(ENI) – World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Samuel Kobia has told a gathering in front of the Swiss parliament that the deaths of close relatives due to HIV/AIDS has impelled him to speak out on the pandemic.
And he noted that a major difficulty for churches in dealing with the pandemic has been an inability to address sexuality in an open way.
"Within a short span of two years, I have lost a brother, two nieces, a nephew, a sister and brother-in-law, and four cousins," Kobia, a Methodist from Kenya, said at an event to mark World Aids Day being organized by Swiss churches in Bern.
"However this epidemic goes way beyond any personal tragedy," noted Kobia. "It has made my consciousness more sensitive to the vulnerabilities and strengths of societies."
The number of people living with HIV globally is at its highest level with an estimated 40.3 million people, up from an estimated 37.5 million in 2003. More than three million people died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2005; of these, more than 500 000 were children.
