Bency, symbol of fight against Aids, dead

Thiruvananthapuram: An HIV-positive girl from Kollam in south Kerala, who had been in media arc lights along with her brother, also HIV-positive, passed away here on Thursday.

The end came for 15-year-old Bency at the Sree Avittam Tirunal Hospital here, where she had been admitted a few days ago, and was being treated for encephalitis.

She leaves behind her brother Benson who will now remain the lone face among the siblings, as the living symbol of their fight for the cause of Aids patients in Kerala.

The duo's plight caught media attention after their parents, both infected with the HIV virus, passed away years ago, leaving the children HIV-infected. Their father died in 1997 and their mother passed away three years later.

The children then became the face of all Aids patients in the state's fighting for their rights, when they had to face different levels of discrimination including being denied the chance to continue attending school. School authorities said they were forced to sack the two from school because of protests by parents of other students.

Benson and Bency, who hailed from Kottiyam in Kollam district were helped by some human rights organisations and non-governmental agencies. The state government also stepped in to help the children, arranging for them to study at a government school near their home.

Bency had passed the class IX examinations recently.