Briefly-- Dying in Silence gives an unblinking view of the disaster that is befalling not only Malawi, but many countries in Africa.
The facts behind the rapid spread of the epidemic have to do with the country's failure to take the epidemic seriously. In Malawi, President Banda was unwilling to talk about a sexually transmitted disease. By the time the true dimensions of the epidemic were realized, the disease was out of control.
We learn about aspects of Malawian culture that helped in the spread the disease. Certainly poverty is a critical element, along with the low status of women.
The film profiles some HIV positive organizations and individuals who are working to fight the spread of AIDS and to help the victims. We meet Catherine Phiri and Geoff Mhone, and see their work.
The Vice President of Malawi and the Director of Doctors Without Borders in Malawi are interviewed and their comments on different aspects of the epidemic are seen throughout the film.
The following is a proposal that was written as the film was being edited--
As a Peace Corps volunteer in Malawi, in 1969 and 1970, I fell in love with the Malawian people and their gentle culture. I recently returned with a camera to find old friends and to see how AIDS was affecting the country.
I was horrified by what I found. According to statistics generated by testing pregnant mothers in hospitals, one in two sexually active adults in Malawi are HIV positive.
People are dying of AIDS at an alarming rate, yet hardly anyone talks about it. Many people attend funerals on a weekly basis, yet no one wants to admit that they may carry the disease Though attitudes are slowly changing, those with AIDS in Malawi are shunned by family and friends. Those who suspect they have the disease maintain a "culture of silence."
Dying in Silence introduces us to a number of people in Malawi who show different aspects of the problem. We also meet two HIV positive activists. These people are profiled in the PEOPLE section of this web site.
I made a second trip to Malawi six months later. The changes were frightening. Unusual weather patterns had caused much of the maize crop to fail in many areas. The resulting starvation lowers already weakened immune systems and causes a great deal of illness. If one has AIDS, it just makes everything worse.
A search for Youth Ambassadors found that they had lost funding and had been dissolved. No one knew the exact reason, but I was told it had something to do with internal politics in UNICEF.
I visited SASO and found Catherine Phiri missing. She had been very sick, but none the less she struggled and made it to a ceremony put on by Glaxo-SmithKline, the giant drug company. Glaxo was passing out hats and T-shirts and looking into the possibility of helping out with the home care program, a promise they have since kept with a small grant.
DYING IN SILENCE shows not only the nature of the AIDS disaster, but introduces us to the people who are dedicating their lives to fight it. By looking closely at Malawi, we see the larger picture of why AIDS is so devastating in Africa.