BOTSWANA: TEARS ON THE JEWEL
September 2001 – 10’51’’
0:00 OPENING MUSIC SEQUENCE UPSOUND
0:30 A cause for celebration; the survival of a baby.
But for some of the guests here, survival has become an everyday challenge.
0:37 This young woman, Kesego, supports a family of five who depend on her monthly pay check. But this income is not secure.
UPSOUND
0:47 And neither is her future - Kesego is HIV positive.
0:52 KESEGO BASHA, Person living with HIV (underlaid for one second)
“I blame myself, I was frustrated, shocked, I was denying myself, stigmatizing, all of those things. So later I accepted myself.”
01:01 MUSIC
01:05 This was a country with such high hopes.
Botswana is the richest non-oil producing country in Africa.
The discovery of diamonds, one year after independence, transformed this country of 1.7 million people.
Thirty years ago, Botswana had only 6 kilometers of paved road now it has 6000. Then it had 10 graduates, now it has 10,000
01:31 all paid for by diamonds.
Thanks to its stable government and a strong anti-corruption policy, the country economic growth rate has rivaled that of the Asian tigers.
01:43 UPSOUND
01:46 Botswana is now faced with a human; and economic -- disaster.
Of these young men, one in three is not likely to see his 30th birthday. With 38 per cent of the population HIV positive, Botswana has the highest recorded rate of AIDS in the world.
The government knows that tackling the disease head on, is the only way the country will avoid its greatest threat…
02:06 …seeing its workforce simply fade away.
02:11 With an economy relatively short of skilled labour, many whom are already ill, economists are worried.
02:19 SENNYE OBUSENG, Economist, United Nations Development Programme
“Productivity levels will suffer. Unless the Botswana economy gets more integrated into the world economy it is going to find it hard to compete. As our work force gets sick, and we see people not going to work in the numbers or as often as they ought to. We see people not concentrating sufficiently in their work, we see people who are well trained dying and so on. A lot of businesses are going to be worried.”
02:54 Here in Old Naledi, one of the poorest suburbs of the capital, Gabarone, as many as one in two people, including children, could be infected.
03:04 It is typical of how the disease has taken hold in urban areas, where most of the population lives.
The government is targeting these inhabitants with various AIDS awareness, prevention and treatment programmes.
03:21 It runs a continuous television, radio and billboard campaign, encourages people to be aware.
Free condoms are handed out around the city.
03:35 So the Government is making an effort but they know they have done too little too late.
03:41 UPSOUND MUSIC
03:47 These children have already been orphaned by AIDS; and some of them may be infected, too.
03:54 UPSOUND MUSIC
03:55 But most of the youngest ones will survive. The government has recently started a campaign that sees all HIV infected women put on anti-retroviral drugs, seven and a half months into their pregnancy.
Botswana has been successful in stopping the virus being passed onto its children.
04:13 With graveyards filling fast; the government realises that it must act to keep its workforce alive longer.
Before the end of the year 19 thousand of Botswana’s afflicted will be benefiting from one of Africa’s bravest campaigns.
To postpone the onset of the disease….
04:31 Botswana is introducing free anti retro viral drug therapy to its AIDS population.
04:31 Its not a cure, but makes the illness manageable.
04:41 For Kesego and her family, who are living with HIV, the arrival of free anti-retroviral therapy can not come too soon.
04:50 KESEGO BASHA, person living with AIDS
“We have lost our cousins, brothers and sisters throughout this country. And the problem they said they have something from the witchcraft. They say they were given poisons, so they are really stigmatising this disease. That is the main problem, so people they are dying. They don't accept themselves. Because once you have accepted yourself, everything is going to be OK.”
05:25 This is Botswana’s best hope for salvation - the open cast diamond mine in Jwaneng
05:35 One third of all of the worlds diamonds are mined in Botswana; and this earth is the world’s richest - yielding 12 million carats of the precious jewel each year.
05:45 The revenue from these mines account for two thirds of government income; and has funded most of the country’s rapid development.
05:52 Now, the government plans to use diamonds to keep its population alive.
06:06 Debswana, which runs this mine is already spending one and a half million dollars on an anti retroviral therapy programme for infected workers. Doctors here have learnt from their experience that the governments ambition will not be easy.
06:16 DOCTOR DAVID MARUMO, HIV expert
“First, there is a big thing about the stigma and confidentiality. Many people are not willing to come voluntarily for the test. So, that is the biggest challenge the government is going to have to overcome in order to ensure success in the programme. Number two is adherence to the therapy.”
