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Catherine Arurnanay-agam started the NGO, Wanita Dan Kcshihatan Kuala Lumpur (WAKE, Women and Health Association of Kuala Lumpur), in 2001 to provide shelter to sex workers with HIV/AIDS. "At that time there wasn't anyone providing assistance or shelter to sex workers with HIV/AIDS. These women were on the streets, too ill to work and with no family to take care of them," recalls Arumanayagarn, 61.
Arumanayagam first took the women to a government-run hospital where they started getting regular treatment. She then brought them to the WAKE shelter. "I was taking women to the hospital almost daily. Many were hesitant to see a doctor, as they didn't have any money. They also didn't trust anyone. But I took them to doctors who were compassionate, who truly wanted to help. And eventually these doctors started calling me whenever they came across a sex worker who was HIV+ and homeless."
Arumanayagam says the early days were hard, as WAKE had no funds. Her drop-in centre-cum-office had only two old desks and a few chairs. At the shelter, she relied on volunteers for help, as she didn't have money to hire professional caregivers. "We mainly relied on public donations." But Arurnanayagam didn't lose her motivation; and today WAKE reaches out to several persons with HIV/AIDS.
Arumanayagam's foray into social work began when she was in school. As a high school student, she taught slum children to read and write. "However, I soon realised that the poor desperately needed money for food and other things. So, right after leaving school, I joined a church, as I knew they could provide financial aid. But the poor were expected to come to church to collect their rations and donations. I felt by operating like this, we were not really addressing their problems. So I started visiting their homes and discussing solutions to their problems.
Eventually, Arurnanayagam left the church and got a job at the postal department. She wanted to earn money so that she could help the poor herself. When she hit 45, she opted for early retirement and joined a local NGO working with migrant workers.
Arumanayagarn says people often ask her how she stays so cheerful despite dealing with people who are dying or are living in fear of death. "I have a simple answer. I know I am doing something within my power to help homeless women and children with HIV. I am trying to provide abettor life for them. I truly want people to be happy and I want their basic needs to be met."
Arurnanayagam says homeless people with AIDS deserve a decent funeral. "They shouldn't die wondering whether they would get a decent burial." And this is one of the first things WAKE looked into: arranging for a decent burial for sex workers and children who died due to AIDS.
Since 2001, Arumanayagam has set up three shelters for HIV/AIDS affected sex workers, children and transgendered persons.
Arumanayagam admits that her cause doesn't really attract much public sympathy. "Although people are concerned about the issue of HIV/AIDS, they are not willing to help sex workers." While WAKE got a lot of for the children's shelter, very few wanted to support transgendered women with HIV.
"Transgendered people are status-less. I decided to help them after I noticed their misery during my rounds of Kuala Lumpur's red light areas. Many were HIV+ but their families didn't want them."
Although the WAKE office now has more furniture, Arumanayagam is particular about who joins her staff. "I hire out-of-work transgendered women, as I fear they would land up on the streets eventually if someone doesn't give them a job."
In three years, most of WAKE's funding has come from ordinary Malaysians who support the cause. "There is a man who has been sending a little less that US $2 every month since 2001. He says this is all he can spare and I believe him. It amazes me that this person cares so much that lie never fails to send me that amount through the post. To me, it's not the money that matters but the fact that be is capable of such kindness and consideration."
She adds, "Then there is another contributor who sends US $15 every month. He says his contribution is in memory of his late parents who were very decent people. There is another donor who sends US $250 regularly. It's people like these who keep WAKE afloat."
Regular funding has helped Arumanayagam manage the shelters more professionally. "At the children's home, we have counsellors and teachers on our staff, as we have a lot of children who need exclusive attention."
Looking after children with HIV is a challenging task. Most of these children have been abandoned by then, parents in the hospital. Many may not reach adulthood. "I tell the caregivers to be compassionate, to show love and understanding. Our youngest patient is just nine months old. It would be difficult not to love this child, knowing that her life will be a short one," says Arumanayalgam.
As the children now get regular treatment, their health has improved. WAKE is now also planning, to send sortie of them to school. From an organisation that spent a lot of its time planning funerals for the women and children who died of AIDS, WAKE now devotes a lot of energy planning for educational opportunities for children.
— News Network
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