Radical, Courageous steps needed to tackle HIV/AIDS: Justice Anand
New Delhi, 22 July 2005
Dr. Justice Anand has said that the exploding problem of HIV/AIDS today is no longer a public health issue but a human rights one as well which calls for radical courageous steps and a departure from traditional public health planning. He was speaking on the topic of 'Human Rights and HIV/AIDS' at the Capacity Building State Level Workshop organized by the Family Planning Association of India in collaboration with the NHRC and State AIDS Control Society in Chandigarh today.
He observed that the time has come that "we change our mindset with regard to the manner in which we treat people infected with HIV-AIDS". He said, it is important that we have effective, voluntary counselling and testing services for HIV infection. The benefits of this would include, early management of HIV infection and, thus, improvement in quality of life, and the primary and secondary prevention of HIV-AIDS infection, he said.
Justice Anand said that with a population of more than a billion, any attempt to control spread of HIV-AIDS must take into account the complex social, economic, cultural and environmental factors in which the disease is embedded. Examples of human rights violations associated with HIV-AIDS include the refusal of treatment, denial of access to essential drugs, costly ARV drugs, discrimination in the healthcare and employment sectors, women being deprived of their rights and thrown out of their homes. Though HIV-AIDS can affect anybody, Justice Anand said, it is the "poor, the marginalized, the women and young who are most vulnerable". Many of these groups are ostracized by the society at large, and their life styles criminalized, making it practically impossible for them to participate in the mainstream processes whereby they could demand their rights.
Coupled with the dismal situation existing, there is minimal awareness about HIV-AIDS and no real options for safer life styles. According to Justice Anand, it is time that the link between marginalisation, human rights and vulnerability be recognized as this would help in creating an enabling environment, where people could come forward on their own to access health and other services. Every human being has a basic right to live with dignity and HIV-AIDS affected and infected persons are no exception, he said. Such persons have a right to live their life with dignity, to be entitled to proper medical treatment at affordable price. The society needs to offer support and protection to HIV-AIDS patients to make them feel that they are not a threat to society. They have every right to pursue occupations without losing their earning power. Various misconceptions surrounding the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS need to be reversed, he said. The response of the society has to be by a 'rights' based approach - rather than only a welfare measures. Justice Anand cited the example of how NACO has now set up a "Human Rights" Cell and suggested that the State AIDS Control Authority could do likewise. It is necessary that awareness about different aspects of the disease be created through multi-media campaign, which he said, would go a long way.
Hand-in-hand with awareness is also the need to sensitize the medical practitioners, Justice Anand said, as there have been instances, where the patient, who is HIV+ve, does not disclose that status to the doctor for fear of being turned away. Cases have come to light where the doctor has turned away a HIV-AIDS patient for fear of transmission of the disease from patient to doctor - forgetting that chances are minimal and that by taking proper precautions, the chances are absolutely negligible. In India, HIV related counselling services are still not readily available, as majority of HIV testing is not accompanied either by pre-test or post-test counselling. Hospitals too are widely known for shunning away persons with HIV infection.
Justice Anand stressed on the need for establishing of quality assured HIV Testing Centres, expansion of clinical facilities that provide HIV care, increased access to drugs with attendant laboratory facilities and above all enhanced psycho-social support for those living with or affected by HIV-AIDS. HIV/AIDS, he said, is not only a medical problem but has also psychological and social dimensions. He stated that a multi-pronged and multi-disciplinary approach is required, for the victims suffer in an atmosphere of silence, fear, prejudice, stigma, discrimination and denial of care and treatment.
Justice Anand in his address also touched on the complex issue of the right of an individual to confidentiality. This, he said, may come in conflict with the right of a party to be protected from the risk of infection and requires a balanced approach.
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Dr. Justice Anand has said that the exploding problem of HIV/AIDS today is no longer a public health issue but a human rights one as well which calls for radical courageous steps and a departure from traditional public health planning. He was speaking on the topic of 'Human Rights and HIV/AIDS' at the Capacity Building State Level Workshop organized by the Family Planning Association of India in collaboration with the NHRC and State AIDS Control Society in Chandigarh today.
He observed that the time has come that "we change our mindset with regard to the manner in which we treat people infected with HIV-AIDS". He said, it is important that we have effective, voluntary counselling and testing services for HIV infection. The benefits of this would include, early management of HIV infection and, thus, improvement in quality of life, and the primary and secondary prevention of HIV-AIDS infection, he said.
Justice Anand said that with a population of more than a billion, any attempt to control spread of HIV-AIDS must take into account the complex social, economic, cultural and environmental factors in which the disease is embedded. Examples of human rights violations associated with HIV-AIDS include the refusal of treatment, denial of access to essential drugs, costly ARV drugs, discrimination in the healthcare and employment sectors, women being deprived of their rights and thrown out of their homes. Though HIV-AIDS can affect anybody, Justice Anand said, it is the "poor, the marginalized, the women and young who are most vulnerable". Many of these groups are ostracized by the society at large, and their life styles criminalized, making it practically impossible for them to participate in the mainstream processes whereby they could demand their rights.
Coupled with the dismal situation existing, there is minimal awareness about HIV-AIDS and no real options for safer life styles. According to Justice Anand, it is time that the link between marginalisation, human rights and vulnerability be recognized as this would help in creating an enabling environment, where people could come forward on their own to access health and other services. Every human being has a basic right to live with dignity and HIV-AIDS affected and infected persons are no exception, he said. Such persons have a right to live their life with dignity, to be entitled to proper medical treatment at affordable price. The society needs to offer support and protection to HIV-AIDS patients to make them feel that they are not a threat to society. They have every right to pursue occupations without losing their earning power. Various misconceptions surrounding the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS need to be reversed, he said. The response of the society has to be by a 'rights' based approach - rather than only a welfare measures. Justice Anand cited the example of how NACO has now set up a "Human Rights" Cell and suggested that the State AIDS Control Authority could do likewise. It is necessary that awareness about different aspects of the disease be created through multi-media campaign, which he said, would go a long way.
Hand-in-hand with awareness is also the need to sensitize the medical practitioners, Justice Anand said, as there have been instances, where the patient, who is HIV+ve, does not disclose that status to the doctor for fear of being turned away. Cases have come to light where the doctor has turned away a HIV-AIDS patient for fear of transmission of the disease from patient to doctor - forgetting that chances are minimal and that by taking proper precautions, the chances are absolutely negligible. In India, HIV related counselling services are still not readily available, as majority of HIV testing is not accompanied either by pre-test or post-test counselling. Hospitals too are widely known for shunning away persons with HIV infection.
Justice Anand stressed on the need for establishing of quality assured HIV Testing Centres, expansion of clinical facilities that provide HIV care, increased access to drugs with attendant laboratory facilities and above all enhanced psycho-social support for those living with or affected by HIV-AIDS. HIV/AIDS, he said, is not only a medical problem but has also psychological and social dimensions. He stated that a multi-pronged and multi-disciplinary approach is required, for the victims suffer in an atmosphere of silence, fear, prejudice, stigma, discrimination and denial of care and treatment.
Justice Anand in his address also touched on the complex issue of the right of an individual to confidentiality. This, he said, may come in conflict with the right of a party to be protected from the risk of infection and requires a balanced approach.
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