By Maia Fortich-Poblete
In time for the observance of World AIDS Day 2015, when the plight of people infected and affected by HIV is highlighted via various activities in various parts of the world, HIV advocates and activists from Northern Mindanao are slated to host “LIMA: The HIV Monologues.”
LIMA, a collection of true stories from people infected and/or affected by HIV, will feature “five Kagay-anons who are living with the realities of HIV and AIDS,” said Stephen Christian Quilacio of the Northern Mindanao AIDS Advocates (NorMAA). “In an environment dominated by technology, it is surprising to note that a big number of people are still quite misinformed about HIV and AIDS. As a result, people living with HIV (PLHIV) continue to experience discrimination. Years after the first cases of HIV and AIDS were reported in the country in the 1980s, the stigma that PLHIVs have to endure remains strong.”
For Quilacio, “the need to educate people about HIV has never been more urgent.”
Co-presented and organized by the National Council of Churches in the Philippines and NorMAA, in partnership with World Vision and Department of Health – 10, LIMA will be staged on December 1 and 4 (7:30PM) at the IFI Diocesan Cathedral along Pabayo and Pacana Streets.
LIMA will tell various stories, including that of a married man who has to hide his condition from his children; a mother who w found out that her child is HIV positive; a wife who found out she’s HIV positive after her husband died; a person forced to accept the pain of losing a loved one; and an HIV counselor who shares the story of how she lost and found herself after being diagnosed as HIV positive.
LIMA stars Karl Owen Sayson, Dy Poe, Shaun Pilapil, Mai Santillan, Fritzie Caybot Estoque, Dennis Flores, and Christy Bacoto. The show is directed by Owen Jaen and Maia Fortich-Poblete.
Tickets cost P50, with the amount collected to benefit HIV and AIDS support groups in Cagayan de Oro City.
