness that has
killed millions of fellow citi-
Zi ns in the prime of their
lives. The place is South
Africa and the illness is
AIDS. For years. South
Africans have painfully sat
By and watched as this dis
ease has rap
idly spread
throughout
their nation
before any
real govern
ment action
was taken.
Today,
plagued with
pr oblems exacerbated by
P‘ >verty and desperation.
South Africa is filled with
destitute communities where
il has been estimated as
many as 5,500 people die of
AIDS every day.
In recent years, the media
has brought public attention
to the tragedy in South Africa.
Millions of dollars from the
United States have been
pumped into a South African
AIDS initiative. This terrible
disease can
be fought,
s However,
more com
munity-based
AIDS pre
vention pro
grams
designed to
change sexu
al behavior must be imple
mented. In a nation where
one-fifth of the adult popula
tion is already infected by
AIDS, an attempt to change
behavior must run deeper than
encouraging condom use.
111V transmission often
Biccurs inside marriages or
regular partnership, where
condom use is hard to intro-
iuce or maintain. Instead,
more effort should be put into
ncouraging people to delay
sex, to reduce their number of
sexual partners and to practice
marital fidelity. Too many
>oor communities still lack
the education they deserve
and are living in silent fear of
a disease that is prevalent in
their community.
Today, South Africa’s most
isible HIV-prevention cam-
iaign is misguided. The high-
•rofile campaign consists of
Madison Avenue-style” HIV-
Iprevention targeted at the
[youth of South Africa.
[According to The Washington
Post, these colorful billboards
[carry “cryptic word pairs”
such as “Your Body/Anybody,
Climax/Anticlimax or Drop
Dead Gorgeous/The Drop.”
To make things worse, these
billboards are written in
English rather than the local
language. Not even containing
the word “AIDS ” these bill
boards only reinforce the
communities’ inability to
speak openly about the dan
gers of AIDS.These billboards
are part of the “loveLife”
campaign funded by the
More community-
based AIDS prevention
programs designed to
change sexual behavior
must be implemented.
Kaiser Family Foundation, the
Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation and the South
African government.
Scattered generously
throughout the continent,
these billboards make an
attempt to stimulate “frank
communication” and “the
ability to make better choic
es” within the youth commu
nity. According to The
Washington Post, instead of
sparking open communication
about AIDS, “many dismiss it
as confusingly vague.” Some
are outraged by the misalloca
tion of public and private
resources, especially when
many community-based
organizations are struggling to
survive.
“In the African culture, it
is a taboo to talk about sex,”
said Joel Arimadri Tivua,
coordinator of the AIDS pro
gram at Uganda’s Kuluva
Hospital. This belief can be
found at the heart of Africa's
AIDS pandemic, and it clearly
highlights why this aspect of
the loveLife AIDS-prevention
campaign is not working.
What is needed is the strong
backing of religious, civic and
other grass-roots communities
working together with com
mitted political and institu
tional support to promote
behavior changes. These are
the same suc
cessful
strategies
used in
Uganda,
which,
according to
Sojourn rs
Magazine,
“had the
highest number of reported
AIDS cases in Africa in the
late 1990s,” but has steadily
declined since then. Open
communication about the
transfer of AIDS, abstinence,
marital fidelity and safe sex
are more likely to confront
the crisis at its roots than the
cryptic messages emblazoned
on billboards throughout
South Africa.
The ineffectiveness of
South Africa’s current AIDS
prevention campaign is
painfully obvious in the
small, rural communities
such as Mogwase, where
“every weekend there's
another funeral,” according
to one 18-year-old boy. In
Mogwase. and many other
devastated communities,
despair has become the com
mon response to these
tragedies. This does not
mean that people should
give in to AIDS or on AIDS
prevention plans. In Uganda,
HIV among pregnant women
dropped from 21 percent in
1991 to 10 percent in 1998.