06:44 But the glitter of these diamonds may not be for ever.
06:52 Just when the country most urgently needs them, the diamond market has gone into a tailspin.
06:58 These precious jewels are now linked with war. The UN’s ‘blood diamond’ campaign has highlighted several African countries that are paying for their conflicts with rough diamonds.
07:11 And Botswana fears, it’s diamonds too may become tainted;
07:15 threatening to rip the heart out of Botswana’s fragile future
07:22 UPSOUND
07:24 September’s terror attack in New York; and a US recession -- are likely to rock the diamond market further.
07:32 JACOB SESINYI, Debswana Diamond Company
“If anything happens to diamonds, if people are given the impression that diamonds contribute to war in Africa - its affecting 1.7 million people in this country. It would bring our health efforts to a standstill, it will bring our effort to fight AIDS to a standstill - because we need revenue from diamonds.”
07:53 Tourism, Botswana’s second highest earner, is also coming under pressure.
08:00 Land locked, with only the offer of exclusive wild life game parks, tourism here is tailored towards the wealthy few. Despite the governments plans to build more luxury lodges, already numbers are dwindling
08:16 Another casualty of America’s terror attacks.
08:20 Kesego, though, may be luckier.
She looks forward to the fruits of the government’s efforts. Having come out and declared her status publicly, Keseyo and others living with AIDS are encouraged by the Government’s promise.
08:39 KESEYO BASHA, person living with AIDS
“These drugs - we are really waiting for them. Because some people used to go to the private hospitals and even they were not working and they started doing this and this, and at the same time when the money is finished they break (stop the treatment) and become sick. So if it is from the government side it is OK.”
09:02 Treatment of AIDS is new in Africa and Botswana’s political stability, small population and lack of corruption has attracted international expertise and money.
09:15 DOCTOR DONALD De KORTE, ACHAP (joint venture between Gates foundation and Government)
“Doing nothing is probably much more expensive - because the prevalence rates are so high and, as the President said, the country risks to be threatened by extinction. So, according to our model the programme will cost 3,5 billion Pula over a five year period, which is about a half a billion dollars.”
09:40 That kind of money could be just around the corner.
09:46 Here in the Kalahari desert, a new natural resource was discovered in July. The find has been described as promising. It could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
09:57 Supplying not only the country’s entire energy demands, the discovery may also bring in massive export earning.
10:07 Botswana’s future may still lie in carbon, but instead of diamonds it is the methane gas stored in these coal deposits, that could offer Botswana’s best hope for the future.
10:17 And for those living with AIDS and HIV, its their only hope.
10:23 Without it …
10:27 KESEYO BASHA, person living with AIDS
“Eh, we are all going to disappear.”
10:32 UPSOUND
10:36 It may have come too late. But the government’s expensive gamble to secure the lives of its population is the only way that it can put the country’s future back in the hands of its people.
10:51 Ends
SHOWS:
Gabarone, Botswana, Sept 2001:
Coming out party for young boy showing Kesego, who is HIV positive, among guests;
SOT: Kesego Basha, Person living with AIDS;
Montage shots of capital, Gabarone;
Young boys playing football;
SOT: Sennye Obuseng, economist, United Nations Development Programme;
Residents of Old Naledi, a suburb of Gabarone;
Bill posters, free condoms;
Molepole, Botswana, Sept 2001:
Children singing at orphanage;
Fresh graves in graveyard in Molepolo;
Kesego and her family;
SOT: Kesego Basha, person living with AIDS.
Jwaneng, Botswana, Sept 2001
Jwaneng diamond mine, Botswana;
Exterior of Jwaneng mine hospital;
SOT: Dr David Marumo, HIV expert.
Gabarone, Botswana, Sept 2001:
Debswana Diamond sorting office;
Diamonds and diamond sorting;
Internet café with young Americans playing video games;
SOT: Jacob Sesinyi, Debswana
Mokolodi Game Reserve;
Kesego picking fruit;
SOT: Kesego Basha, person living with AIDS
Exterior AIDS testing centre
SOT: Dr Donald De Korte, ACHAP (joint venture Gates Foundation and Botswana Government)
Kalahari desert, Botswana, Sept 2001:
exploratory rig;
Testing of gas;
Coal deposits containing methane.
Gabarone, Botswana, Sept 2001:
SOT: Kesego Basha, person living with AIDS
Kesego and baby.