Most HIV-positive Women in US Prisons are Black, Latina

UNITED STATES: /HEALTH/RIGHTS/ /28/08/02 Sabanews

NEW YORK -- Women of colour comprise the vast majority of HIV/AIDS cases in the UNITED STATES.

Just over half of the female US prison population is Latina and African-American women. Behind prison walls, there is an acute lack of support services and insensitivity, particularly regarding HIV/AIDS, rights advocates say.

A report by Inter Press Service (IPS) on HIV/AIDS and prisons says in most US states, only a very small number of HIV-positive inmates are even identified.

One of the reasons is AIDS phobia, according to Judy Greenspan, a long-time advocate for prisoners living with HIV/AIDS. “It’s the one disease you’re blamed for,” she says. Prisoners are made to feel it is because they did something wrong, and it is their fault.

About 80 percent of women inmates in US prisons are in jail for non-violent offences, usually drug related. Women in jail are three times as likely as male prisoners to be living with AIDS.

Black and Latina women face discrimination at the hands of prison guards. The biggest barrier to HIV/AIDS treatment is the prison system. Prevention and emotional support, which are equally critical, are often lacking. /Sabanews/an

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AIDS Orphans Face Frequent Discrimination in Guinea

GUINEA: /HEALTH/RIGHTS/ /28/08/02 Sabanews

CONAKRY – GUINEA has more than 13,000 children, orphaned by AIDS. They face frequent discrimination, says a non-governmental organisation.

Children who lose their parents to AIDS often face rejection, according to a study done by the organisation Stat Views International. The study is the first national study on HIV-infection in Guinea, a report by Inter Press Service (IPS) says.

Extended families, which can normally be relied on to take in orphans, are scared to raise these children.

The reason for the discrimination is an acute lack of awareness about the disease among the general population, says the organisation. The HIV infection rate in GUINEA is 2.8 percent. This year, 13,800 deaths in GUINEA have already been attributed to AIDS.

Former social services minister Dr. MARIAMA DJELO BARRY is quoted by IPS saying the goal is to ensure that AIDS orphans are cared for. /Sabanews/an

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Free Anti-Retrovirals for Miners in SOUTH AFRICA

SOUTH AFRICA: /RIGHTS/HEALTH/ /28/08/02 Sabanews

JOHANNESBURG – Some of SOUTH AFRICA’s biggest mining companies have made anti-retroviral treatment free for HIV-infected miners, according to a report by Inter Press Service (IPS).

Anglo-American, one of the world’s largest mining groups, has said it will bear the expense of making anti-retrovirals available to those workers who do not have access to the medication. Some 23 percent of its employees are living with HIV.

De Beers, the world's biggest diamond mining company and a subsidiary of Anglo-American has announced a similar plan for its 11,000 employees and their partners.

To encourage workers to stay with the treatment, participants in the drug programme will be expected to make a ten-percent contribution towards the costs.

Media reports say a number of other large South African companies are either providing - or considering providing - anti-retrovirals to their employees.

IPS points out that for the companies, the provision of the drugs is also a basic business decision. As the impact of the spread of HIV and AIDS is felt in the South African workforce, they are losing valuable experienced and skilled employees to illness and death. /Sabanews/an

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