CHINA> National
Premier Wen visits AIDS patients, workers
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-11-30 19:37

 Door-to-door Visit

Upon his arrival in Yingzhou District, Fuyang City of Anhui on Saturday afternoon, Wen went to the home of Huang Jinhong, a high schoolgirl whose parents died of AIDS. Huang and her sister and brother were invited by Wen to the Zhongnanhai, the Chinese leadership's Beijing compound, two years ago when the premier chatted with them and inquired about their needs.

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With a red ribbon on his bosom, Wen embraced the three children and inquired about their study and life. He was very glad to see the children, together with their grandmother in her 80s, had obtained living subsidies for families struck by the disease.

By giving each of them a set of dictionary and a schoolbag, Wen encouraged them to study hard and lead a meaningful life.

Fuyang's Yingzhou District has a high HIV/AIDS prevalence. The documentary "The Blood of Yingzhou District" by Ruby Yang and Thomas Lennon, which won the 2006 Oscar for Best Documentary Short Subject, told stories of children orphaned by AIDS in a poor village of Yingzhou.

Later, Wen went to the Dahu Village of the Funan County where HIV carriers were in a large number. Villagers with HIV burst into tears when the premier shake hands and talk freely with their fellows.

Wen became silent when he found a seven-year-old girl Xiao Xue was a HIV carrier. He let the girl sit beside her and encouraged her to have faith in life.

He asked about the implementation of national AIDS prevention and control policies in the village and praised the local efforts that the "four frees and one care" policy were implemented well since 2004.

The policy included providing free anti-viral drugs and treatment to poor patients, free counseling and antibody pre-screening services, free counseling and maternal tests for pregnant women and free tuition fees for children orphaned by AIDS. The local government also offered living subsidies to AIDS patients and orphans.

"If I had not taken the medication, I would not stand here today and might have died many years ago," a middle-aged woman told the premier.

"Where there is life there is hope. We are all concerned about you. Your priority is to receive the treatment and take the medication," Wen said. Turning to the officials, he said various levels of Party committees and departments should offer more aid to AIDS patients.

The premier nodded his head after learning that local food sales, farmers working in cities as casual labors and children's schooling were not affected by discrimination against the disease.

"AIDS patients and orphans were often considered as an underprivileged group. We should let them get their basic life allowances and form a social trend of caring AIDS patients through education," Wen said.