Central African Republic Ministers Approve Progressive AIDS Bill

On Wednesday, the cabinet of the Central African Republic approved a bill that codifies the right of AIDS patients to health care, including antiretrovirals and drugs to prevent opportunistic infections. It further guarantees AIDS patients' right to confidentiality and employment, making it a crime to "breach the privacy of HIV-positive persons and to make insulting remarks with regard to being HIV-positive." However, the measure, which must be approved by parliament to take effect, also makes it a crime to transmit HIV. It is estimated that 15 percent of people in the Central African Republic are HIV-positive, yet only about 2,000 patients are receiving antiretrovirals. The nation of 3.9 million is one of the world's poorest, and more than 200,000 of its people have died of AIDS since 1984.

Back to other news for April 20, 2006