ABSTRACT
This chapter explores a theory of denial that incorporates all government action since the South African Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) cases were publicised in 1982. South Africa certainly is not the only country to have responded to AIDS with denial. Cohen's typology differentiates amongst some broad variants of official denial. Government denial can have serious implications for a country, many of which are ultimately detrimental to the government itself. For one, it is a formidable obstruction to both the effective response to the AIDS epidemic as well as development overall. The long-wave nature of HIV and AIDS makes it virtually impossible to single out one particular government and hold it solely accountable for the severity and scale of the South African epidemic. HIV and AIDS are particularly likely to foster denial. The disease forces the disclosure of sexual behaviour and is an unwelcome intruder into the private sphere.
