Members of Parliament have suggested that HIV/Aids testing and counselling be made compulsory in order to control new infection rates in the country.

At a half-day workshop organised by Population Action International aimed at increasing awareness about the scourge, the MPs suggested that compulsory HIV testing would prevent the infected couples from passing it on to other partners out of wedlock.

MP's Florence Naiga and Margaret Babadiri agreed that compulsory testing was crucial for all the Ugandans. "Men usually remain at home when the ladies are going for testing but we cannot just look on when they are busy spreading it," Ms Naiga said.

The Uganda Aids Commission Director General, Dr Kihumuro Apuuli, alerted MPs that high infection rates are linked to a culture of extramarital sex in the country. He noted that out of every 100 new HIV infections, 43 are carried in marriage.

"The nation can break through its stagnant seroprevalence of 6-7 per cent by fuelling a new social movement of urgency about the virus," Dr Apuuli suggested. He urged MPs to educate the public that it is not acceptable to have extramarital affairs.

Mandatory HIV/Aids testing could be difficult to achieve, Dr Apuuli warned, given the "contentious issues" of human rights and the international norm that each individual reserves the right to decide whether or not to be tested.