Regional policy and model legislation to address HIV and AIDS related stigma and discrimination

This publication, commissioned by CARICOM, is a desk review report of existing legislative frameworks affecting people living with HIV (PLHIV) and their families in eleven countries in the Caribbean. 

The study highlights findings around stigma and discrimination and the legal frameworks as presented below:

• the levels of stigma and discrimination are still relatively high in the Caribbean.
• the assessments of laws and policies related to HIV and AIDS conducted by PANCAP in CARICOM Member States revealed that the existing legislative framework in the Caribbean encourages stigma and discrimination against PLHIV and other vulnerable groups, largely through omission of protective provisions and the criminalisation of certain behaviours.
• Iegislation which has been passed to address HIV clearly encourages ill will and discrimination against PLHIV.
  
• the legistlative frameworks are weak.
• a major impediment to PLHIV enforcing their rights under the existing law is the requirement that the applicant must disclose his or her status. 
• the constitutions do not guarantee protection against discrimination on the grounds of one’s health status, nor is there an enforceable right to privacy.
  
• the cost of filing civil matters or constitutional motions or administrative law remedies is prohibitive.

Main recommendations include:

• adoption of a rights based approach which recognises rights for all.
• broad anti-discrimination legislation.
• decriminalising same sex and other sexual conduct.
• repeal of provisions criminalising willful transmission of HIV.
• regulation of sex work.
• the creation of the Medical Records Act requiring the confidential treatment of medical records and information.
• expansion of fundamental rights:
• protection against discrimination in the workplace
• absolute prohibition on mandatory testing.

Various important conclusions are drawn at the end of this report, one of which is that people somehow do not feel sufficiently protected by the law against stigmatisation and discrimination to reveal that they are HIV positive.