LETTERS

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 10, Issue 476, 9 March 1993, Page 4

LETTERS

"There's a hole..." • There's a rather tedious song that goes something like this - "There's a hole in my bucket dear Liza, dear Liza; there's a hole in my bucket dear Liza - a hole." "Well mend it dear Gordie, dear Gordie, dear Gordie, well mend it dear Gordie - mend it!" Well, after a big long rigmarole between the pair of them, there's still a hole in the bucket. It reminds me of the Ohakune swimming baths. In 1991 many people gave generously so that the baths could be heated for the children. The Ruapehu District Council was good and paid $500 for minor repairs to the baths and for heating so that ..from the money collected it was necessary to pay only $291 to an electrician. Came 1992 and there was a bad leak in the baths making it out of the question to heat them. Came 1993 and there was still a bad leak in the

baths. Admittedly the toddlers' pool has been fixed and heated but it is over-run with big children which is intimidating to the little ones. I went along to the Ohakune office of the RDC and complained. I was told I should have made a written submission and to do so now. I thought, "This is funny. We've never had to 'submit' before," but anyway I did and was gratified to see the resealing of the baths had been given a high priority on the RDC wish list. But it won't be done this season! When? "I'll make a note of it," said the mayor. "We start fixing them in July," said a lesser voice. Meanwhile, there's a hole in our baths dear Garrick and Cliff!

June Bates,

Ohakune.

Misses Raetihi? • I thought the Judges decision was final on who won Miss Raetihi, so why is it that there is still a lot of

judging going on? What really bugs me is why do we have two entering the Miss Taupo competition? Isn't Miss Raetihi good enough because it sure looks that way. I believe the organisers footed the bill for entering Miss Runner-up ($200), shows you how much faith they have in Miss Raetihi. Good for her if Miss Runner-up is entering but why at Miss Raetihi's expense? I mean no harm to Miss Runner-up, but all I can say is good luck to you in the next Miss Raetihi competition but this year belongs to Trudi, Miss Raetihi. Go for it Trudi.

One Crown

Prayer against crime • Have you considered prayer? We believe in the God who answers when we pray and we are praying to the end that He will move in the Ruapehu area to bring real turning from sin. My wife, family and I came to Ohakune a little over a year ago. During that time we have observed petty pilfering,

robbery in homes and chalets of personal effects and valuable possessions, smashed shop fronts, a fire bombed house and vehicles being stolen along with violence related to alcohol and drug abuse. In the name of Jesus, we of the Ruapehu Apostolic Outreach Centre say "enough!" for the arm of the police shall be strengthened! There shall be an exposure of those involved and goods found and returned, and the people of the Ruapehu will know release from the oppression of these activities! We are rising up in prayer and asking God to move powerfully here to bring a change in this area so that the town is restored to being a pleasant place to live. We support the actions of the police and the recent comments of mayor Garrick Workman. We really feel for those who are experiencing the pain and anxiety of this situation. Where you believe that we can be of practical help please give me a call on 3858-121.

John

Mason

Portraits • The New Zealand Portrait Gallery, in collaboration with the Alexander Turnbull Library, is making a register of portraits of New Zealanders and would welcome applications for the form to be filled in by people who own or are happy to record details about portraits. These can be in any media. They can be paintings, drawings, sculpture or photographs provided they are of artistic merit or are characteristic representations of people of significance to the community. This register will be of archival use. As far as we know no other country in the world has attempted to make such a list. Please write to: The Secretary, The New Zealand Portrait Gallery, Te Pukenga Whakaata, 18 Marsden Avenue, Wellington 5.

Maribeth S

Coleman,

Researcher. Taihape trip • Through your newspaper we would like the community of Ohakune to know that the Form One and Two pupils of Taihape Primary School are coming to Ohakune on Wednesday 10 March. We are studying small communities and we would like to compare Ohakune with Taihape. This will lead us to learn more about Ohakune, about ourselves and Taihape.

Rebecca

Collerton

Aids truths • It is clear from correspondence appearing in newspapers and being received by myself and parliamentary colleagues that an HIV/Aids misinformation campaign is under-way. Instead of repeating these falsehoods, let me list some basic HIV/Aids facts, as accepted by the international medical community and governments world-wide and borne out by 11 years' intensive research including much conducted in

New Zealand. I am grateful for the chair of the Government's Medical and Scientific Sub-com-mittee on Aids for this summary: • There is no evidence to show that HIV (the virus that causes Aids) is transmitted through kissing, spitting, food handling, sharing cups and utensils, sharing other facilities such as bathrooms, toilets, swimming pools, telephones etc. • The best way to avoid HIV is to stick with one long-term sexual partner, or avoid penetrative sex. Failing that, sex can be made safer by using a condom and wa-ter-based lubricant. • HIV is spread through unprotected penetrative sex or sharing dirty injecting equipment. HIV cannot pass through an intact latex condom. While condoms can break through inexperienced use, the probability of transmitting infection present in an active partner during a single unprotected sexual act is reported by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to be between 1.0 and 0.1 percent. • Blood products used in New Zealand for transfusions etc are safe from HIV. • After 10 years of the epidemic and millions of procedures on patients by health care workers with

HIV/Aids, there is still only one documented case in the world of a worker (a Florida dentist) transmitting the virus to patients. Completed and on-going active studies of patients of infected workers have revealed no infection. Last year's annual meeting of the* World Health Assembly (parent body of WHO) adopted a six-point Global Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Aids. Two of the strategy's points are: • The creation of a more supportive social environment for Aids prevention through the removal of legal and other barriers to frank messages about sexual transmission and to people 's ability to act on such information. • Greater focus on communicating effectively the compelling public health rationale for overcoming stigmatisation and discrimination. The National Council on Aids, appointed by the Minister of Health, subscribes to this strategy and, as the Associate Minister of Health with responsibility for Aids, I have no hesitation in supporting implementation of it$ principles in New Zealand. While New Zealanders at risk from HIV/Aids Turn to page 13

Letter From page 4 refuse to come forward for I testing for fear of dis- ] crimination, or even deny to themselves they are at risk through fear of discrimination, and while people with HIV/Aids are discriminated against in everyday life, then we will not contain the epidemic's social and economic toll on our country. It is primarily for this reason that I propose to extend Human Rights protection to include 'sexual orientation (being heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual)' and expand the definition of disability to include 'presence of organisms in the body capable of causing illness'. Meanwhile, those perpetuating the spread of HIV/Aids mis-informa-tion appear to be doing so to win support for their opposition to expanding human rights protection to include those grounds which I propose. I respect these opponents* right to disagree and to attempt to explain the basis for their objection. However, I do not respect their mis-represen-tations of medical scientific fact. They threaten the further success of New Zealand's HIV/Aids prevention programmes by spreading confusion and fermenting baseless fear of people with HIV/Aids and those belonging to groups most affected by it. They demonstrate just one reason why my human rights amendment is so necessary.

Katherine O'Regan Associate Minister of Health