UNAIDS: Protecting human rights is key to ending AIDS

UNAIDS Executive Director, Margaret Byanyima, noted that although the world has made remarkable achievements in the fight against HIV, human rights violations continue to hinder progress in ending AIDS.

The report shows that when girls are denied an education, when gender-based violence goes unpunished, when individuals are arrested because of who they are or who they love, and when certain social groups face life-threatening situations when seeking health care, these groups are unable to access life-saving HIV services and are unable to escape the threat of HIV. The key to protecting everyone’s health is to protect everyone’s rights.

According to statistics, there are currently 39.9 million people living with HIV worldwide, of which 9.3 million have not received necessary treatment. In 2023, AIDS-related diseases claimed the lives of 630,000 people and 1.3 million new infections were reported. What is particularly serious is that the number of new HIV infections continues to rise in at least 28 countries. In order to effectively curb the epidemic, it is crucial to ensure that all patients in need of treatment can obtain AIDS prevention and treatment services without fear.

Young women and girls are particularly affected

In 2023, approximately 570 young women and girls aged 15 to 24 will be newly infected with HIV every day. In at least 22 countries in eastern and southern Africa, women and girls in this age group are three times more likely to be infected with HIV than men.

Ngema, a 21-year-old AIDS activist, said no girl should be deprived of the right to education and information, which are the key to helping them protect themselves. Discrimination and violence against girls should be regarded as a human rights and health emergency.

Legal and social stigma pose significant barriers

The report also points out that the criminalization and stigmatization of marginalized groups seriously hinder people’s access to life-saving HIV prevention and treatment services. In the “Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS” adopted in 2021, countries around the world pledged to reduce the proportion of countries with restrictive legal and policy frameworks that hinder people’s access to HIV prevention and treatment services to less than 10% by 2025. But as of 2023, 63 countries still criminalize same-sex relations, and these laws hinder HIV prevention efforts. Surveys show that in countries that criminalize same-sex relations, the HIV infection rate among men who have sex with men is five times that of countries that do not criminalize them.