March for legal reforms to improve AIDS response

Lucknow, Aug 31 (UNI) About 500 people living with HIV/AIDS, along with members of voluntary organisations, drawn from different parts of the country, today participated in a march here, to create awareness about legal reforms to improve AIDS reponse and exert pressure on the government to expedite the HIV/AIDS bill in Parliament.

The two km march was flagged off by Lucknow Mayor Dr Dinesh Sharma with participants raising slogans.

Later, representatives of different NGOs addressing the gathering claimed that the present laws were not offering any redressal for against discrimination, neglect and violence faced by people living with HIV.

They said that the laws have failed to help them because of a lack of clarity on the legal redressal options available to HIV positive people, particularly in the private sector, which is not covered by the constitutional guarantee of equality.

Pressing for a new central act, the activists maintained that the country needs a legislation on HIV to protect the rights of the people living with HIV/AIDS.

'' A draft of the legislation has already been prepared which embodies principles of human rights and seeks to establish humane and egalitarian legal regime to support country's prevention, treatment,care and support efforts for the HIV/AIDS people'', they stressed.

UNI