CARLETONVILLE, South Africa, July 11 (Reuters) - Bongani is a South African miner who has AIDS.

The 28-year-old, whose name doctors have changed to protect patient confidentiality, is one of thousands with the disease at mining group Gold Fields, which launched an AIDS programme in 2000 and started offering anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment three years ago.

Infected seven years ago, he started ARV treatment in 2004 and continues to work at the company.

He spoke to Reuters with his 25-year-old wife, who is HIV-positive, and 1-year-old daughter, at a Gold Fields hospital in Carletonville, west of Johannesburg.

Here is his story:

"I completed my matric (secondary-school exam) in 1998, so from there I intended to go to university but because of finance it was a problem. At home, my mother and my father were struggling. I went to the industry I'm in now, the mines, in 2000. In 2001 my mother passed away, it wasn't the same disease, it was natural...

"I met a lady, it was for the first time in my life I got sex by then, but most unfortunately I got this disease then. It was about six months after that I started feeling ill. The biggest problem was my tonsils and I felt weak. I went to the clinic, the doctor talked to me, then they counselled me, they asked me if I know my status.

"I took a decision, okay, let me go for a test and see what is happening with my life because if I didn't know it was going to be hard for me... I got the results and found that I was positive, and then it was difficult to accept the situation.

"I told my sister about this thing, she's the one who supported me mostly... I still haven't told my other relatives. Sometimes we just talk about it (AIDS) but you should hear their reaction, when they respond to this business. They are so negative.

"Then by 2002, my father passed away also and then at home I was the breadwinner, but I decided that this is the thing that we must live with, we have to accept it the way it is. Life goes on.

"I met my wife in 2002... I told her about my status. She just appreciated it, because she loved me, so it was a wonderful thing. That was one other thing that gave me courage. I thought that maybe people would reject me, but the support that I got from my sister and my wife, it was very, very strong support.

"Before we got married, she went to test and then she was negative. I will say she got HIV from me, but how, I don't know really, because we were using condoms, I don't know how it happened.

"My wife took a treatment, nevarapine, because she's not even yet on treatment, ARVs. We got a baby, she's one year, one month. She's alright, she's HIV negative."

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