A solution in the form of
behavior changes can hap
pen. “The solution will come
from the community,” Tivua
said. But for now, a deep
fear and silence remains
imbedded in these impover
ished communities and much
of South Africa. Much more
must be done to break the
silence and stop the spread
of AIDS before it is too late.
Jennifer Lozano is a junior
English major.
:artoon of the day
CONGRESS r
SHALL
V anessa Leggett currently is in a
federal detention center for
refusing to turn over her
notes of a sensational
Houston homicide
case. This unfortunate
episode provides yet
another example of
how the FBI has
abused its power. She
should be freed imme
diately and should be
treated with the same
considerations as a
journalist who does
not wish to compro
mise sources but must
cooperate with a crim
inal investigation.
Leggett, a writing
instructor at the
University of Houston,
was imprisoned July
20 of this year after being
found in contempt of
court. Federal prosecutors
asked her to give up all of
her notes, tapes and material
related to a
1997 murder.
Based on their
dealings with Leggett,
the federal government
is deciding improperly
which journalists count
more than others.
The FBI is setting a
disturbing trend by not
having to prove a reporter’s information
is directly relevant to their case.
Leggett had begun to research the
killing of Doris Angleton, the wife of a
wealthy former bookie, with the intentions
of writing a book. Texas state prosecutors
focused their attention on the victim’s hus
band, Robert Angleton, and his brother
Roger. It was thought that Roger was hired
by his brother to kill his wife, thus prevent
ing her from collecting millions in a
divorce settlement. Leggett interviewed
Roger in prison before he committed sui
cide and left a note claiming he had mur
dered Doris and framed his brother to
extort money. Robert Angleton was acquit
ted of capital murder at a trial in which
Leggett handed over copies of her notes
and taped interviews upon reaching an
agreement that the materials would be
returned. The information was not admitted
at trial, and she never testified.
Some of the materials were handed over
to federal officials who are now conducting
an investigation into the crime and seeking
to bring federal charges on Angleton relat
ed to the death of his wife. Leggett refused
to become a paid informant of the FBI,
who then responded with a demand that
she turn over any information she has to
JONATHAN
JONES
U.S. government
should remember the
First Amendment,
release journalist
the FBI, including every copy of her notes
and taped interviews.
This would render complete control of
Leggett’s work to the federal government,
and her refusal has led to the contempt of
court charge. Having fulfilled her obliga
tion in the state trial, she maintains that
she cannot turn over any more material
without compromising her sources.
Though the Supreme Court has ruled that
the First Amendment does not offer com
plete privileges to journalists before a
grand jury, FBI rules require the approval
of the attorney general for subpoenas. The
federal government does not regard
Vanessa Leggett as a real journalist. Paul
McMasters, of the First Amendment
Center, said, “The feds are probably count
ing on, one she doesn’t have the resources
to fight them very long and two, that she
would have a difficult time putting herself
in the same category as reporters working
for a news network and newspaper.”
Leggett should be in the same category
as any television or newspaper reporter
because she is a journalist. Having already
CHAD MALLAM • THE BATTALION
properly cooperated with state authorities,
she should not be unfairly harassed into
turning over her notes.
Her hearing was closed to the public
and the transcripts sealed. That was also
wrong and unnecessary. This is a high-pro
file case that will inttuence the way jour
nalists and law enforcement interact. Mike
DeGuerin, Leggett’s attorney, said, “It’s
one thing to incarcerate a member of the
press for not doing what the government
wants. But to do it in secret and threaten to
jail her lawyer for talking about the details
is outrageous.”
The way the FBI is handling this case is
overly aggressive and improper. The gov
ernment should not decide who falls within
the boundaries of a professional journalist.
Leggett was gathering information with the
intention of making news available to the
public, thus functioning as a journalist. The
attorney general should approve a subpoena
and follow the proper procedures if
Leggett’s information is such a necessity.
