• Read the Report
  • Contact Us
Global Commission on HIV and the LawGlobal Commission on HIV and the LawGlobal Commission on HIV and the Law
Menu
  • Background
    • HIV and the Law
    • Commission Overview
    • Commissioners
    • Technical Advisory Group
  • Report
    • 2012 Report
    • 2018 Supplement
  • SCALE Initiative
  • Dialogues
    • Global Dialogue 2018
      • 2018 Supplement
      • Global Dialogue 2018 Videos
    • Global Dialogue 2012
      • Video
      • Photo Gallery
      • Speeches
    • Regional Dialogues
      • Asia-Pacific Regional Dialogue
      • Caribbean
      • Eastern Europe and Central Asia
      • Latin America
      • Africa
      • Middle East and North Africa
      • High Income Countries
      • Civil Society Participation
      • Submissions to the Regional Dialogues
  • Implementation
    • Access to Health Technologies
      • Competition Law Guidance
      • Competition Law Webinar
      • 2022 Supplement
    • Civic Space
    • Digital
      • Guidance on the rights-based and ethical use of digital technologies
    • Programmes
      • Being LGBTI in Asia
      • Challenging stigma and discrimination in the Caribbean
      • Guidance for Prosecutors on HIV-related Criminal Cases
      • Improving SRHR for young key populations in Southern Africa
      • International Guidelines on Human Rights & Drug Policy
      • Multi-Country Western Pacific Integrated HIV/TB Project
      • Promoting a rights-based response to HIV in Africa
      • Removing legal barriers in Africa
      • South Asia Global Fund HIV Programme
      • UHC Legal Solutions Network
    • Follow Up
      • Follow Up Stories
      • Legal Environment Assessments
      • Leave No One Behind: Lessons from the Global Commission on HIV and the Law for Agenda 2030
  • Resources
    • eLibrary
      • Capacity Development Toolkits
      • Fact Sheets
      • Legal Environment Assessments, Reviews and Audits
      • National Dialogue Reports
      • Policy and Issue Briefs
      • Research, Discussion Papers and Reports
    • Evaluation of the Global Commission on HIV & the Law
    • Report & Working Papers
      • Read the Report
      • 2018 Supplement
      • Working Papers
      • Submissions
      • Presentations
      • Articles and Speeches from Commissioners
      • Selected Bibliographies
    • Regional Dialogue Resources
      • Asia-Pacific
      • Caribbean
      • Latin America
      • Eastern Europe and Central Asia
      • Africa
      • High Income Countries
    • HIV and the Law Animated Video
  • News
    • News Articles
    • Press Releases
    • Newsletter Archives
  • Past Events

Federal Court Reafirms 2013 Supreme Court Ruling on Anti-Prostitution Pledge

Share this post

Federal Court Reafirms 2013 Supreme Court Ruling on Anti-Prostitution Pledge

Published on Tuesday, 03 February 2015 14:12
Court Demands U.S. Government Stop Applying Pledge to U.S. Public Health Groups and Foreign Affiliates
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York has reaffirmed that a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling declaring the anti-prostitution loyalty oath (APLO) unconstitutional protects U.S.-based organizations and their affiliates from being subjected to the policy. The District Court decision, issued by Judge Victor Marrero on Friday, January 30, rejected the U.S. government’s (USG) attempts to apply the APLO to foreign affiliates of U.S. organizations.

The APLO was part of the 2003 law authorizing the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and required organizations receiving U.S. global HIV funds to adopt an organization-wide policy opposing sex work. Data show that the APLO has a detrimental effect on U.S. HIV programs. In response to the ruling by Judge Marrero, Serra Sippel, president of the Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE) issued the following statement: “Judge Marrero’s ruling confirms what so many of us know – the APLO is a violation of the First Amendment and is a threat to HIV public health programs,” said Sippel. “This latest ruling is a victory for human rights.

There is no room in public health for a policy that undermines the basic human right to life-saving health care for any population, including sex workers. The APLO was based on the discrimination of one of the groups most at risk of HIV infection and runs counter to known best practices in public health interventions. This decision enables U.S. providers and their affiliates to use U.S. funding to address HIV and AIDS and not be sidetracked by ideology.”

Co-plaintiffs in Alliance for Open Society International (AOSI) v. United States Agency for International Development include Pathfinder International, Open Society Foundations, InterAction, and the Global Health Council. For more information on the case and court filings visit: http://www.pledgechallenge.org/  

Source: CHANGE

Recent Posts

  • Legal empowerment is key to ending AIDS
  • UNDP and PEPFAR partnership to accelerate the removal of structural barriers to HIV services
  • Successfully expanding the rollout of PrEP in Indonesia
  • Decriminalizing HIV: Scientifically proven and morally correct
  • Ensuring sustainability of community-led HIV service delivery in Thailand

© 2017 [blog-link], All Rights Reserved.