Tajikistan

Number of reported cases At least 194 How do we calculate the number of cases

Overview

Tajikistan’s criminalises HIV ‘exposure’ and transmission with substantially higher penalties than those relating to other diseases.

Article 125 of the Criminal Code criminalises HIV ‘exposure’ with a penalty of up to two years’ imprisonment, while transmission by someone aware of their status is penalised with two to five years’ imprisonment, increased to five to ten years’ where committed against multiple people or a minor.

In December 2019, the Tajik parliament approved an amendment to Article 142 of the Criminal Code (‘debauchery’), stating that HIV transmission would now be considered a serious crime. Once enacted, individuals found guilty of ‘deliberately’ infecting someone with HIV will face a more severe punishment – from eight to ten years in prison (increased from two to five years). This is despite a recommendation to Tajikistan from the CEDAW Committee to decriminalise HIV ‘exposure’ and transmission in 2018.

The law is actively enforced in Tajikistan. In its 2018-2022 Criminalisation Scan in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS (EWNA) reported that there were 18 cases and 13 convictions in 2018, 83 (66) in 2019, 68 (62) in 2020, and 38 (34) in the first six months of 2021. The media have regularly covered new cases, most involving female sex workers, since the law began to be actively enforced in 2018, and we have received reports of at least nine cases.

Cases are often sensationalised in media reports, with suggestions that an individual transmitted HIV to many people. For instance, a female sex worker living with HIV was arrested in March 2023 on charges under Article 125, and the report suggested the allegations against the woman were that she transmitted HIV to eleven men. Similarly, a report in May 2023 suggested an arrested woman caused transmission to nine men. Neither report suggests transmission had actually been proven.

In 2022 a draft of a new Criminal Code was published. This Code would retain the criminalisation of HIV, but with reduced penalties and an exemption for disclosure of HIV status. This law has not yet been introduced.

Article 119 of the Code on Administrative Offences makes it an offence to evade medical treatment or examination for people living with HIV or other diseases. The penalty imposed is a fine.

Laws

The Criminal Code of the Republic of Tajikistan dated May 21, 1998 No. 574 (as amended on June 20, 2019) - Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

HIV-specific criminal law (active)
Year enacted
1998
Relevant text of the law

Article 125. Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

1) Knowingly placing another person in danger of being infected with the human immunodeficiency virus,

– shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term of up to three years or imprisonment for a term of up to two years.

2) Infection of another person with the human immunodeficiency virus by a person who knew that he had this disease,

– shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of two to five years.

3) The act provided for in the second part of this article, committed:

a) in relation to two or more persons;

b) in relation to a knowingly minor,

– shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of five to ten years.

The Criminal Code of the Republic of Tajikistan dated May 21, 1998 No. 574 (as amended on June 20, 2019) - Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

Sexually transmitted infection law (active)
Year enacted
1998
Relevant text of the law

Article 126. Infection with a venereal disease

1) Infecting another person with a venereal disease by a person who knew that he had this disease,

– shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of two hundred to five hundred indicators for calculations or correctional labor for a period of one year to two years.

2) The same act committed:

a) in relation to two or more persons;

b) in relation to a knowingly minor,

– shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of from five hundred to seven hundred indicators for settlements or by imprisonment for a term of up to two years.

Further resources

Assessment of the country's legal and political framework. In the context of human rights, the LEAS aims to identify and study all important legal and human rights issues affecting all citizens in the country and makes recommendations to improve legislation and remove legal barriers to treatment and prevention access.

Authors: Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS (EWNA)
Regional HIV criminalisation report that summarises the state of play regarding HIV criminalisation laws and known prosecutions in the EECA region.

Authors: Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS (EWNA)
Regional HIV criminalisation report that summarises the law and prosecution data in each country in the EECA region.

This information was last reviewed in June 2023