She has been treated unfairly by the federal
government. The Washington Post reports
Leggett could be jailed indefinitely until
she relents. Amateur and professional jour
nalists everywhere should be cautious of a
government that abuses its power.
Jonathan Jones is a senior
political science major.
MAIL CALL
This cartoon in no way suggests any offensive posture
towards the many brilliant cultures of cheese
TUs DNchRtc>c>Nv»f-©
Parking garage
inconveniences
In response to the Amanda
Smith's Sept. 5 article:
Ever since this school decided to
start construction on the West
Campus Parking Garage, there has
been a barricade lining the perime
ter of the Student Recreation
Center. The vast majority of stu
dents are now inconvenienced.
It takes me an extra 45 minutes
to work out because I have to walk
all the way around the gates and
enter the Rec Center near Reed
Arena. Sometimes, I have been
known to get mad at small details,
but the fact that the school has not
created a pathway to the Rec
Center from main campus makes
me furious.
If 1,000 students work out on a
daily basis, then Texas A&M admin
istrators are wasting 750 student
hours per day because we have to
walk around so much construction.
That is almost nine years of student
time being wasted each semester.
Maybe the decision-makers at A&M
really do not care about our sched
ules and making resources conven
ient for us.
Matthew Deeke
Class of 2003
McDonald’s is
totally to blame
In response to Melissa Bed sole's
Sept. 5 column:
Six years of lying, deceit and
scandal under McDonald’s wing
and notorious name, but blaming
McDonald’s for advertising games
that are impossible to win is
“childish and silly.” That was the
point of view from Bedsole’s arti
cle on Wednesday. McDonald’s
should have been more involved
in the distributing of the winning
game pieces.
I agree with Bedsole that the
announcement of these competi
tions being fixed is disappointing,
but it is not about to make me cry.
I am sure after class a large
majority of Ags will head out
towards the golden arches and it
will be crowded as usual. I know
these same people just finished
reading the article about the great
Monopoly scandal. I honestly can
not say that during these comple
tions I ate every meal at
McDonald’s in search of the win
ning St. James Place that would
help me become the owner of a
Polaris jet ski. If you picked up
my floor mats, you may find a
Reading R.R. or a Marvin Gardens
game piece left over from a year
ago. We go to fast food place
because they fit in our tight budg
ets because of other expenses
such as utilities, books and rent.
Mark Ingle
Class of 2005
Established religion
lacks individuality
In response to Tim Dyll’s Sept. 6
column:
I find it amusing, and rather
annoying that Tim Dyll would be so
sensational in an article that
spends time speaking out against
sensationalism. To support his
argument that lack of religion is
making the United States a bad
place, Dyll used data from the
United States Census Bureau that
says violent crime is way up over
where it was 40 years ago. The FBI
and the Dept, of Justice, however,
have released their statistics show
ing that violent crime is on a steady
decline and is at its lowest point in
20 years. If only one figure is cor
rect, who should a person believe?
My money would go on the guys
who actually deal with crime.
I also disagree with Dyll’s asser-
tation that religion is the solution
to the problems that America has.
If he’s so concerned about family
and such, shouldn’t he be advo
cating that parents spend the time
with their children providing guid
ance? Sitting in church is all well
and good, but they should be inter
acting with their children. That
should be the top priority. After all,
it would be selfish for parents to
try to “save themselves" at church
instead of teaching their kids by
spending time with them.
Finally, I have to say that per
haps the lower churchgoing rate is
a sign that people are beginning to
stand up and think for themselves.
It could be a sign that people
today are better educated, more
strongly principled, and generally
more self-validated than they used
to be. To me this would be a great
sign for the future as better lead
ers will come out of this group
with the spine to break away from
establishment religion.
I believe that Dyll’s article was
very sensational, and his pes
simistic forecast for America
ignores a great many signs that
the country is looking better than
ever. It’s funny that while he is
preaching against media sensa
tionalism he follows their lead
exactly with his article.
Chris Carlin
Class of 2003