Public inquiry 

Catherine Campbell is reader in social psychology at the London School of Economics, and author of a study into HIV prevention in South Africa 

Interview by Raekha Prasad
Wednesday November 19, 2003
The Guardian 

What can Britain learn from South Africa about HIV/Aids prevention? 
That sexuality and our sexual behaviour is determined by economics, gender, inequality, the family and peer pressure - not by individual decision and rational choice. 
Why are sexually transmitted infections on the rise among young people in Britain? 
People take control of their health if they have control of other areas of their lives. Young people have been singled out as bad, and are marginalised, so are unlikely to regard their own bodies with respect. 
Why do people still take risks? 
It's always the victim that is blamed and expected to change, but, in South Africa, female sex workers have to choose between using a condom and feeding their families. 
What isn't being done that should? 
Enabling the target audience to participate in the design and implementation of prevention programmes. 
How do people respond when you tell them what you do? 
They ignore me. Most people with HIV are in poor countries, and I really don't think the rest of the world cares. 
What book are you reading? 
States of Denial: Knowing About Atrocities and Suffering, by Stanley Cohen. 
What do you dislike about Britain? 
I've lived here for 10 years and am very happy. There's an easiness; after living in South Africa, that's a privilege. But there's a parochialism where people believe first world ways of thinking and acting are the way everyone always is. 
To whom would you issue an antisocial behaviour order? 
George Bush, for peddling narrow-minded policies on reproductive health. 
· Catherine Campbell's book, Letting Them Die: Why HIV/Aids Prevention Programmes Fail, is published by James Currey Publishers, in association with the International African Institute
[http://www.guardian.co.uk/aids/story/0,7369,1087880,00.html]