Every twelve hours, the same number of people killed at the World Trade Centre on September 11, 2001 (3,000), perish from AIDS in Africa.
Bush’s war on terrorism and all the media attention it received is shocking when faced with that statistic. Yes, I don’t doubt that the people that lost their lives in 9/11 were innocent victims. But how can the world ignore or be so unaware of the fact that THREE THOUSAND people die every TWELVE HOURS from AIDS in Africa. 3,000 victims of AIDS. 3,000 victims of poverty. Dying every 12 hours. Going unnoticed.
We draw such attention to one off acts that we fail to see what is happening in the world every single DAY.
In a single YEAR, 150,000 African mothers – half the number of people killed in the 2004 Asian tsunami – die, JUST GIVING BIRTH.
Are we in Europe doing anything to protect African women, ensuring that they don’t die in child birth? Are we trying to find a cure for AIDS or helping educate those in rural areas who do not understand the Human Immunodeficiency Virus and how it is transmitted?
Is there any money left after the EU spends $350 BILLION a year on subsidies to protect its farmers? An amount equal to Africa’s entire annual income and 14 times the aid the continent receives. Is that really what we should be spending our money on?
