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Heroism, sacrifice in one man's war against AIDS
28/12/2005 16:11

Tian Yi/Shanghai Daily news

Chung To chose a completely different life three years ago when, after 11 years, he quit his job on Wall Street.
The 37-year-old Hong Kong native became a full-time AIDS fighter going on long-distance bus rides from one village to another in rural China.
Back in his investment banker days in the 1990s, To got to visit the hinterland of the Chinese mainland quite often, thanks to the financing of projects such as power plants and super highways.
He heard that AIDS was spreading and saw how ignorant some people were about this lethal disease.
He was seriously worried - would China repeat the disaster the Untied States had experienced a decade before?
To lost his math teacher to AIDS when he was a high school student in San Francisco.
He and his friends set up the Chi Heng Foundation in Hong Kong in 1998. Chi Heng, which means applying wisdom to action in Chinese, is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting AIDS awareness and prevention.
To worked as a volunteer in Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, helping children affected by AIDS get back to school.
Turning point
The year 2002 was the turning point in To's life. It was then that he met with Dr Gao Yaojie, a renowned AIDS fighter who brought Henan Province's blood scandals to light.
Under Dr Gao's guidance, To visited several villages in one day. Four to six adults out of every 10 were infected with HIV.
The same bleak shanties, the same young and dying patients, the same lesions, diarrhea, fever, despair and suicides and the same lack of medication.
To felt strong compassion for these sufferers. He decided to do something for the villagers and their children.
After this heart-rending trip, To resigned his Wall Street job and began to work full-time at his foundation.
He focused his efforts on the AIDS orphans who typically suffered from psychological stress and couldn't afford basic education.
So far, more than 1,200 children have gone back to school because of Chi Heng's financial support.
The foundation continues its support for students who are admitted into senior high school and universities and helps others look for employment opportunities outside Henan province.
It is estimated that China has 100,000 children orphaned by AIDS, and many of them live in poverty.
To's efforts have saved nearly one eighth of them from illiteracy, desperation and, in some extreme cases, self-destruction.
This year the foundation is also overseeing treatment work among HIV-positive children in Henan Province in partnership with the Clinton Foundation.
By August, 84 children had passed the preliminary test and were ready for treatment.
In China, the number of children infected with HIV is 2,000, and 3.9 percent of them die before reaching the age of five.
Over the past few years, To has visited those villages in Henan once every two months.
The big picture
Shortly after his first trip, he began to suffer from insomnia and nightmares. It was like he had witnessed a car accident and he had to watch it again and again.
He continues his endeavors, however, because he knows he has made a meaningful contribution to China's war against AIDS.
Let's have a look at the overall picture of AIDS/HIV situation in China.
The country had a cumulative 135,630 cases of reported HIV infections by the end of September.
Experts estimate that the country has at least 840,000 HIV carriers, including 80,000 AIDS patients.
The five provinces and autonomous regions of Yunnan, Henan, Guangdong, Xinjiang and Guangxi reported more than 10,000 cases each, accounting for 77 percent of the country's total.
Official statistics reveal that 40.8 percent of the carriers became infected through intravenous drug use, while contaminated blood transfusions caused 23 percent and unprotected sex, 9 percent. Infections through unknown channels accounted for 23 percent.
More disturbing, the number of confirmed HIV cases in China has risen 30 percent every year since the first reported HIV case in 1985.
The infection rate among prostitutes in particular rose from 2 in 10,000 in 1996 to 93 in 10,000 in 2004.
Experts say that unless effective measures are adopted quickly, a lot more people will have acquired HIV by the end of this decade.
Top officials have warned that the disease is spreading from high-risk groups to ordinary people and that China is in a critical period for AIDS prevention.
Minister of Health Gao Qiang has pledged to keep the number of people infected with AIDS in the country below 1.5 million through 2010.
As part of the efforts, the government will allocate 800 million yuan (US$99 million) for AIDS prevention and treatment work in 2005, up from just 100 million yuan in 2002.