The President of the National Red Cross Association in Romania, Mihaela Geoana, explained that the purpose of this campaign is mainly to inform the youth on the manner in which AIDS is transmitted, and then to fight against the discrimination faced by AIDS patients.
The Red Cross volunteers are handing out condoms as well as fliers that read “The truth about AIDS! Pass it on.” The flier lists 12 cases in which one cannot be contaminated with AIDS: at school, on the playground, in conversations, working in the same office, being a friend, shaking a hand, hugging, eating together, swimming in the pool, using the same glass, through sneezing and by using the same toilet.
The surest way to prevent AIDS infection is to know the truth about this illness, the Red Cross president added.
On a world level, there are 33.2 million people registered with AIDS, with more than 420,000 children infected in 2007. Each week brings tens of thousands of new AIDS cases.
In Romania there are some 11,000 AIDS patients, 8,000 of which are young people.