HIV positive: to know or not to know?

If disclosure means a threat to our neighbour, is it worth it?

Some people may believe that they should have the right to know who is actually HIV infected in order to protect themselves from the risk of contracting the disease, so they say. Still the question remains, who is really at risk of danger in their community? The facts are highlighted by the vulnerability of those HIV positive people who are still subject to discrimination to this day.

A few days ago the Offence (Aggravation by Prejudice) Bill which will ensure that for the first time people living with HIV in Scotland are protected from HIV related-hate crime was passed, and it is now awaiting approval.

Deborah Jack, the chief executive of the National AIDS Trust, said: “We are delighted that the Scottish Parliament has taken this important step. Stigma and discrimination remain a distressing and sometimes dangerous reality for many people living with HIV in the UK. This Bill, soon to be Act, sends out the important message that crime motivated by hate and prejudice is not acceptable.”

Although HIV is an incurable disease which has many unpleasant issues associated to it, such as discrimination and stigma, it is no doubt that the law of confidentiality is a solid system initially established to protect those affected by the virus. We are not turning a blind eye to the fact that the law has not yet proven to be totally in control of the disease in the UK. However, is it not sad enough to come across with news that in this modern society there are heartless people who indulge in mistreating and discriminating others simply because they are HIV positive? What a disgrace.

From what scientists and doctors have vainly tried to stress many times, we should know by now that HIV is just a ‘medical condition’ just as any other disease. So what’s all the fuss for? Surely those who are perpetrators of the stigma should be ashamed of themselves as they are causing hundreds of people to refrain from coming forward for either testing or even treatments.

Rebecca Bennett and Charles Erin argued in their book ‘HIV and AIDS: testing, screening and confidentiality’, “If there is to be adherence to the principle of equal protection for all citizens then the State should take all reasonable steps to protect individuals with HIV and AIDS from discrimination and stigmatization.”

So based on all the information and evidences which have been gathered with regards to the current issues related to HIV, is it not clear that the government is only fulfilling a “strong moral obligation” to shield HIV positive people from discrimination?