Jensen Kipton, Gaie Joseph Br
a Morehouse College , Department of Philosophy and Religion , 830 Westview Drive SW , Atlanta , Georgia , 30314 , United States.
Afr J AIDS Res. 2010 Sep;9(3):297-305. doi: 10.2989/16085906.2010.530187.
This article explores the possible relevance of African communalism to HIV/AIDS policies in Botswana and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa. We examine various interpretations of African communalism, which many consider to be the cardinal insight of African thought. We suggest several applications of this indigenous notion of personhood to HIV prevention in general and to routine HIV-testing policies in particular. This analysis demonstrates some of the ethical dilemmas and cultural complexities inherent in designing as well as implementing effective HIV-prevention programmes that strike a conscientious balance between protecting individual freedoms and securing public health. Recovering past traditions (such as African conceptions of personal identity) is valuable not only for the purpose of self-identification but also for helping us meet the challenges and problems of today in Africa. We also suggest that the human-rights-based approach to HIV prevention, which strives to protect individuals, is possibly incompatible with the socio-ethical ideals espoused by African communalism. We conclude that public health programmes in Botswana and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa would be more effective if those who designed and implemented them possessed a better understanding of indigenous conceptions of personhood or human agency as well as existing ethno-medical beliefs and cultural practices.
本文探讨了非洲社群主义与博茨瓦纳及撒哈拉以南非洲其他地区的艾滋病毒/艾滋病政策之间可能存在的关联。我们审视了对非洲社群主义的各种解读，许多人认为这是非洲思想的核心见解。我们提出了这一关于人格的本土观念在总体上对艾滋病毒预防，尤其是对常规艾滋病毒检测政策的若干应用。这一分析揭示了在设计和实施有效的艾滋病毒预防方案时所固有的一些伦理困境和文化复杂性，这些方案要在保护个人自由和保障公众健康之间达成审慎的平衡。重拾过去的传统（如非洲对个人身份的观念）不仅对自我认同有价值，也有助于我们应对当今非洲面临的挑战和问题。我们还认为，旨在保护个人的基于人权的艾滋病毒预防方法可能与非洲社群主义所支持的社会伦理理想不相容。我们得出结论，如果设计和实施博茨瓦纳及撒哈拉以南非洲其他地区公共卫生项目的人员能更好地理解关于人格或人类能动性的本土观念以及现有的民族医学信仰和文化习俗，这些项目将会更有效。
