Abstract
South Africa has not escaped the rising prevalence and severe impact of HIV/AIDS in relation to women. From an economic and social vantage point, the HIV/AIDS epidemic effects women the hardest, with underprivileged black women the most susceptible to the virus. The theoretical framework of this paper focuses on the intersection between HIV/AIDS, gender inequality and gender violence, and more specifically on certain cultural practices and customs that contribute towards and exacerbate women’s subordination and inequality, which in turn increase women’s exposure to HIV infection. Relevant to this focus is inevitably an analysis of the perceived threats to specific fundamental human rights as a result of some of the entrenched practices that continue to reinforce women’s subordinate position in society, aggravated by the high incidence of gender violence.
 
Highlights
The HIV/AIDS pandemic has taken a grave toll on sub-Saharan-Africa, where AIDS is the prime cause of death[2] despite a range of prevention strategies
It has taken a heavy toll on sub-Saharan Africa, where the virus has devastating effects on the individuals and families touched by HIV/AIDS but is beginning to have much wider social, economic and political ramifications.[4]
The epidemic continues to have a disproportionate impact on women, with a number of premature deaths in South Africa being attributed to HIV/AIDS.[6]
Summary
The HIV/AIDS pandemic has taken a grave toll on sub-Saharan-Africa, where AIDS is the prime cause of death[2] despite a range of prevention strategies. The HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa is mainly regarded as a heterosexual type of epidemic.[10] An additional distinctive feature of the pattern of the epidemic is the young age of onset of the infection of women.[11] Young black women are disproportionably affected by the disease.[12] There is a strong link between factors such as low income, high unemployment, violence and poor education with HIV infection.[13] In all of these correlations women emerge as those who are the worst affected.[14] There are a number of pre-disposing factors, besides violence that put women at increased risk of becoming infected with HIV These include a range of biological, psychological, economic and cultural factors, which clearly show how complex the problem of women's increased exposure to HIV is. In order to contextualise these practices in the framework of a Western, liberal model, a brief examination of the right to culture is first necessary
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