Mexico: Lawmakers and civil organisations commit to reform HIV criminalisation law in Quintana Roo

They will reform Penal Code to protect people with HIV

Lawmakers and civil organizations agree to push for changes to article 113

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Considering that article 113 of the Criminal Code of Quintana Roo may violate the human rights of people suffering from diseases such as HIV / AIDS, members of the 40th Legislature committed themselves to progress the analysis of a reform to modify it, or as the case may be, repeal it.

This Friday, Deputy Laura Esther Beristain Navarrete, president of the Commission on Health and Social Welfare and Deputy Alberto Vado Morales, president of the Culture Commission, met with civil organizations dedicated to issues such as HIV prevention and Human Rights of the LGBTQI Community, as well as representatives of the National Human Rights Commission and the Human Rights Commission of the State of Quintana Roo.

After looking at the drafting proposals with respect to the reform of article 113 of the Criminal Code of the State and listening to the arguments of the civil organizations and human rights organizations, it was agreed to push before the Justice Commission of the Congress this article that has been in force since 1991, they said.

It should be noted that Article 113 in its current wording, according to the organizations, criminalizes people living with HIV, implying that people suffering from this disease can be subject to a criminal trial solely because of their health condition, which is a matter of brevity, said the deputies.

During the meeting, topics such as the need to avoid legislative lag and to advance in the opinion of issues that have already been presented by the president of the Health Commission, Laura Beristain and the deputy Alberto Vado, such as reforms to the Civil Code for equal marriages and rights of affiliation of the LGBTTTI community; to the Criminal Code to deal with hate crimes against this sector of the population; the HIV Prevention and Treatment Act and reforms to promote gender identity of transgender people.

For his part, the president of the organization Círculo Social Igualitario, Edgar Mora Ucan, indicated that the repeal of article 113 of the Criminal Code is a watershed moment to legislate with a vision for human rights.

“This is a transcendental fact for the state, is creating the precedent of legislating with a vision for human rights. Only two states in the country do not have this legislation and in Quintana Roo it is being done. The door is being opened to legislate on other human rights issues, “he said.

Published in La Jornada Maya on October 21, 2017

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Reformarán Código Penal para proteger a personas con VIH

Acuerdan legisladores y organizaciones civiles impulsar cambios al artículo 113

La Jornada Maya

Sábado 21 de octubre, 2017Por considerar que el artículo 113 del Código Penal de Quintana Roo puede ser violatorio de los derechos humanos de las personas que padecen enfermedades como VIH Sida, diputados integrantes de la 40 Legislatura se comprometieron a avanzar en el análisis de una reforma para modificarlo y, en su caso, derogarlo.

Este viernes la diputada Laura Esther Beristain Navarrete, presidente de la Comisión de Salud y Asistencia Social y el diputado Alberto Vado Morales, presidente de la Comisión de Cultura, se reunieron con organizaciones civiles dedicadas a temas como la prevención del VIH y promotores de los derechos humanos de la Comunidad LGBTTTI, así como con representantes de la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos y la Comisión de Derechos Humanos del Estado de Quintana Roo.

Luego de un análisis de las propuestas de redacción con respecto a la reforma del artículo 113 del Código Penal del Estado y con los argumentos de las organizaciones civiles y de los organismos de Derechos Humanos se acordó impulsar ante la Comisión de Justicia del Congreso, la derogación de dicho artículo que se encuentra vigente desde 1991, según señalaron.

Cabe destacar que el Artículo 113 en su redacción actual, de acuerdo con las organizaciones, criminaliza a las personas que viven con VIH, lo que implica que las personas que padecen esta enfermedad pueden estar sujetas a un juicio penal únicamente por su condición de salud, tema que es de atenderse a la brevedad, consideraron los diputados.

Durante el encuentro se abordaron temas como la necesidad de evitar el rezago legislativo y que se avance en el dictamen de temas que ya han sido presentados por la presidente la de la Comisión de Salud, Laura Beristain y el diputado Alberto Vado, tales como reformas al Código Civil para los matrimonios igualitarios y derechos de filiación de la comunidad LGBTTTI; al Código Penal para la atender los crímenes de odio hacia este sector de la población; la Ley de Prevención y Tratamiento del VIH y reformas para impulsar la identidad de género de las personas transgénero.

Por su parte el presidente de la organización Círculo Social Igualitario, Edgar Mora Ucan, indicó que la derogación del artículo 113 del Código Penal es parte-aguas para legislar con visión hacia los derechos humanos.

“Este es un hecho trascendental para el estado, está creando el precedente de legislar con visión hacia los derechos humanos. Solo dos estados en el país no cuentan con esta legislación y en Quintana Roo se está haciendo. Se está abriendo la puerta para que se legisle sobre otros temas en materia de derechos humanos” aseguró.

UK: The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Bill proposes mandatory HIV testing following an alleged spitting/biting assault on frontline staff

Stabbed, Spat At, Punched: Emergency Workers Tell HuffPost UK Why New Law Is Needed To Protect Them: Now PM backs Bill to protect 999 staff from assault

A new law to protect emergency workers from assaults has won the personal backing of Theresa May after police, paramedics and nurses lobbied MPs for tougher sentences.

A private members’ bill to specifically target abuse against 999 staff has secured the Prime Minister’s approval, HuffPost UK has been told.

The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Bill, tabled by Labour MP Chris Bryant, is due to have its Second Reading in the Commons on Friday and is now expected to get enough Parliamentary time to get on the statute book.

Dubbed the ‘Protect The Protectors Law’, the bill follows a rising number of incidents where NHS, firefighters and police staff have been abused, attacked or spat at in the line of duty.

The legislation will for the first time deem assaults on emergency staff as “aggravated”, and subject to heavier sentences. It will also force suspects to provide samples of saliva or blood to ensure rapid testing of HIV and other illnesses.

Asked if the PM was giving her personal support to the bill, a No.10 spokesman told HuffPost UK: “That’s one the Government is backing, so you can take that as a ‘yes’.”

The Ministry of Justice and Home Office are expected to signal on Friday their support for the new legislation.

Backed by trade unions and staff bodies such as the Police Federation, an alliance of emergency workers held a ‘drop-in’ lobby of MPs in the Commons on Wednesday.

Bryant told HuffPost UK: “I’m really encouraged by how many MPs have come along, listened to emergency workers and said they’ll support the Bill.

“It’s not over until the votes are counted though and I’m not counting my chickens yet. All sorts of things could still go awry.”

Alan Lofthouse, national ambulance officer for the Unison trade union, said: “It’s only right that the full force of the law is used against anyone who attacks those trying to save lives and protect the public. This bill will help the courts to bring offenders to justice.”

HuffPost UK talked to five emergency workers, each with their own stories of why a new law was needed.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/theresa-may-backs-new-law-protecting-emergency-workers-from-assaults-in-line-of-duty-five-case-studies_uk_59e7b1cce4b00905bdae7e17

Belarus: More than 50 cases of criminal prosecution of HIV in Belarus in the first 6 months of 2017

Belarusian legislation discriminates against HIV-positive people (Google translation – Article in russian below)

In the six months of 2017, the number of cases of criminal prosecution of HIV-positive people in Article 53 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus (Infection with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus) has significantly increased in all regions of Belarus, especially in the Gomel region.

If in the period from 2012 to 2016, 38 cases were registered, then for 6 months in 2017 – more than 50 people were convicted, many of them are serving sentences in places of deprivation of liberty.

“The Belarusian community of PLWH” notes that at a time when calls for testing and self-testing for HIV are sounding throughout the country, campaigns are underway to create a tolerant attitude, people with identified HIV status are being prosecuted. The topic of HIV infection is actively discussed in the Belarusian press and abroad, thereby creating a negative, negative impression about people living with HIV, creating a new wave of enmity, stigma and discrimination in society.

Article 157 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus was approved in 1999, when HIV infection was considered an incurable disease. Since then, about 20 years have passed, mankind has stepped into a new age, medical approaches have changed, highly effective treatment has appeared, HIV is no longer a deadly disease, and has become chronic, well controlled by antiretroviral treatment. In HIV-positive people taking ARV therapy, with an undetectable viral load, the risk of HIV transmission during sexual intercourse is reduced to almost zero.

Article 157 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus consists of three parts:

  1. Knowingly placing another person at risk of contracting the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) – is punishable by a fine, or by arrest, or by imprisonment for up to three years.
  2. Infection of another person by frivolity or with the indirect intent of HIV by a person who knew about his having this disease is punishable by imprisonment for a term of two to seven years.
  3. The action provided for in paragraph 2 of this article, committed against two or more persons, either knowingly underage, or with direct intent, is punishable by imprisonment for a term of five to thirteen years.

In the first and second parts of this article, criminal cases are instituted against people who live in legal marriages or couples where one partner is HIV-positive even if he has informed his partner about HIV-carrier, even if the fact of one from family members is taken completely consciously and voluntarily.

In accordance with the requirements of Art. 157 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus, discordant marriages in general are under the ban and under penalty of criminal responsibility, as well as one-time voluntary sexual contacts between people of different HIV status.

In Belarus there are presumably more than 500 discordant couples. They live and work, multiplying the welfare of their country, are good taxpayers. Practically every family has children who risk being left in single-parent families, without parental care, because of the absurdity and inhumanity of law enforcement practice.

Russia also provides for criminal liability for posing a risk of contracting HIV infection under art. 122 of the Criminal Code. Thanks to the active efforts of the Russian community of PLHIV, an important note was added to the article in 2003, on the basis of which the person who put the partner at risk of infection or who infected him with HIV infection is released from criminal liability “if another person put at risk of infection, or was infected with HIV infection, was warned in a timely manner about the presence of the first of this disease and voluntarily agreed to perform actions that created the danger of infection. ” Such an addition in Article 122 of the Criminal Code released HIV-positive Russians with established HIV status from criminal prosecution.

“Belarusian community of PLWH” believes that Article 157 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus contradicts international and national legal norms. Under current legislation, an HIV-positive person can not feel a full-fledged citizen of their country. Such a practice with respect to people living with HIV is discriminatory and requires an early resolution at the legislative level of Belarus!

As of September 1, 2017, there were 18,438 HIV-positive people registered in Belarus.

Published in ECU on Oct 6, 2017

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Белорусское законодательство дискриминирует ВИЧ-позитивных людей

За шесть месяцев 2017 года во всех регионах  Беларуси,  особенно  в Гомельской области, значительно увеличилось количество случаев уголовного преследования ВИЧ-положительных людей по статье 157 Уголовного Кодекса Республики Беларусь (Заражение вирусом иммунодефицита человека).

Если в период с 2012 по 2016 годы было зарегистрировано 38 случаев, то за 6 месяцев 2017 года —  более 50-ти человек были  осуждены, многие из них отбывают срок наказания в местах лишения свободы.

«Белорусское сообщество ЛЖВ» отмечает, что в то время, когда по всей стране звучат призывы к тестированию и самотестированию на ВИЧ, проходят кампании по формированию толерантного отношения, люди с выявленным ВИЧ-статусом подвергаются уголовному преследованию. Тема о заражении ВИЧ активно муссируется в  белорусской прессе и за ее пределами, тем самым формируя отрицательное, негативное  впечатление о людях, живущих с ВИЧ, порождая новую волну вражды, стигмы и дискриминации в обществе.

Статья 157 Уголовного Кодекса Республики Беларусь  была утверждена  в 1999 году,  когда ВИЧ-инфекция считалась неизлечимым заболеванием. С тех пор прошло около 20 лет, человечество перешагнуло в новый век, поменялись медицинские подходы, появилось высокоэффективное лечение,  ВИЧ больше не является смертельно опасным заболеванием, и перешел в разряд хронических, хорошо контролируется антиретровирусным лечением. У ВИЧ-положительных людей, принимающих АРВ-терапию, при неопределяемой вирусной нагрузке риск передачи ВИЧ при половых контактах снижается практически до нуля.

Статья  157 УК РБ состоит из трех частей:

  1. Заведомое поставление другого лица в опасность заражения вирусом иммунодефицита человека (ВИЧ) – наказывается штрафом, или арестом, или лишением свободы на срок до трех лет.
  2. Заражение другого лица по легкомыслию или с косвенным умыслом ВИЧ лицом, знавшим о наличии у него этого заболевания  – наказывается лишением свободы на срок от двух до семи лет.
  3. Действие, предусмотренное частью 2 настоящей статьи, совершенное в отношении двух или более лиц, либо заведомо несовершеннолетнего, либо с прямым умыслом, – наказывается лишением свободы на срок от пяти до тринадцати лет.

По 1 и 2-ой  части данной статьи возбуждаются уголовные дела  по отношению к людям, которые живут в законных браках или парах, где один из партнеров является  ВИЧ-положительным,  даже  если  он проинформировал своего партнера о ВИЧ-носительстве, даже если факт заболевания одного из членов семьи принят совершенно осознанно и добровольно.

В соответствии с требованиями ст. 157 УК РБ дискордантные браки вообще находятся под запретом и  под страхом уголовной ответственности, равно как и разовые добровольные половые контакты между разными по ВИЧ-статусу  людьми.

В Беларуси предположительно насчитывается более 500 дискордантных пар. Они  живут и трудятся, преумножая благосостояние своей страны, являются добропорядочными налогоплательщиками. Практически в каждой семье есть дети, которые рискуют остаться в неполных семьях, без попечения родителей, по причине абсурдности и  антигуманности  правоприменительной практики.

В России также предусмотрена  уголовная ответственность за поставление в опасность заражения ВИЧ-инфекцией по ст. 122 УК РФ. Благодаря активным действиям российского сообщества ЛЖВ, в 2003 году в статью было внесено важное примечание, на основании которого человек, поставивший партнера в опасность заражения, либо заразивший его ВИЧ-инфекцией, освобождается от уголовной ответственности, «если другое лицо, поставленное в опасность заражения, либо зараженное ВИЧ-инфекцией, было своевременно предупреждено о наличии у первого этой болезни и добровольно согласилось совершить действия, создавшие опасность заражения». Такое дополнение в ст.122 УК РФ освободило ВИЧ-положительных россиян с установленным ВИЧ-статусом от уголовного преследования.

«Белорусское сообщество ЛЖВ» считает, что  статья 157 УК РБ  противоречит  международным и национальным  правовым нормам. При существующем законодательстве ВИЧ-положительный человек не может чувствовать себя полноправным гражданином своей страны. Подобная практика по отношению к людям, живущим с ВИЧ является дискриминационной, и требует скорейшего разрешения на законодательном уровне Беларуси!

По состоянию на 1 сентября 2017 года в Беларуси зарегистрировано 18 438   ВИЧ-положительных людей.

US: California Governor signs landmark bill reforming outdated HIV criminalisation laws

Governor Signs Bill Modernizing California HIV Laws

October 6, 2017

CONTACT: Naina Khanna, naina.khanna.work@gmail.com, 510.681.1169

or Jennie Smith-Camejo, jsmithcamejo@pwn-usa.org, 347.553.5174

Sacramento, Calif.— Governor Jerry Brown today signed into law landmark legislation to reform outdated laws that unfairly criminalized and stigmatized people living with HIV. Senate Bill (SB) 239 was authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and Asm. Todd Gloria (D-San Diego) and cosponsored by Equality California, the ACLU of California, APLA Health, Black AIDS Institute, Lambda Legal and Positive Women’s Network – USA. These organizations are part of Californians for HIV Criminalization Reform (CHCR), a broad coalition of people living with HIV, HIV and health service providers, civil rights organizations and public health professionals dedicated to ending the criminalization of people living with HIV in California.

“Today California took a major step toward treating HIV as a public health issue, instead of treating people living with HIV as criminals,” said Senator Wiener. “HIV should be treated like all other serious infectious diseases, and that’s what SB 239 does. We are going to end new HIV infections, and we will do so not by threatening people with state prison time, but rather by getting people to test and providing them access to care. I want to thank Governor Brown for his support in helping to put California at the forefront of a national movement to reform these discriminatory laws.”

“State law will no longer discourage Californians from getting tested for HIV,” said Asm. Gloria. “With the Governor’s signature today, we are helping to reduce the stigma that keeps some from learning their HIV status and getting into treatment to improve their health, extend their lives, and prevent additional infections. I want to thank Governor Brown for signing SB 239. This action keeps California at the forefront in the fight to stop the spread of HIV.”

SB 239 updates California criminal law to approach transmission of HIV in the same way as transmission of other serious communicable diseases. It also brings California statutes up to date with the current understanding of HIV prevention, treatment and transmission. The bill fulfills a key goal of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy and is consistent with guidance from the U.S. Department of Justice and with California’s “Getting to Zero” HIV transmission reduction strategy.

“The passage of SB239 marks tremendous progress for Californians living with HIV. Laws that criminalize HIV positive status are not based on science–they are based solely on hysteria and fear–and essentially create an underclass of people diagnosed with a disease, placing us at risk for discrimination and even violence,” said Naina Khanna, executive director of Positive Women’s Network, a national membership body of women living with HIV and a proud co-sponsor of SB 239. “Today, California has proved once again that is a national leader on protecting safety, dignity and human rights for all its residents.”

Beginning in the late 1980s and at the height of the HIV epidemic, lawmakers passed several laws criminalizing otherwise legal behaviors of people living with HIV and added HIV-related penalties to existing crimes. These laws were based on fear and the limited medical understanding of the time. When most of these laws were passed, there were no effective treatments for HIV and discrimination against people living with HIV was rampant. Research now demonstrates that people living with HIV on effective treatment cannot transmit the virus to their partners. HIV-negative individuals can now take medication, known as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), to reduce the risk of acquiring HIV by up to 99 percent. SB 239 ensures that these advances inform our laws and the manner in which we address our public health response to HIV.

“With his signature, Governor Brown has moved California’s archaic HIV laws out of the 1980s and into the 21st century,” said Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California. “SB 239 will do much to reduce stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV – it is not only fair, but it’s good public health. When people are no longer penalized for knowing their status, it encourages them to come forward, get tested and get treatment. That’s good for all Californians.”

In addition to the organizations sponsoring the bill, SB 239 was supported by CHCR members including the Los Angeles LGBT Center, the Los Angeles HIV Law and Policy Project, the Transgender Law Center, Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), the Free Speech Coalition and the Sex Workers Outreach Project (SWOP).

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Californians for HIV Criminalization Reform (CHCR) is a coalition of organizations and individuals dedicated to ending the criminalization of HIV in California. Our mission is to mobilize a broad coalition, including individuals and communities who are disproportionately impacted by HIV, to replace fear-based, stigmatizing laws that criminalize HIV-status with evidence-based, nondiscriminatory laws that protect public health.

US: Update on HIV criminalisation laws in the US

HIV Criminalization update: Some U.S. Nondisclosure Laws Advance, While Others Recede

By Victoria Law

From TheBody.com

Table of Contents

First, the good:

California Law Modernizing HIV Criminalization Awaits Governor’s Signature

On Sept. 11, 2017, California lawmakers passed SB 239. As reported previously, the bill reduces HIV transmission from a felony to a misdemeanor. This means that people who are convicted will face no more than six months in jail rather than years in prison. The bill also eliminates several HIV-specific criminal laws that carry severe penalties, even for activities that do not risk exposure to HIV. SB 239 now awaits Governor Brown’s signature, the final step before becoming law.

For Nestor Rogel, a California activist living with HIV, the bill’s passage brings a sense of freedom. Rogel, who was born HIV positive, has always had to take numerous precautions to document his disclosure in order to avoid potential prosecution. Not only does the bill bring a sense of personal relief, but he’s hoping for broader changes in societal attitudes. “Decriminalization is a good step to destigmatization,” he told TheBody.com. “California is used as a model for so many things. I’m hoping that other states will take California as a model in this, as well.”

Idaho Statewide Coalition Created to Modernize HIV Criminalization Laws

In 2013, fewer than 30 people were diagnosed in Idaho, ranking the state 45th in the nation for HIV cases. That’s fewer than the number of state HIV criminalization prosecutions since its nondisclosure laws were enacted in 1988. It should be noted that, in Idaho, actual transmission is not required for prosecution.

Kerry Thomas was the first person ever prosecuted under these laws; in 1999, Thomas was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison for nondisclosure. In 2009, Thomas was prosecuted and again pled guilty to nondisclosure. This time, the judge sentenced him to 30 years. Thomas is not eligible for parole until at least March 2029.

In 2016, after attending the HIV Is Not a Crime conference, Kevin Lish of All Under One Roof LGBT Advocates of Southern Idaho began pulling together a statewide coalition to modernize laws and address the harsh penalties in the state’s HIV-specific codes. “We need laws that encourage people to be tested, know their status and have honest conversations with potential partners so that we can start curbing the number of new cases in Idaho,” he told A&U Magazine.

Now, the bad: Massachusetts Bill Would Criminalize Nondisclosure

Massachusetts Bill Would Criminalize Nondisclosure

Ten Massachusetts lawmakers are sponsoring H2295, which criminalizes HIV nondisclosure before sex or sharing needles. It also further criminalizes engaging in sex work (which is already a crime punishable by prison sentence) if the person is HIV positive, as well as donating or selling blood, organs, tissue and other bodily fluids or body parts. The proposed penalty would be a minimum of five years in prison (and a maximum of 15 years).

The bill has remained in the Joint Committee on the Judiciary since its introduction in January.

Maryland Adopts Law Authorizing Court-Ordered HIV and HCV Testing

In May, Governor Larry Hogan signed HB 1375 into law. The law authorizes judges to issue “emergency orders” for HIV and hepatitis C testing if the person is believed to have “caused exposure to a victim.” Victims include law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians (EMT), forensic scientists and health care workers collecting medical evidence of sexual assault. The law authorizes the test to be conducted via oral swab.

Tennessee Adopts Law Authorizing HIV, Hepatitis Testing of Arrested Individuals

May seems to have been a bad month for HIV criminalization. Tennessee also enacted a law requiring HIV and hepatitis testing. HB 1283 requires HIV and hepatitis testing for any arrested person if requested by a law enforcement officer, firefighter or EMT exposed to blood or bodily fluids “in any manner that presents a significant risk of transmission.” It also allows any employee of the state’s bureau of investigation’s crime laboratories who might have been exposed to bodily fluids to request such a test. Unlike the Maryland law, HB 1283 requires a blood test rather than an oral swab.

Maggi Duncan, executive director of the Tennessee Association of Police Chiefs helped draft the legislation. “We’re talking about a criminal,” she reportedly said, ignoring the fact that arrests do not automatically mean convictions or guilt. “In the course of being arrested, they could have possibly exposed a first responder.”

Published in the Body on September 21, 2017

US: New coalition in Texas aims to reform HIV criminalisation laws

Reforming HIV Laws in Texas

Lone Star Justice

A new coalition in Texas aims to reform HIV criminalization & find a united voice for people living with HIV

by Chip Alfred

It’s called the Lone Star State to commemorate a single white star that signifies Texas’ battle for independence from Mexico. Now Texans living with HIV are waging another war—fighting a legal system that locks people up for decades for behavior that poses no risk of HIV transmission.

“We need to stop criminalizing people living with HIV,” says Venita Ray, public policy manager at Houston’s Legacy Community Health. Ray, fifty-eight, an African-American attorney, was diagnosed with HIV in 2013. “There’s no evidence to show that criminalization deters behavior, or that it stops transmission. It’s just to punish us for being HIV-positive,” she adds. “If we really want to end the epidemic, we can’t prosecute our way to zero.”

Texas ranks number two in the nation in number of AIDS diagnoses. It’s also the second largest state in the country in both area and population. Unlike most states, however, Texas has no HIV-specific criminal laws. Therefore, the data on the number of HIV criminalization cases and convictions is hard to gather. It also has effectively given prosecutors wide latitude in using general criminal laws to charge HIV-positive defendants with attempted murder and aggravated assault. Texas’ aggravated assault statute makes it a second-degree felony (two to twenty years in jail and a possible fine of $10,000) “to cause serious bodily injury to another or to use or exhibit a deadly weapon in the commission of an assault.” If an aggravated assault is committed against someone the perpetrator knows is a security officer, it’s a first-degree felony (punishable by five to ninety-nine years in prison and a possible fine of $10,000).

What I found most disturbing in researching this article is that the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Texas have consistently upheld aggravated assault convictions in which HIV was considered “a deadly weapon”—even in cases where the only body fluid exchanged was saliva, which has never been documented to transmit HIV.

An HIV-positive man from Texas who spat at a police officer during his 2006 arrest for being drunk and disorderly was sentenced to thirty-five years behind bars by a Dallas court. The Court of Appeals affirmed the verdict, which mandates that the defendant serve at least half of his sentence before being eligible for parole. This was because the jury found that his saliva was a deadly weapon.

In the Texas legislature, there have been recent efforts to enact laws that would make it easier for prosecutors to invade the privacy of HIV-positive defendants and build criminal cases against them for no-risk behavior like spitting. Thanks to advocates like Venita Ray, none of this legislation has passed. “When I’m standing up in front of the legislature, I’m not speaking of a hypothetical person. I’m saying, ‘What you just did impacts me.’ That has power.” Ray, with the support of The Sero Project’s Assistant Director Robert Suttle and Organizing and Training Coordinator Tami Haught under the umbrella of Sero’s Network Empowerment Project, created Texans Living with HIV (TLHIV), the first statewide network of its kind in the U.S. “This network enables Texans with HIV to determine their own priorities, select and hold accountable leadership of their own choosing and to speak with a collective voice,” says Sean Strub, executive director of Sero. “Texas now has the organizational infrastructure to be better prepared to mobilize and advocate on a whole range of issues that affect people living with HIV.”

Venita Ray tells A&U the new coalition of about twenty advocates will focus on ending isolation for PLHIV and eliminating stigma. “The same communities that are already disproportionately impacted by the criminal justice system are the same people impacted most by HIV criminalization—black people, brown people, people living in poverty.”

TLHIV will take on issues that impact the quality of life for people with HIV and criminalization will be one of those. “We want to be that collective voice for people living with HIV in the state of Texas,” Ray explains. “We’re building power amongst ourselves.” The key, she says, is creating an environment where individuals feel safe to stand up, show up and speak up. “We’re building an army and we need them all. I’m a grandmother; I’m an auntie; I’m a yoga teacher. The more people see people like me or your Bible school teacher, the more we humanize this disease. The best thing I ever did was deciding not to be invisible and not be silent anymore.”

Published in A&U on Sept 21, 2017

US: Gael Adrien Mbama explores why California HIV laws are antiquated and must be modernised

Gael Adrien Mbama: HIV laws must be modernized to prevent further stigmatization

More than 119,589 people diagnosed with the human immunodeficiency virus live in California. That diagnosis alone has allowed these people to be stigmatized and receive unfair treatment under the law.

Under the California Code, Health and Safety section 120291, HIV-positive individuals who knowingly expose their partners to the disease risk up to eight years in prison. Because of this law, HIV patients have been singled out and treated as felons, instead of as individuals dealing with a serious disease.

Some lawmakers seem to understand this. California State Senator Scott Wiener introduced Senate Bill 239, which lowers the offense of intentionally exposing others to HIV from a felony to a misdemeanor. While numerous lawmakers have supported the implementation of the bill, others have voiced strong disagreement.

For instance, Republican State Senator Joel Anderson is on record stating that intentionally transmitting any life-altering diseases should require jail time. This stance is shared by other Republican state senators, such as Jeff Stone, who insisted that transmitting HIV should remain a significant crime, as reclassifying this offense to a misdemeanor would be a “miscarriage of justice.”

Despite this harsh opposition, Californians must support SB 239. Passing this bill will help decrease HIV’s prevalence by encouraging people to get tested for the disease, instead of remaining clueless about their health condition, as only those aware of their HIV status can be charged. The bill would ensure that those who are HIV-positive arenot grossly persecuted with felony charges, and would place HIV on the same standardas other communicable diseases.

California’s HIV transmission laws were written in the 1980s, when HIV’s hysteria was at its pinnacle and medication for the disease was nonexistent. These laws allowed law enforcement to prosecute HIV-positive people who exposed the virus to others, even if those exposed ended up not being HIV positive. Ayako Miyashita, director of the Los Angeles HIV Law and Policy Project at UCLA School of Law, said that while scientific advancements over the past three decades have made the eradication of the HIV epidemic possible, the law has not caught up and continues to perceive HIV as an instant, life-ending disease.

Consequently, HIV is treated in California as a criminal issue, rather than a public health problem. And the results are devastating.

Like in too many criminal justice systems throughout the nation, minorities are unfairly targeted by California’s HIV laws. Black and Latino people make up an overwhelming 67 percent of individuals prosecuted for exposing others to HIV despite only representing 51 percent of HIV/AIDS cases in California.

Hussain Turk, a UCLA law alumnus who is HIV-positive, said he thinks California’s current laws promote violence and domestic abuse. Turk said people have used HIV transmission laws as a way to seek revenge against their HIV-positive partners.

This sentiment is echoed by Dr. Edward Machtinger, a UC San Francisco professor of medicine and director of the Women’s HIV Program at UCSF. Machtinger said people can be held hostage in abusive relationships because of their fear of prosecution for being HIV positive.

Machtinger said current criminalization laws written before the existence of effective HIV medications scare people away from being tested and beginning treatment. These laws also increase the risk of more infections by shaming individuals who are HIV positive.

Indeed, because of these laws and the stigmatization that they create, HIV remains a tough disease to disclose.

Today’s HIV medications, if taken regularly, allow people to have undetectable HIV viral loads in their bloodstream and thus, lead lives without the risk of transmitting the virus to their partners.

It is clear SB 239, which is awaiting Gov. Jerry Brown’s approval, must be signed into law given the egregious problems resulting from California’s antiquated legislation.Threatening HIV patients with felonies has never been the appropriate means to tackle the HIV epidemic. HIV-positive individuals will continue to live with the fear that a felony is running through their veins, so long as the archaic laws from the 1980s continue to be enforced.

Of course, many SB 239 opposers believe that decreasing the offense of exposing partners to HIV from a felony to a misdemeanor will lead to a resurgence of new HIV infections. But, as Weiner points out, HIV is the only communicable disease being treated as a felony. Other life-altering diseases, like syphilis for instance, only lead to misdemeanor charges. As such, those who purposely infect their partners will still be prosecuted but on the charge of a misdemeanor, which is the standard for all other serious communicable diseases.

California ranks among the highest number of HIV cases in the nation, so it is crucial to acknowledge the indisputable failures of the current law and support SB 239. This bill can put an end to the discrimination experienced by those who are HIV positive and encourage people to get tested, therefore decreasing infections.

It is time to modernize these laws that promote racial injustice and stigmatization. And ultimately, people who are HIV positive are not felons; they just have an illness.

Australia: Amendment to New South Wales Public Health Act, with its punitive focus on STIs transmission, risks undermining the Act intent

Is one person to blame if another gets a sexually transmissible infection (STI)? In most Australian states, if you have certain STIs, you have a legal responsibility to notify your potential sexual partners.

The NSW government last week passed an amendment to the state’s Public Health Act that increased the associated penalties by doubling the maximum fines and adding potential jail time.

Section 79 (1) of the Act now reads:

A person who knows that he or she has a notifiable disease, or a scheduled medical condition, that is sexually transmissible is required to take reasonable precautions against spreading the disease or condition.

Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months, or both.

In addition to increasing potential penalties, the amendment removed an earlier provision mandating disclosure of STI status, replacing it instead with the need for “reasonable precautions”.

This is a positive change for the law that reflects the best available research on STIs and transmission. Yet its coupling with increased penalties has sent a mixed message about sexual health in the state.

Further, the idea that punishing STI exposure or transmission will decrease rates of infection is not supported by global research on HIV, and there is no reason to believe this would be any different for other STIs.

Laws across Australia

Health law is pretty complex and mainly left up to each state and territory. Generally speaking, across Australia you risk some kind of punishment for knowingly infecting another person with what are often referred to as “notifiable diseases”. This list covers a range of infections but STIs include chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis, HIV, shigella, donovanosis, and hepatitis a, b and c.

In some states, notably New South Wales, Tasmania and Queensland, it’s an offence just to knowingly expose someone to an infection, even if they don’t actually become infected. While in other states, like Victoria and South Australia, health acts do not specify penalties for exposure or transmission, referring instead to the respective crime acts. For the most part, curable STIs do not rank as serious enough for criminal prosecution.

What is unique about NSW is that it uses the Public Health Act to single out STIs and describe specific punishments above and beyond other infections.

Although laws in NSW seem unusually fixated on STIs, the move away from mandated disclosure in favour of “reasonable precautions” is a positive step. While disclosure may seem sensible on the surface, it’s not the most effective at preventing transmission. This is because disclosure requires that someone be aware of an infection and many people with an STI don’t realise they are infected. For example, it’s estimated nearly three quarters of chlamydia infections in young people in Australia go undiagnosed every year. Relying on disclosure can, therefore, give people a false sense of security.

There are other more effective strategies than disclosure for protecting someone from infection. With HIV, for example, successful treatment means the risks of transmitting the virus to another person are virtually nonexistent. Under the amended NSW law, treatment could quite rightly be considered a reasonable precaution to avoid transmitting HIV.

But the state’s Public Health Act is relevant to all STIs, not just HIV. For other infections, it’s less clear what precautions might be seen as reasonable. Condoms can offer protection from some infections, but not all, and they are rarely used for oral sex. Given more and more chlamydia and gonorrhoea cases are identified in the throat, this is potentially problematic.

Punishment doesn’t help

Every year, there are over 100,000 STI diagnoses across Australia, the vast majority of which can be cured using antibiotics. Ultimately, public health initiatives aim to reduce new cases and lower the overall amount of infection.

It’s been suggested by public health experts that criminalising transmission can undermine public health efforts by reinforcing stigma and causing people to delay accessing testing, treatment and care.

And in a review of legal conditions around the world, researchers found that there was no link between laws criminalising HIV transmission and lower infection rates. The review also found such laws disproportionately impacted those who may experience marginalisation, such as young people and women.

In reality, situations where an individual recklessly or wilfully places another at risk of an STI are incredibly rare and health officials have many options besides punishment.

As part of their core work, doctors and clinics counsel on and work with people to prevent onward transmission, and in some cases public health orders can be used to compel people to, among other actions, attend counselling and refrain from activities that might spread an infection. In the most extreme situations, criminal charges can be brought on the basis of grievous bodily harm.

Overall, a special and punitive focus to STIs risks further entrenching stigma and undermining the Act’s intent, which is to manage and reduce infection. If there is any hope of reducing STIs in Australia, laws must aim to foster an environment where people feel comfortable, able and willing to get tested and engaged with their sexual health.

While it seems unlikely a rush to prosecute those who expose others to STIs will spring up from this amendment, the law as it is currently written leaves open that rather serious possibility. In NSW and across Australia, health law consistently places the burden of prevention on one partner. In an ideal world, all parties to a sexual encounter take “reasonable precautions” to protect themselves and each other from infection.

Canada: COCQ-SIDA to request a moratorium on criminal prosecutions of HIV non-disclosure in Quebec

Moratorium requested on prosecutions for non-disclosure of HIV (Translation of article in French below)

The Coalition des organismes communautaires québécois de lutte contre le sida (COCQ-SIDA) will ask the minister of Justice of Quebec on Tuesday to impose a moratorium on the use of criminal prosecutions against people living with HIV who do not disclose their medical status to their sexual partner, learned The Duty.

This moratorium is called ” right now “, and this, until the end of the consultation undertaken by the federal government in order to reform this regulation. “We hope to give more information on our progress at the end of the year “, has written for Le Devoir a spokesman for the federal department of Justice on Monday evening about this.

Currently, the supreme Court ruled that an HIV-positive person must disclose his/her HIV status to his partner prior to any sexual relationship, unless you meet two requirements, either wear a condom and have a low viral load or undetectable.

“The scientific studies show that the viral load decreases drastically [with the most recent treatments], to a point where HIV is no longer transmitted“, explains a lawyer at COCQ-SIDA, Liz Lacharpagne. That is why the coalition believes that only one of the two criteria should be taken into account.

Since 2010, the COCQ-AIDS has multiplied advances to review the regulation, considered as being discriminatory and outdated, but without success. “The guidelines we asked for were never adopted,” said Ms. Lacharpagne.

“Currently, people living with HIV are the subject of allegations of severe sexual abuse […] even in the absence of intent to cause harm, even when HIV is not passed to the partner, and even when the risk of transmission is negligible, or even zero,” writes COCQ-SIDA in a press release that will be published on Tuesday.

These criminal prosecutions contribute to stigmatize people living with HIV, states the coalition. Ms. Lacharpagne cites the example of high-profile cases where accused persons have been identified publicly as a sex offender. “It does not give a nice image of these people.”

“There is a confusion between the fact of not disclosing [their HIV status] and a sexual assault “, she says.

More lawsuits

COCQ-SIDA is particularly concerned since the beginning of the year, because it has observed a substantial increase in prosecutions for non-disclosure in Quebec. The Devoir reported on this situation in August.

Faced with the refusal of the minister of Justice of Quebec, Stéphanie Vallée, to meet with COCQ-SIDA, and in the context of the increase in lawsuits, the coalition believes that they has no other recourse but to ask for a moratorium. “It is at a political level,” explains Ms. Lacharpagne.

The cabinet of Mrs Valley did not tell le Devoir if it will impose or not such a moratorium. The case depends on the federal government, has reminded the press officer for the minister, Isabelle Married St-Onge, in a reply sent by e-mail.

“Quebec is favourable to the minimization of the stigma of people living with HIV and focuses on the approach set out by the jurisprudence of the supreme Court which provides for a fair balance between the protection of society, victims and the respect for the dignity of people living with HIV “, she adds.

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La Coalition des organismes communautaires québécois de lutte contre le sida (COCQ-SIDA) demandera mardi à la ministre de la Justice du Québec d’imposer un moratoire sur les poursuites criminelles contre les personnes vivant avec le VIH qui ne divulguent pas leur statut médical à leur partenaire sexuel, a appris Le Devoir.

Ce moratoire est demandé « dès maintenant », et ce, jusqu’à l’issue de la consultation menée par le gouvernement fédéral dans le but de réformer cette réglementation. « Nous espérons donner de plus amples renseignements sur nos progrès à la fin de l’année », a écrit au Devoir un porte-parole du ministère fédéral de la Justice lundi soir à ce sujet.

Actuellement, la Cour suprême établit qu’une personne séropositive doit divulguer son statut sérologique à son partenaire avant toute relation sexuelle, à moins de remplir deux exigences, soit porter un condom et avoir une charge virale faible ou indétectable.

« Les études scientifiques montrent que la charge virale diminue de façon drastique [avec les plus récents traitements], à un point où le VIH ne se transmet plus », explique l’avocate de la COCQ-SIDA, Liz Lacharpagne. C’est pourquoi la coalition estime qu’un seul des deux critères devrait être pris en compte.

Depuis 2010, la COCQ-SIDA multiplie les démarches afin de revoir la réglementation, jugée discriminatoire et désuète, mais sans succès. « Les directives qu’on demandait n’ont jamais été adoptées », déplore Mme Lacharpagne.

« Actuellement, des personnes vivant avec le VIH font l’objet d’accusations d’agressions sexuelles graves […] même en l’absence d’intention de causer un préjudice, même lorsque le VIH n’est pas transmis au partenaire et même lorsque le risque de transmission est négligeable, voire nul », écrit la COCQ-SIDA dans un communiqué qui sera publié mardi.

Ces poursuites au criminel contribuent à stigmatiser davantage les personnes séropositives, soutient la coalition. Mme Lacharpagne cite en exemple des cas médiatisés où des personnes accusées ont été identifiées publiquement comme des délinquants sexuels. « Ça ne donne pas une belle image de ces personnes ».

«Il y a une confusion entre le fait de ne pas dévoiler [son statut sérologique] et une agression sexuelle », déplore-t-elle.

Plus de poursuites

La COCQ-SIDA est particulièrement inquiète depuis le début de l’année, car elle observe une augmentation importante des poursuites pour non-divulgation au Québec. Le Devoirrapportait d’ailleurs cette situation au mois d’août.

Devant le refus de la ministre de la Justice du Québec, Stéphanie Vallée, de rencontrer la COCQ-SIDA, et dans le contexte d’augmentation des poursuites, la coalition estime qu’elle n’a d’autre recours que de demander un moratoire. « C’est à un niveau politique », explique Mme Lacharpagne.

Le cabinet de Mme Vallée n’a pas précisé au Devoir s’il imposera ou non un tel moratoire. Le dossier relève du gouvernement fédéral, a rappelé l’attachée de presse de la ministre, Isabelle Marier St-Onge, dans une réponse transmise par courriel.

« Le Québec est favorable à la minimisation de la stigmatisation des personnes atteintes du VIH et privilégie l’approche définie par la jurisprudence de la Cour suprême qui prévoit un juste équilibre entre la protection de la société, des victimes et le respect de la dignité des personnes atteintes du VIH », ajoute-t-elle.

FCAA Philanthopy Summit: Growing the Global Movement to End Criminalization (Funders Concerned About AIDS, 2017)

This session aimed at philanthropic funders discussed the growing global movement to end HIV criminalization – overly broad and/or vague criminal laws, that unjustly regulate, control, and/or punish people living with HIV solely based on their HIV status. The panel’s participants exemplify the uniqueness of the Robert Carr Fund model of incentivizing collaborative and joint efforts of networks across movements – who join into consortia of, for example, people living with HIV and human rights defenders/lawyers – and the model of linking activities at global, regional and national levels, which catalyzes a more aligned and impactful effect in resisting and fighting HIV criminalization.

Moderator: Sergey Votyagov, Robert Carr Fund for Civil Society Networks (RCF)
Introduction: Luisa Cabal, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
Panelists:
• Edwin Bernard, HIV Justice Network (HJN)
• Laurel Sprague, Global Network of People Living with HIV (GNP+)
• Lynette Mabote, AIDS and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa (ARASA)