Legal environments affecting the HIV response in South-East Asia: New report
Published on Monday, 29 June 2015 10:05
Launched this week, HIV and the Law in South-East Asia is a legal review by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Bangkok Regional Hub and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Taskforce on AIDS. The report is part of the ASEAN Cities Getting to Zero Initiative.
Applying a human rights-based methodology, the report provides a regional analysis and summary of both helpful and harmful laws, policies and police practices. Examples of protective country laws and good practices are highlighted throughout the report, which can inform efforts to improve the legal environment for HIV responses throughout the ten member countries of ASEAN: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam, in addition to Timor-Leste.
“Stigma and discrimination continue to affect key populations and people living with HIV throughout the region,” says UNDP’s Nadia Rasheed, Regional Team Leader for HIV, Health and Development. “Advocating for the enactment of laws and policies to protect the human rights of vulnerable populations is an essential part of the effort to combat stigma, discrimination and the spread of HIV.”
HIV and the Law in South-East Asia offers practical recommendations in support of regional commitments for countries to strengthen legal responses to HIV and to protect human rights. These recommendations, which draw on the findings of the Global Commission on HIV and the Law, are intended for consideration by governments and civil society partners conducting reviews of HIV-related national laws, policies and practices. Download the report Source: UNDP