Zimbabwe: Disabled at Greater Risk of HIV Infection

‘'Do you think I can go for an HIV test and be accepted?” Zitha scoffs at the suggestion. Disabled, and also a single mother, the 44-year-old swears her fear of discrimination is no idle assumption. Rather, it is based on her experience at a test centre she visited last year. ''The attitude was horrible,'' she says. Such fear of condemnation and disapproval is rooted in society's tendency to scowl at evidence of the disabled person's sexuality. Its effect renders disclosure largely unthinkable for those who may test HIV positive.