THE quest to bring together Zambian parliamentarians and journalists to speak with one voice on effective media-tailored messages is bearing fruit.

Five years ago, the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and the Southern Africa Development Community Parliamentary forum (SADC-PF) discovered that parliamentarians were not doing much to address the scourge in their constituencies.

NDI and SADC-PF published a Survey of Legislative Efforts to Combat HIV/AIDS, which concluded: "Parliamentarians are not taking full advantage of their constitutionally mandated powers to address the HIV/AIDS crisis."

Building on the lessons learned from the pilot initiatives, NDI launched a programme in Zambia in 2007 to assist parliamentarians to use their positions of influence to disseminate messages on HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support.

The emphasis on media was chosen based on a finding in the 2004 research that stigma, misinformation and denial were key impediments to tackling the HIV epidemic in Zambia, and a recognition that media plays a critical role to combat these impediments.

Recently, at Parliament Buildings, the parliamentarians and the media walked the talk by coming up with effective strategies to disseminate informed messages about the epidemic.

Members of Parliament (MPs) recognised that by developing a well-informed media strategy and messages on HIV/AIDS, the media could assist parliamentarians to play a proactive role in HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support.

The team identified 16 key drivers of the Zambian HIV epidemic, which included multiple concurrent, transactional, work and intergenerational sex, alcohol, poverty, political, low male circumcision, low status of women among others.

Parliamentarians and the media agreed in principle to halt a ceasefire among themselves following complaints that the media liked sensational stories about MPs.

However, the two resolved to bury their differences and pledged to work together.

Visiting NDI representative Brionne Dawson urged the lawmakers and journalists to champion the fight against the scourge in the community.

Ms Dawson said the lawmakers and journalists were in a better position to use their influence to champion the fight against HIV and AIDS in society.

Ms Dawson explained that lawmakers and journalists were key partners in the fight against any scourge and should work together to give hope to society.

"As Parliamentarians, enhance your visibility to address the HIV pandemic using media outlets by cultivating a network of legislative: "Champions on HIV/AIDS and disseminate timely, relevant and interesting media campaigns," she said.

Mwinilunga East MP Stephen Katuka and his Chongwe counterpart Sylvia Masebo who were some of the participants said alcohol and drug abuse were drivers of the epidemic.

The two MPs were assigned to work with this author to assess the impact of alcohol on the fight against the disease while others looked at other key HIV drivers.

Mr Katuka and the reporter conducted an on-the-spot check of selected beer houses within Lusaka and found a lot of juveniles indulging in beer drinking while patronising bars in indecent attires.

The MP and the author who visited incognito the beer houses found mostly youths aged between 18-25, patronising the bars and night clubs.

Most girls were found around 20:00 hours, drinking beer while dressed in mini-skirts.

After the tour, the MP called on the Lusaka City Council (LCC) to enforce a ban on the underage not to have access to drinking places and ensure the bar owners had a regulated time to open and close the same premises as opposed to many bars opening around 06:00 hours and closing around 24:00 hours.

Mr Katuka cautioned the Government over the reduction of taxes on alcohol saying the move was contributing to many youths resorting to drinking because beer had become cheaper making them prone to the epidemic.

He pledged to engage the traditional leaders in his constituency in the fight against the epidemic saying chiefs had influence on their subjects like parliamentarians.

He proposed that each constituency should have recreation facilities like playing parks and sports facilities as opposed to having more bars.

The same observation was made in Chongwe when Ms Masebo toured the area where a number of visited groups who included people living with HIV said alcohol abuse and truck drivers contributed to the spread of the disease.

It was discovered that the district had 13,215 people infected with HIV.

The high prevalence rate had increased the number of orphans in the district with child, female and grandparent headed homes becoming a common feature.

Ms Masebo said her constituency was not spared by the epidemic and was saddened to learn that youths lined up for sex with truck drivers in exchange for food.

She observed that Chongwe, situated 45 kilometres east of Lusaka, was a transit route to Malawi hence, posing a challenge to the fight against the disease because truck drivers always made a stop over in the district.

"It is useless to tell the truck drivers to park their trucks away from the main road because our children will still follow these drivers.

"As parliamentarians we need to start talking about the danger of sex if we have to fight the disease effectively," she said.

She said as the area MP, she would help use her influence to bring about change and was happy to hear that recently after she took a voluntary HIV test, many residents came up and visited the local clinic for help.

Ms Masebo also visited the marketeers whom she warned against indulging in extra-marital affairs saying the practice was against God's marriage principles which demand the couples to be faithful to each other.

She urged those who could not refrain from sex to use condoms but was quick to warn that the law would take its course on those who willfully infected others.

Many marketeers and those living with the virus said they were aware about the danger of the epidemic and called on the area MP to ensure parliamentarians passed a law to deter those who normally go on rampage infecting others without caring.

In response, Ms Masebo called on the media to continue writing stories about the dangers of the virus in her area and other parts of the country.

She said the media and parliamentarians were all fighting for the betterment of the community hence; it was prudent the two worked together.

She was in agreement with those calling for law to punish those who deliberately infect others and urged parents to start teaching their children about the dangers of the disease.

The MPs and the journalists had walked the talk at least, but whether this partnership in the fight against the scourge will last long, is what the electorates are waiting to see.