Boy Kunkun with HIV embraces new life

An 8-year-old boy with HIV who was asked to leave his village in Sichuan province by residents last year has started a new life at a school for children with the condition.

In the outskirts of Linfen, northwest China's Shanxi province, there is a school called "Red Ribbon", which only enrolls children with HIV or AIDS. So far more than 30 children study and live there.

Kunkun (pseudonym) is nine years old this year. He came to study in the "Red Ribbon" school this March. He has been integrated into this warm family for more than eight months.

At the end of 2014 the boy aged just eight was about to be banished from a village in southwest China's Sichuan province because he was found HIV-positive. The youngster's own grandfather was among 200 people in the community who signed a petition to expel the child to “protect villagers' health”. The story of Kunkun caused widespread social concern.

China's health authority has pledged to assure Kunkun the right to medical treatment, a living allowance and a school education.

When he first arrived at the "Red Ribbon" school, Kunkun was very quiet and used to sit alone in the corner. Kunkun's math teacher He Yanji said that at first Kunkun solved conflicts with other classmates through biting and scratching. Others got hostile when he had a little conflict with classmates and teachers. Now Kunkun is a clever boy who has made progress in getting along with his peers, teachers and staff members of the school.

In addition to attending class, Kunkun receives treatment for his condition from a school nurse. And the school also provides Kunkun with his favorite food to help him adjust to the new environment as quick as possible.