The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : At last, some measures

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Nov 28, 2007
ePaper

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

At last, some measures

Swathi Shivanand

BANGALORE: The absence of proper laws to aid those with HIV/AIDS has been one of the most important reasons that this community continues to live on the fringes of society, without any form of social security or entitlements.

But that could change if the draft law prepared by the Lawyers’ Collective and currently with the Law Department is adopted by the Centre.

Speaking to The Hindu about the draft, a long-time member of the Bangalore HIV-AIDS Forum, who requested anonymity, said that the law is “basically an anti-discrimination law that seeks to protect people in the sectors of employment, health care and in education”.

With perhaps the most severe form of discrimination in hospitals, the draft law proposes a health ombudsman in healthcare settings to ensure that people receive the right kind of treatment and on time. It also proposes that a complaint officer be appointed in all public and private companies with a staff of 20 and above, who can deal with any problems faced by people with HIV/AIDS.

Currently, with the Government’s role limited to providing funds to organisations working in the field of HIV/AIDS, the draft law proposes that an entire gamut of social security measures such as ration cards, free treatment and medicines and guaranteed employment be made available to those suffering from the disease that has been declared a pandemic.

The need for such a law was felt, said the member of the forum, because it led to many ambiguities. “For example, a civil court in the country passed a judgment stating that people with HIV/AIDS cannot marry. Then the next year, another judgment was passed saying they could marry. The absence of a law has meant that there are many inconsistencies in judgment,” he said.

Different statutory provisions have to be drawn on if one has to prove that rights of the person with HIV/AIDS have been violated. “We have to draw from the fundamental rights and sometimes cite judgments in foreign countries as precedents,” he said.

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