NEW YORK, 23 september 2009 (HRW): National governments, in cooperation with international agencies and donors, should reconsider deportation policies for people living with HIV/AIDS, four HIV/AIDS and human rights groups said in a report released today.
The 27-page report, “Returned to Risk: Deportation of HIV-Positive Migrants,” was prepared by Human Rights Watch, Deutsche AIDS-Hilfe, the European AIDS Treatment Group, and the African HIV Policy Network. It describes cases in South Korea, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, and the United States in which HIV-positive migrants were deported, and describes the need to develop policies guaranteeing uninterrupted treatment for this population.
“Migrants living with HIV are often explicitly excluded from treatment,” said Katherine Todrys, researcher with the Health and Human Rights Division at Human Rights Watch. “If they are detained, they are often denied access to antiretroviral drugs, and then if deported they can’t get care.”
The groups called on governments and donors to ensure that HIV-positive migrants have access to life-saving antiretroviral therapy when detained and to ensure that, if deported, migrants are able to maintain access to treatment and care.
Læs mere: http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/09/24/deporting-hiv-positive-migrants-threatens-lives-global-goals
