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Carla Bruni reveals reasons for becoming Aids spokeswoman

By Suzannah Ramsdale on Tuesday 2 December 2008

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ews, celebrity news, Marie Claire

Carla Bruni has revealed that her brother's death from an Aids-related disease led to her decision to become an ambassador for the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

President Nicolas Sarkozy's wife confirmed that her passion for fighting the disease came from the death of Virginio Bruni-Tedeschi, who died in July 2006.

'Because of my brother, of course I am very sensitive to the issue of Aids,' she said.

'This is a pandemic. We tend to forget, we are used to it. But look at the figures. It's staggering.'

'I can put all of the media coverage directed toward me to the service of a useful cause,' she told a magazine.

France's first lady spoke to a packed news conference on Monday to mark World Aids Day.

As part of her role as ambassador, the 40-year-old announced she intends to focus her efforts on the women and children of Africa, 'because they are the most vulnerable victims.'

The Bruni family has already set up an Aids fund in the name of her late brother, Virginio.

Marisa Bruni Tedeschi, their mother, raised €18.7 million (£15.9 million) for the fund by selling the antique collection of her late husband, Alberto.