The NEWS (Monrovia)
Jimmey C. Fahngon
18 March 2008
Monrovia — The Network of Liberian Parliamentarians on Population and Development (NLPPD) yesterday held a one-day workshop for several stakeholders to discuss the draft bill seeking to control HIV/AIDS in Liberia.
Speaking to reporters at the Corina Hotel in Monrovia, the Chairman of NLPPD Representative Alomiza Ennos-Barr said the passage of the law is key to control the spread of HIV/AIDS and protection of victims in Liberia.
She said all other African countries have passed such law with the exception of Liberia, adding that she would ensure that the law is passed once it gets to the Legislature.
When passed, Rep. Barr said the law would protect the confidentiality of HIV/AIDS victims, and added, "The government would ensure that all health institutions, public or private guarantee the confidentiality of medical, financial or administrative information it has on the hospitalization of people living with HIV/AIDS."
She said the law would also ensure that no one other than the person living with AIDS can have access to such confidential information except in legal cases carried out under required legal norms without violating the anonymity guaranteed by law.
According to the draft HIV/AIDS control bill, violators of the confidentiality provision shall be punished through the imposition of a fine by the Ministry of Health or face suspension and or revocation of the person's professional license or operating permit for a period of not less than 12 months.
Rep. Barr also said when enacted, HIV/AIDS victims would be prosecuted for deliberately infesting others.
The draft bill mandates the government to develop and adopt rules establishing a system of anonymous HIV/AIDS screening which shall guarantee the anonymity and medical confidentiality of person undertaking these tests.
The bill, among other things, seeks to ensure that no one is compelled to undergo HIV/AIDS test without his/her written consent.
It also calls for the establishment of a traditional medicine commission by the government responsible for the registration, accreditation, and issuance of license, suspension and withdrawal of traditional medicine practitioners in the country.
"The Ministries of Health, Education and Youth and Sports shall include information on the causes, modes of transmission and ways to prevent HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases in the curriculum of the basic secondary and tertiary levels of public and private schools and in the traditional school system," the draft stipulates.
The workshop was attended by participants from the Ministries of Health, Internal Affairs, Youth and Sports, Justice, and the National Aids Commission, among others.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The NEWS. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
