Street mural’s message from HIV campaigners

THIS striking image is the latest piece of street art to be unveiled in Cardiff.

Mercy Shibemba, inset, and Marlon Van Der Mark, inset below, both have HIV. They hope the mural will help raise awareness about HIV/Aids and encourage people to get tested.

Painted on a wall on the e corner of James Street and Adelaide Street, the painting was created by street artist Bradley y Rmer. Mercy and Marlon n hope it will help counter misunderstanding in the run-up to World Aids Day on December 1.

Mercy, 23, who grew up in the capital, learned as a teenager that she had been n born with HIV. She has spooken about HIV and her experii ence at international conferences and events across the world.

Diagnosed when he was 20, Marlon has admitted he had “no clue” about HIV and was left in shock.

He went public about his diagnosis nosi after watching television drama dra It’s a Sin.

The Russell T Davies series, se which follows a group g of friends in London during d the HIV/AIDS epidemic d in the 1980s, helped inform inf Marlon and now he wants wan to help others. Mercy Mer said there is still a lot of misunderstanding and ignorance about the condition but treatmen ment and knowledge about HIV/Aids HI have changed dramatically d since the dark days d of the 1980s. Treatment now prolongs life li expectancy and reduces risk of transmission. Now N working for Penta Child Health Research, she recently l returned to her home city to work on an HIV arts project at Cardiff West High with Welsh National Opera.

“There is a lot of work to do on HIV awareness,” she said.