MUSLIM AIDS ACTIVIST HONOURED FOR TABOO-BUSTING WORK

Toronto, 3 Dzul Hijja 1434/7 October 2013 (MINA) – A Muslim women and AIDS activist from Mali, Fanta Ongoiba, awarded from Canadian Council of Muslim Women on Sunday, because one of campaigning efforts cultural issues that are considered taboo in Islam, namely sexual health.

“HIV/AIDS doesn’t discriminate. The way the women are wearing the veil, hijab, to cover themselves, HIV can also be covered this way,” Ongoiba told The Star as quoted by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA) as reporting, Monday.

As the executive director of Toronto-based Africans in Partnership Against Aids, Ongoiba has spent the last two decades educates Muslims in the city and her home country of Mali about the importance of protection from sexually transmitted diseases.

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“It doesn’t mean, you pray five times a day, that you cannot catch HIV,” Ongoiba said.

That message has been met with resistance — at an international conference, one sheik called her a “troublemaker,” a label she embraced.

“I said, ‘Yes, I’d prefer to be a troublemaker to wake you up,’ ” Ongoiba said.

But her efforts have also earned her recognition, and on Sunday Ongoiba was honoured by the Canadian Council of Muslim Women.

Ongoiba according, now can seeing the reduction of the infection rate in our community. His organization have developed a lot of services.

“We have done work with Toronto imams. And we train people living with HIV/AIDS to share their experiences. That changes a lot in the community, to educate people in terms of HIV transmission and infection, and to reduce the stigma in the community.”

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Ongoiba said that in Muslim communities at the beginning, it was the same thing as Christian communities.

“People in general in Muslim communities, they have been raised and educated as “You don’t need to have sex until marriage.” But today’s generation is not like previous generations,” Ongoiba said, the fight to reduce spread of HIV in Canadian and Africa society.

In Toronto, Ongoiba approach the imams at the mosques where I go all the time to pray. She get close to the imam, and then explain the work I do in the community.

“In Mali, it was difficult. They do not want to talk about it because it was taboo,” her added.

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Five other Muslim women were celebrated Sunday with Women Who Inspire awards: Erum Noreen Afsar, who works to promote the equality of Muslim women in Canadian society; Mumtaz Ebrahim, an advocate for learning and literacy; Jamelie Hassan, an internationally recognized visual artist; Almas Jiwani, a humanitarian who pushes for gender equality; and Fatima Sajan, a social justice activist and educator. (T/P09/E1).

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA).