Eliminate HIV-related stigma – Report
A report from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has called for the elimination of HIV-related stigma and discrimination.
It said HIV-related stigma and discrimination persisted as major obstacles to an effective HIV response in all parts of the world.
The UNAIDS report on global AIDS epidemic 2013 was made available to the Ghana News Agency.
It said the People Living with HIV Stigma Index and other research had quantified and enhanced understanding of the prevalence and impact of stigma and discrimination.
The report said stigma and discrimination persist within many health care facilities, with People Living with HIV experiencing judgmental attitudes from providers and refusal of services.
The report said there had been numerous reports of involuntary sterilization of women living with HIV, including instances that resulted in legal action in several countries, such as Chile, Kenya and Namibia.
It said people who experience stigma and discrimination report a range of negative effects, including loss of income, isolation from communities and inability to participate as a productive member of society as a result of their HIV status.
The report said as a result of the pernicious effects of stigma and discrimination on both people living with HIV and the effectiveness of HIV programmes, the Global Commission on HIV and the Law urged that countries take immediate steps to repeal punitive laws and prohibit discrimination.
It said protective laws, adequately resourced and enforced, help broaden access to essential health and social services, enhance the quality and effectiveness of services and protect people living with or vulnerable to HIV from stigma, discrimination and violence.
The report said in 2012, 61 per cent of countries reported the existence of anti-discrimination laws that protect people living with HIV and many who experience rights abuses do not obtain redress through legal means.
“In 17 out of 23 countries where the People Living with HIV Stigma Index research was conducted, less than 30 per cent of people living with HIV who have experienced rights violations reported having sought legal redress (regardless of whether redress was successful),” it said.
The report said to ensure access to legal redress, HIV-related legal services must be in place for people living with HIV.
The report said in 2012, 55 per cent of countries reported the existence of HIV-related legal services (compared to 45 per cent in 2008) while 57 per cent showed that judges and magistrates had received training on HIV discrimination (up from 46 per cent in 2008).
Countries reporting the existence of free or reduced-cost legal services to people living with HIV through private sector law firms or university-based centres increased from 39 per cent in 2008 to 52 per cent in 2012.
Source: GNA