right to health in the context of hiv/aids human rights and traditional values: obstracting or...
TRANSCRIPT
Right to Health in the Context of HIV/AIDS
Human Rights and Traditional Values: Obstracting or Facilitating Human Rights
Chaminuka Lodge, LUSAKA
Why Right to Health is a topic for discussion?
Every person has the Right to the highest attainable standard of health. (ICESCR article 12)
‘fundamental human right’ and ‘a most important world-
wide social goal’ requiring action by many actors other than just the health sector (non-binding Ama Ata Declaration).
HIV/AIDS Context
WHO (2015) indicates that: Since the beginning of the epidemic, almost 78 million people have been infected with the HIV virus about 39 million people have died of HIV. Globally, 35.0 million [approx. 33.2–37.2 million] people were living with HIV at the end of 2013, out of a global population of approx. 7 billion people.Increasingly, demographic trends indicate that poor people and poor regions of the of the world are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS, and least able to deal with it.
Historically, aggressive treatment focussed strategies were used to fight communicable diseases incl HIV/AIDS. These measures have included: identifying infected individuals; tracking, notifying and testing people who may have been
exposed; and isolating and quarantining individuals who
may pose a risk of infecting others.These strategies have human rights implications such
as the rights to privacy and personal autonomy, the right to non-discriminatory treatment, and the freedom of movement and association.
Human Rights and HIV/AIDS
Examples: criminalisation of willful transmission, while it may have had good motivations, led to victimisation and suffering of women in failed PMTCT processes, as a result, women started avoiding HTC.Mandatory testing led to discrimination in recruitment and other opportunities and cause people to suffer and experience emotional and social deaths.
Human Rights violations that resulted
It became increasingly important to address HIV/AIDS from a rights-based approach to protect PLH.
Today, Human rights must be applied in addressing:HIV Prevention: with increased
discrimination, HIV infection flourishesSupport care and treatment (PLWH)
Mitigation of the impact (people directly affected) – orphans, widows, poor communities
Normative Definition of Right to Health
the ‘highest attainable standard of health’ contains both freedoms and entitlements. UN General Comment no. 14: the right to health must include both entitlements and the freedoms.Freedoms include: Right to control one’s body and health, including sexual and reproductive freedom.Right to be free from interference such as free from torture, non-consensual medical treatment and experimentation.
Examples of violation
(Windhoek, Namibia, Nov. 3, 2014) – Today the Namibian Supreme Court affirmed that HIV-positive women have been forcibly sterilised in public hospitals in Namibia.
The case of Kapiri men suspected of being homosexual – forced to consent medical examination under threats of torture.
Gender relations – women can not decide, husbands decide for them
Entitlements include:
Right to a system of health protection which provides equality of opportunity for people to enjoy the highest attainable level of health.
Elements include;
Availability
This entails a functioning public health and health-care facilities, goods, and services as well as programmes. Currently situation is discriminatory, in adequate, characterised by:1.Lack of services for people of different sexual orientations and gender identity – Panos study2.In some case, discriminatory to single women (male involvement)3.Marginalisation of poor people in far-flung areas4.Poor management, drug stock outs, limited personnel, etc chadiza case of IpTp.
Accessibility
Ensuring that health facilities, goods and services are accessible to everyone, without discrimination. Accessibility has four overlapping dimensions: Non-discrimination: LGBTI people Physical accessibility: challenges esp with remote
areas, maternity cases. Economic accessibility: free services but not
adequate Information accessibility: the right to seek, receive
and impart ideas – recent victory with Kasonkomona’s case, still stigmatised.
Continued…
Acceptability: respectful of medical ethics, and culturally appropriate, respectful of confidentiality: Blackmail by health service providers – Panos study Sexual favours, sexual abuse – BLM case in Malawi
Quality: scientifically, medically of good quality.
submissions
Need to strengthen mechanisms to increase state accountability on international human rights obligations
Need for increased awareness/popularisation of the broad concept on the right to health – even some human right activists don’t understand it fully.
Need for increased rights-based approach to HIV prevention, moving away from moralistic approaches
Addressing women’s socioeconomic vulnerabilities.