Larry Towell visited Swaziland and South Africa, the region of the world hardest hit by HIV/AIDS. Swaziland has the highest rate of HIV infection in the world, with one in every four adults infected (one in every three women). A large part of the Swazi population works in South Africa, fueling the epidemic. An estimated 110,000 children have lost parents to AIDS. HIV/AIDS is impacting every aspect of life in Swaziland, though stigma and taboos are still powerful deterrents to preventing and testing for HIV.

Tobha Nzima, 35, lives on a farming homestead near Mbabane, Swaziland's capital, and works as a domestic helper. Tobha lost two previous long-term partners to AIDS. It was only when her 8-year-old son died that Tobha was tested for HIV. Because several family members are on treatment, Tobha had confidence it would work. "Even if you are found with the disease, you will live, life will still go on." Her 16-year-old daughter, Nokwanda, is also on treatment. Her 5-year-old son, Ndududzo, is HIV-negative.


Siphiwe Tfumbatsi, 35, and Themba Matabela, 38, a gardener, live outside of Mbabane. Siphiwe learned she was HIV-positive when their 2-year-old, Tenele, was diagnosed as an infant. Tenele started treatment when she was 1, and Khaya, 4, began during Larry Towell's first visit. "Since they got that treatment," Themba says, "we didn't go to hospital. Neither of them has been sick." Siphiwe began treatment a few months earlier while pregnant, to reduce the risk of transmission to her baby. The baby girl was born in January 2008 and has so far tested negative for HIV.


Zweli Sihlongonyane, 18, is single and unemployed. He lives with his mother, sister, and three brothers in a two-room house on the family homestead an hour outside of the capital. Zweli was reluctant to test for HIV, and when he finally did, he resisted starting treatment until his peer support group convinced him that it would help treat a skin cancer commonly associated with HIV from which he is suffering. Zweli’s health has improved and he feels strong enough now to work, but neither he nor his brother can find a job.