Discriminating against AIDS sufferers against constitution

The state should protect the individual against the violation of human freedoms. Unfortuna-tely, individuals who practice discrimination, hide behind State regulations “that in many cases run counter to or do not uphold the lofty goals of the Constitution,” said Sir George Alleyne, chancellor of the University of the West Indies and United Nations special envoy for HIV/AIDS for the Caribbean at the 18th Eric Williams Memorial Lecture held last Friday at the ballroom of the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre.

The event is held annually to commemorate TT’s first Prime Minister. Sir George said although it is known that HIV is transmitted in prisons, there are violent objections in some countries to making condoms available to prisoners because the state had made buggery a crime. He hoped that one day countries could find a way to make condoms readily available where they are needed, without damaging laws. “I hope sooner rather than later our societies will come to terms with the conflict between the desire to maintain what it considers to be moral behaviour and the reality that such tenets run counter to the laudable goals of our constitutions,” Sir George said.

Data on stigma and discrimination is difficult to get, but the information that exists shows that it may prevent as many as 30 percent of women who know they are HIV positive from disclosing their status to their partners. “And in some cases they become pregnant more than once,” Sir George said. There are validated accounts of people being shunned, ostracised, and abused when it is known or suspected they have AIDS. He said the stigma derives from the disease being associated with sex and immorality, especially the belief that much of the spread is or was due to homosexual practices. Stigma can drive HIV/AIDS underground, prevent people from seeking medical treatment even when it is available and reduces the possibility of curtailing its spread.

Addressing the topic “HIV/AIDS challenges to the Caribbean,” Sir George said if Dr Eric Williams were alive today he would have upheld the Declaration of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights which states that discrimination on the basis of HIV/AIDS status, whether actual or presumed is prohibited by existing human rights standards. He believed Dr Williams “would have been vehemently opposed to discrimination against any group of persons because of their affliction by disease or because of the presumption of a difference in sexual orientation.” Sir George said the basic challenge of HIV/AIDS is that it arrested development, robbing the Caribbean of basic freedoms which are necessary for development.

Showing the link between good health and economic performance he said good health increases the cognitive ability of children and their potential earning capacity. Sir George said investment in creating a healthy population enhanced returns to investment in education both because of the effect of good health on children’s learning ability and a longer life represented a longer time for a return on investment. He said the impact of health on the ability to learn is even more important for Caribbean societies which are depending less on physical manual labour and more on the use of information and ability to absorb or generate technological know-how.

Sir George said HIV/AIDS will have several negative impacts on economies, but the most important is the reduction in the stock and quality of human capital through increased mortality. Sir George said mortality will affect the savings rate as life expectancy falls especially among the most productive parts of the population and the dependency ratio increases.