HOTLINE - week of December 04, 2006

As the world observed World AIDS Day on December 1, one of Indonesia's most vulnerable populations, street children, played soccer--and learned more about HIV/AIDS.

A collaboration of Church World Service, the Indonesian Ministry of Health, and the Global Fund, SCORE--Soccer 4 Children on Road 2 Empowerment--is a program for street children, designed to increase their knowledge of HIV and AIDS, using the game as an entry point.

Maurice Bloem, CWS Indonesia director, says that CWS and partners are "focusing on mobilizing, educating, and empowering this particularly vulnerable population--street children and their communities--to enable them to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS."

A CWS-sponsored AIDS Day soccer tournament in Jakarta, the capital, was just one of a series of AIDS Day awareness events CWS held aimed at children and women, along with art competitions, information sessions, and memorial ceremonies.

HIV/AIDS programs are also taking place in other areas in Indonesia--for example, on Kuta Beach, in Bali, where many local service workers become vulnerable to HIV infection through their work providing manicures, pedicures, and massage.

In February 2007, CWS-Indonesia will host with the World Food Program workshops on HIV and Nutrition; the SCORE youth soccer program; Internet advocacy; and interfaith work.

More on this story.

CWS, which has worked in Indonesia since the late 1960s, continues to assist Indonesia’s post-tsunami recovery, including livelihood assistance and home rebuilding.

To mark World AIDS Day, CWS partner, the Sudan Council of Churches (SCC) has organized three days of events in Nyala town, the capital of South Darfur state.

"World AIDS Day creates an opportunity to raise awareness," says Lokman Mohammed, acting HIV/AIDS coordinator at the SCC. "There is a great deal of ignorance about the disease."

The campaign focuses on young people, as they are very vulnerable to HIV. But the youth focus is not exclusive. SCC believes that each person in the community, including religious leaders, has a vital role to play in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

"Most people think that HIV/AIDS is not here in Darfur," explains Mohammed. "However, people have been coming from different places and gathering in certain areas." Studies have linked the spread of HIV to migration, both voluntary and conflict-induced.

This year's World AIDS Day campaign is part of SCC's larger effort to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS. During 2006, more than 1,200 young people in Nyala have attended HIV/AIDS workshops funded by SCC.

Though HIV/AIDS programs are happening in parts of Darfur, many other areas are suffering continued or escalating violence and displacements at the hands of militia groups. CWS coalition partner Action by Churches Together-Caritas is continuing to provide food, water, shelter materials, education, and other community services for displaced families.

More on CWS response in Sudan.

Some 140 young people per year on La Gonave Island are gaining education and vocational training, with the help of CWS and long-time partner Christian Service of Haiti. A local vocational school and the Nan Jozen Training Center used by youth and farmers and a pilot youth center are being equipped and repaired to serve the needs of the growing number of farmers´ sons and daughters who want to learn a trade while they attend middle school.

The youngsters are taking classes on leadership, the environment, reforestation, and other subjects to help improve their lives and the community.

The program is also helping 30 community leaders from La Gonave gain skills in ensuring community food security, protecting the environment, and disaster preparedness.

Your prayers and support - and your participation in CROP WALKS and the TOOLS & BLANKETS Program - make possible these and other life sustaining programs. For information on how to get involved, please call your Church World Service/CROP Regional Office toll-free at 1-888-CWS-CROP, that's 1-888-297-2767.

For information about free loan videos, please call 1-800-297-1516, ext. 338, or e-mail us at: videos@churchworldservice.org.

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