The Criminalize Hate Not HIV campaign recently launched an online tool to help people living with HIV, campaigners, activists and policy makers worldwide to find out more about the state and impact of laws and policies. The tool can be found at www.hivandthelaw.com.
It was produced by the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) to “counter the alarming international trend in recent years towards the criminalization of HIV transmission, and argues for an evidence-based approach to HIV prevention that does not increase the stigma surrounding HIV and protects the human rights of people living with HIV.”
In the press release, Kevin Osborne, Senior Adviser on HIV at IPPF, stated:
“The last decade has seen the criminal law become part of national responses to HIV and to promoting public health; yet the criminal law is a blunt instrument for HIV prevention. All current evidence points towards criminalization hampering an effective response to HIV prevention, and towards criminal laws being ineffective in protecting the most vulnerable from infection. Criminalize Hate Not HIV is concerned that these laws increase stigma and discourage health seeking behaviour.”
For further reading on how legal environments affect the HIV response, visit the UNAIDS NGO Delegation’s 2011 NGO Report site.