The Ghana AIDS Commission and its partners have drafted a new legal framework, HIV and the Law which is expected to be passed into law soon. According to Ghana AIDS Commission’s Abu Mahama, the legal framework is to address issues bordering on HIV/AIDS and human rights, and it is also expected to protect those living with HIV/AIDS as well as those affected by the disease.
He said the Commission is also putting together a Stigma and Discrimination Strategy to reduce stigma and discrimination against People Living with HIV (PWHIV) in the country. Mr. Mahama further stated that the Ghana AIDS Commission is providing funds to government health facilities that provide Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) services to register PLHIV for the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
India: Gujarat high court rules that hospitals, media should respect privacy of PLHIV
AHMEDABAD: Gujarat high court on Thursday directed that the identity of HIV positive people should not be disclosed by hospitals, as it could deter other patients from coming for treatment. The bench of Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J B Pardiwala called for strict concealment of the HIV positive person’s identity in response to a PIL filed by advocate Vijay Nangesh.
India: Advocates push for enactment of enabling, supportive omnibus HIV/AIDS Bill
“When we first started talking about the HIV/AIDS Bill, we were talking about how our children needed to be taken care of. Today, those children are adults waiting to be married, and have a different set of problems, but there is no law yet,” Daisy David, a woman living with HIV says. After about three years of preparation in consultation with many groups, the HIV/AIDS Bill took final shape in 2006 and was submitted to the Law Ministry the next year.
The Law Ministry took three years to clear it, and sent it back to the Health Ministry. Since then it has been lying idle or being foot balled between the Health and Law Ministries, activists charged. Meanwhile, the community got tired of waiting for the State to take over and do the rest. So they took to the street again, campaigning for the bill to be tabled in the coming session of the Parliament.
“It is extremely disappointing, the way this Bill has been shuttling between the two Ministries. We demand that the government should table the Bill in this monsoon session,” says Reni Jacob of World Vision. He stresses the importance of bringing into force a law that will protect the rights of persons living with HIV and offer them a forum for redress. The Bill envisaged wholesome coverage of issues relating to persons living with HIV/AIDS addressing issues of stigma and discrimination, care and protection, treatment and ensuring their rights. “We have a lot of problems now, from access to anganwadis, health care, and education, to denial of property rights. We can only keep quiet because there is no law to protect us,” Ms. David says, detailing her own experiences.
The Bill protects people living with, and affected by HIV from discrimination in both private and public sectors, bringing the private sector into the ambit for the first time, Kumaravel of the Tiruvallur Network of Positive People explains. Also, the Bill puts an obligation on the State to provide complete treatment including antiretrovirals, diagnostics, treatment for opportunistic infections, and nutritional supplements to every person living with HIV in the country, adds Noori of the South Indian Network of People with HIV/AIDS.
Surekha N of the Lawyers Collective, which originally drafted the Bill, explained that it has recently been sent to the Law Ministry.
Global Commission newsletter highlights recent developments on HIV and the law around the world
Dear subscribers, We are delighted to share issue 2 of the Global Commission on HIV and the Law Newsletter – Issue 2 for 2013. Since the last Newsletter was released, there have been a number of significant developments on HIV and the law some of which are briefly described below in digest format.
UNAIDS launches first-ever Judicial Handbook on HIV, Human Rights and the Law: Interview with UNDP's Mandeep Dhaliwal
The meeting also looked at specific actions that can be taken by Judges, to create a more supportive environment for people with HIV and key populations that are at-risk. UNAIDS also launched the first-ever Judicial Handbook on HIV, Human Rights and the Law at the meeting.
UNDP releases collation of progressive jurisprudence on HIV, Human Rights and the Law
The Compendium of Judgments, HIV, Human Rights and the Law, is a collation of progressive jurisprudence on HIV-related matters that highlights how the law has been used to protect individual rights. The compendium presents a user-friendly compilation of judgments from different national and regional jurisdictions.
UNDP releases report highlighting experiences and lessons learned from national HIV laws in Asia and the Pacific
This report is a direct follow-up to Global Commission on HIV and the Law: Risks, Rights and Health (July 2012) and the Asia-Pacific Regional Dialogue of the Global Commission on HIV and the Law convened in Bangkok in February 2011.
AIDS laws in Asia and the Pacific are failing to protect those most vulnerable | ReliefWeb
New UNDP study highlights gaps in human rights protections for people living with HIV in Asia and the Pacific Bangkok – Legal protections are unevenly enforced and human rights violations persist for people living with HIV in Asia and the Pacific.
US: REPEAL ACT to modernise HIV criminalisation laws reintroduced with bipartisan support
Yesterday, California Congresswoman Barbara Lee (Democrat) was joined by Florida Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Republican) to introduce a new version of the ‘Repeal Existing Policies that Encourage and Allow Legal HIV Discrimination Act’ (the ‘REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act’, or the ‘REPEAL Act’) first introduced by Congresswoman Lee in September 2011.
The REPEAL Act was the first to take on the issue of HIV criminalisation in the United States. The first time around it achieved 41 co-sponsors, all of whom were Democrats.
It is notable this this time, the REPEAL Act (known formally as H.R. 1843) has intially been co-sponsored by a Republican, suggesting the Act may go further this time and make it out of committee and on to the floor for consideration.
A press release issued yesterday by Congresswoman Lee’s office summarises the proposed legislation (which can be read in full and downloaded below):
“These laws are based on bias, not science. We need to make sure that our federal and state laws don’t discriminate against people who are living with HIV. These laws breed fear, discrimination, distrust, and hatred, and we’ve got to modernize them. That’s exactly what this legislation would do,” said Congresswoman Barbara Lee.
Today, 32 states and 2 U.S. territories have criminal statutes based on outdated information regarding HIV/AIDS. This bipartisan legislation would allow federal and state officials and community stakeholders to work together to review the efficacy of laws that target people living with HIV/AIDS. The REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act would authorize the Attorney General, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Defense to monitor new and existing laws imposing criminal liability against people with HIV/AIDS and to establish a set of best practices for legislatures to consider when proposing such legislation.
Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen added, “I’m pleased to co-sponsor this bipartisan bill that will help end the serious problem of discrimination in criminal and civil cases against those who are HIV positive. Singling out and discriminating against those living with HIV is not in line with our American values and we must do better. The legislation seeks to modernize our current outdated laws and bring them into the 21st century. I urge my Republican and Democrat colleagues to join Barbara and me in helping those persons living with HIV live as healthy and normal a life as possible.”
If passed, the act will be a key step towards ending unfair and unjust HIV criminalization laws in the United States by developing a set of best practices for the treatment of HIV in criminal and civil commitment cases, issuing guidance to states based on those best practices, and monitoring how states change policies consistent with that guidance.
Kan. health agency pledges to protect AIDS/HIV patients from quarantines, clearing bill's path
TOPEKA, Kansas – A promise from Kansas’ health department Thursday to continue protecting AIDS and HIV patients from being quarantined has resolved a dispute over a legislative proposal for helping medical personnel and emergency workers who may have been exposed to infectious diseases.