An invisible stone in my heart - about HIV/AIDS

The number of people infected with HIV/AIDS is still increasing worldwide. People living with HIV/AIDS are often cast out of society and employment. Can the spread of the virus be stopped? The seminars offer forums for a mix of sufferers, experts and organisers from all over the world to discuss the current status of the HIV/AIDS problem.

Our series of talks on HIV and AIDS begin on Thursday, September 24, with the seminar An invisible stone in my heart

Below you can find the seminars, held in English, under the theme HIV/AIDS:

Thursday 16.15-18.00 
An invisible stone in my heart - HIV and AIDS in Sweden and the world

Worldwide rates of HIV and AIDS are spiralling. In Sweden, the number of HIV positive people is on the increase. How can we halt the spread of this disease? Can a cure be found for AIDS? This year sees the publication of the book Som en osynlig sten i mitt hjärta. Om hiv och aids i Sverige och världen [An Invisible Stone in my Heart - HIV and AIDS in Sweden and the world], in which Swedish and international experts write about ways of combatting HIV and AIDS. HIV positive people from 20 countries tell their stories, not only of exclusion from society, but also about the power of resistance and joie de vivre, and a refusal to give up.

Participants include Zohira Merah from Algeria, an HIV positive Muslim woman emerging publicly for the first time in the book, Neo Chitombo, an HIV positive woman from Botswana, also known as 'Miss Stigma' because of her campaign against the stigma associated with AIDS, and Elaine Vocelka from the USA, who contracted HIV from her husband and has written a book about her life as an HIV positive person. Other participants: Mona Sahlin, Leader of the Social Democrat Party, Sweden; Lars Olof Kallings, professor; Henning Mankell, author; Andreas Lundstedt, artist; Metta Fjelkner, chairperson, Swedish National Union of Teachers; Bengt Westerberg, chairperson, Swedish Red Cross; Elisabet Andersson, chair, SOS-Barnbyars; and Donald Boström and Mats Ögren, authors/editors. Moderator: Annika Hagström, journalist.
A concert by Alcazar will directly follow the seminar.
Language: English
In coop with The Red Cross, the Swedish National Union of Teachers, SOS-Barnbyar and Leopard förlag

Friday 12.00-12.45 
Bullying that kills
People living with HIV are constantly vulnerable.Their human rights are violated, they lose their jobs, are evicted from their homes, rejected by their families and communities. Many do not even dare take an AIDS test for fear of the result. If discrimination against and marginalising of people who are HIV positiv or suffer from AIDS, the epidemic will continue to claim millions of human lives. The Red Cross has been working for many years to stop the bullying and discrimination related to HIV and AIDS.

Meet Neo Chitombo from Botswana in conversation with Henning Mankell; both are working on the book Som en osynlig sten i mitt hjärta. Om hiv och aids i Sverige och världen [Like an invisible stone in my heart. HIV and
AIDS in Sweden and the world].

The seminar is lead by Marco Helles, coordinator for the Red Cross's work
for diversity and anti-discrimination in Sweden.
Language: English
In coop with The Red Cross

Friday 14.00-14.45
Children, solidarity and strength
On HIV/AIDS-affected communities in southern Africa What happens to children in impoverished communities in southern Africa, where HIV/AIDS is rampant,when their parents die and the children and the elderly are left to manage on their own?

Neo Chitombo from Botswana, herself HIV positive,
and Coenraad de Beer, director of SOS-Barnbyar's work in South Africa to support families, talk about how the poorest people have taken on the greatest financial and social responsibility for these children. A conversation about solidarity in an impoverished and HIV/AIDS-affected African community. The
seminar is part of the work for the book Som en osynlig sten i mitt hjärta. Om hiv och aids i Sverige och världen [Like an invisible stone in my heart.HIV and AIDS in Sweden and the world].
Language: English
In coop with SOS-barnbyar