I am writing in regards to the recent talks about starting rehabilitation centres for the LGBT community.

It is disheartening to see how the government is playing ‘pin social issues/problems on the LGBT community'.

This is not the first time we hear the government and ‘doctors' saying that being LGBT will bring rise to drug abuse, prostitution and HIV.

There is just too much misinformation being fed to sit back and not say anything about it.

For starters the government did a good job in making it look like every LGBT person has a marijuana garden in their backyard.

If the primary concern here is really drug abuse then maybe the government should look into curbing drug trafficking instead of trying to rehabilitate harmless people out of their sexual orientation.

They should also look into making local drug rehabilitation centres more effective instead of a place where higher dosage of drugs is being handed out to inmates.

It is not known to me that a gay man or a lesbian woman would make frequent or any attempts to seek out a prostitute.

It looks to me that they are trying to pin this on the transgender community, hence as usual generalising an entire minority group.

In my humble opinion, I do not buy into this notion, but hypothetically speaking and if what they say is true, isn't it because of the lack of equal opportunity?

Isn't it because they are ostracised by an ignorant society and an even more ignorant government? Isn't it because there is a demand and then a supply?

So, aren't they yet again looking to 'rehabilitate' the wrong set of people?

Anybody in their right mind knows that being homosexual or transgendered does not cause HIV/AIDS.

People contract AIDS due to many reasons some of which include unprotected sex, sharing of needles and blood transfusion, sexual orientation is not one of them.

I believe that the statistics show that heterosexuals make up the larger percentage of being HIV positive. Is it then fair to say that heterosexuality causes AIDS?

My point is if you practise any of the above it makes you susceptible to being HIV positive regardless of a person's sexual orientation.

People fail to see that every person has feelings and constantly being told that being who you are causes social ills and that it is not normal, will most definitely cause a person to feel severely insecure.

The more hatred is spewed the more difficult it gets to live a decent life and this here is the real problem - the lack of understanding and compassion.

This is detrimental to any society and would have psychological effects on any person.

If the government really does indeed want to ‘help' the LGBT community it should start with giving us a chance, then you would see that we are as capable and talented as our peers and that we can contribute so much values to society.

If they really want to ‘help' it should come from a space of love not hate, it should come from understanding not rejection.

The way I see it the reaction of the government is one fuelled by ignorance.

Ignorance is not bliss, it is murder!