Warsaw Declaration on HIV/AIDS and injection drug use adopted

Explosive epidemics of HIV among injection drug users are occurring in both developing and developed countries. Globally, it is estimated that 10 percent of HIV infections are attributable to injection drug use, but this proportion is increasing, and is much higher in many countries. Effective interventions exist to prevent the spread of HIV among injection drug users, but in most countries they are being adopted too slowly, or not at all. On 14 November 2003, the Warsaw Declaration: A Framework for Effective Action on HIV/ADS and Injection Drug Use, was adopted at the 2nd International Policy Dialogue on HIV/AIDS. Its purpose is to provide a framework for--finally--"mounting an effective response that will slow and eventually stop the HIV/AIDS epidemic among injecting drug users worldwide."     

African ILO meeting endorses efforts by employers' and workers' organizations to fight HIV/AIDS

In December 2003, the Tenth African International Labour Organization (ILO) Regional Meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia adopted a resolution on HIV/AIDS calling on African governments to support the efforts of employers and workers to combat HIV/AIDS--by providing an enabling legal and policy framework for workplace action, by providing measures to oppose stigma and discrimination, and by strengthening national AIDS plans through the inclusion of a strategy for the world of work. The resolution also called on workers' and employers' organizations to increase their joint efforts to reduce the spread and impact of HIV/AIDS. Finally, the resolution called on the ILO to give greater priority to its efforts to combat the pandemic in Africa.     

Barcelona 2002: law, ethics, and human rights. Juggling individual and collective concerns with respect to HIV/AIDS policies

Efforts to prevent the spread of HIV infection sometimes give rise to tensions between individual and collective rights. This article, based on a presentation by Nelson Varas-Díaz (abstract TuOrG1171), explores these tensions in the context of the laws and policies of eight Latin American countries: Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and Puerto Rico. The article describes five elements of the response to HIV/AIDS in which tensions between individual and collective rights have surfaced: the participation of people living with HIV/AIDS on national commissions; the ability of HIV-positive persons to access antiretroviral medications; HIV-antibody testing practices; the confidentiality of health information; and the rights and duties of people living with HIV/AIDS. The article concludes that the success of programs designed to prevent the spread of HIV infection depends on the ability of societies and governments to balance the tensions between individual and collective rights.     

Health Canada unveils plan to distribute marijuana for medical use

Under pressure from the courts, Health Canada reluctantly comes up with a distribution plan to provide dried cannabis and seeds to patients using medical marijuana. The plan has been greeted with considerable criticism     

HIV/AIDS and human rights revisited

In their article, Sofia Gruskin and Daniel Tarantola demonstrate how, as the number of people living with HIV and with AIDS continues to grow in nations with different economies, social structures, and legal systems, HIV/AIDS-related human rights issues are not only becoming more apparent, but also increasingly diverse. In the 1980s, the relationship of HIV/AIDS to human rights was only understood as it involved people with HIV or AIDS and the discrimination to which they were subjected. The concerns included mandatory HIV testing; restrictions on international travel; barriers to employment and housing, access to education, medical care, or health insurance; and the many issues raised by named reporting, partner notification, and confidentiality. Almost 20 years into the epidemic, these issues remain serious and most often have not been resolved. In the 1990s, however, there was increased understanding of the importance of human rights as a factor in determining people's vulnerability to HIV infection and their consequent risk of acquiring HIV infection and their chances of accessing appropriate care and support. And most recently, human rights have also come to be understood to be directly relevant to every element of the risk/vulnerability paradigm. Gruskin and Tarantola identify three situations and three levels of governmental obligations that should be considered when identifying the specific needs and related rights of individuals in the context of HIV/AIDS. They conclude that policymakers, program managers, and service providers must become more comfortable using human rights norms and standards to guide and limit government action in all matters affecting the response to HIV/AIDS; and that those involved in HIV/AIDS advocacy must become more familiar with the practicalities of using international human rights law when they strive to hold governments accountable.     

Update to international guidelines on HIV/AIDS and human rights

On 10 September 2002, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) released a revised international guideline on "Access to prevention, treatment, care and support." The update to Guideline 6 of HIV/AIDS and Human Rights: International Guidelines reflects significant therapeutic, political, and legal developments in this area since the 12 guidelines were originally published in 1998. The new Guideline 6 significantly expands the guidance given to governments on what international human rights norms require of them in relation to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support.     

Honduras: government intimidates people with HIV/AIDS asserting right to medicines

In August 2002, the Honduran Ministry of Health violated the human rights of four Hondurans living with HIV/AIDS by releasing their names to a national newspaper.