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Zimbabwe places rape victims on ARV therapy
The Herald (Zimbabwe)
August 08, 2006

http://www1.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=7156&cat=1&livedate=8/08/2006

ZIMBABWE has conformed to global trends where rape victims are required to report the assault within 14 days and be immediately placed on anti-retroviral treatment to reduce their exposure to HIV infection, a senior health official has said.

Head of the HIV and Aids programme in the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare Dr Owen Mugurungi said most rape cases were not reported, a situation which exposed victims to HIV infection.

"If people report these things quickly we can avoid all this. We can cut down on new infections and save the day for these people, in most cases innocent children.

"We can help as there is a programme that deals specifically with these kinds of situations."

The programme, said Dr Mugurungi, works in more or less the same way as the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission where a mother has a drug administered just before delivery to minimise her chances of transmitting HIV to her unborn baby.

The baby is also given its own dosage of Nevirapine at birth to minimise its chances of getting infected with HIV.

"Post Exposure Propylaxis (PEP) works in more or less the same way as through it, survivors of rape access medical attention and drugs soon after the crime.

"What is needed right now is to raise awareness of PEP as it seems that most people are not aware of such a programme," Dr Mugurungi said.

As soon as rape is reported to the police, they link up with hospitals that have the capacity to administer PEP treatment.

The Family Support Trust Clinic at Harare Central Hospital is one such place where rape victims can have access to PEP treatment.

The Girl Child Network also has links with medical doctors who can administer PEP treatment to curb the spread of HIV.

There have been calls for the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare to make sure that PEP treatment is available at all health institutions around the country.

The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) has condemned the increase in cases of child sexual abuse in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe ranks among the top five countries in the world with a high prevalence of HIV/Aids.

Recently, a Ruya High School teacher in Mt Darwin raped his workmate's six-year-old daughter and infected her with HIV.

A newborn baby is suspected to have been raped barely a day after its birth in Seke, Chitungwiza, last month.

The barbaric assault on the infant is believed to have occurred after its teenage mother dumped it in a maize field in Savanhu Village just outside the town.

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