The law criminalises pregnant women who pass HIV/AIDS to their babies,
potentially discouraging people from finding out their status. PHOTO |
FILE
By KATY MIGIRO
In Summary
Human rights groups have welcomed moves to change a
Kenyan law passed to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS, which criminalises
pregnant women who pass HIV/AIDS to their babies, saying it discouraged
people from finding out their status.
The 2006 law says that a person who knows they are HIV
positive must tell "any sexual contact" of their status in advance and
could be jailed for seven years if they "knowingly and recklessly"
placed another person at risk of being infected.
The High Court ruled this section of the law
unconstitutional on March 18 as "it could be interpreted to apply to
women who expose or transmit HIV to a child during pregnancy, delivery
or breastfeeding".
The law was introduced to curb the spread of
HIV/AIDS in Kenya, which has the fourth largest HIV positive population
in the world - 1.7 million people.
Rights groups argue that it discriminates against
women, who are often the first members of a family to find out their HIV
status as they are usually tested while pregnant.
"This law has inflicted fear, shame and punishment
on countless Kenyans, especially pregnant women," Evelyne Opondo, Africa
director of the New-York based Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR),
said in a statement on Monday.
"Now is the time for the Kenya government to
immediately amend this legislation and ensure people living with HIV can
get the care they need without fear of discrimination or
criminalisation."
CCR submitted an amicus brief in a case brought
against the government by the AIDS Law Project, a charity providing
legal services and counselling to people living with HIV.
The charity argued that the law discourages people
from finding out their status and could even prevent those with HIV
giving first aid or playing sports for fear of being prosecuted.
The law also puts women at risk of violence or
rejection by their husbands because it allows doctors to disclose
patients' status to their next of kin, it said.
"If we want to reduce the spread of HIV and AIDS
and put an end to the stigma, violence and discrimination surrounding
the disease, our public policies must be based on medical evidence and
grounded in human rights," Jacinta Nyachae, executive director of the
AIDS Law Project, said in the statement.
The High Court advised the government to review the law to avoid further litigation.
-Reuters-
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