JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AP) - A 36-year-old woman was
beaten to death after disclosing she was HIV positive, a
newspaper has reported. Gugu Dlamini was beaten last Saturday
in KwaMancinza, a town in eastern KwaZulu-Natal province, where
an estimated 20 to 30 percent of the population has HIV or
AIDS. She died of her injuries in the hospital, The Star
reported Wednesday.
Dlamini had publicly disclosed her HIV status at an AIDS
awareness gathering. Details on when the gathering took place
were not immediately available, and it was unclear if the
murder was directly linked to her disclosure.
However, some officials saw a link.
"It could be one of our most devastating setbacks in our fight
against AIDS if it prevents people from going out and telling
their partners their status and advising others on how to live
with the disease," Health Department spokesman Dave McGlew was
quoted as saying in the Johannesburg newspaper.
Dlamini is survived by a 13-year-old daughter.
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