Do people with HIV have a right to travel freely?
August 26, 2008
After two decades, the United States of America has begun the process to repeal its ban on allowing HIV-infected people to enter the country. However, seven other countries, including South Korea, still refuse entry to all HIV-positive people, and 65 other nations place some travel restrictions on the estimated 33 million people worldwide living with the virus.
U.S. President George W. Bush signed legislation last week repealing a rule that prevented HIV-infected immigrants, students and tourists from receiving U.S. visas without special waivers. The ban also held up U.S. adoptions of children with HIV.
Ron MacInnis, director of policy for the International AIDS Society that organized the conference, said travel restrictions often force people with HIV to hide or even lie about being infected.
Many nations adopted their restrictions during the 1980s when mass hysteria surrounded the virus and little was known about how it is spread.
The European AIDS Treatment Group says seven nations ban people with HIV from entering: Brunei, Oman, Qatar, Sudan, South Korea, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. About 30 deport foreigners once they are discovered to have the virus, including North Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Hungary, Egypt, Sri Lanka, and Russia, the group says.
China has promised to lift its ban, though it has not said when, and nations from Russia to the United Arab Emirates are revising their policies, said Craig McClure, executive director of the International AIDS Society.
“HIV is a disease which is NOT spread to the general public through casual contact, and a discriminatory policy that bans HIV-positive immigrants will NOT protect us from this virus.“ says Dr. David Butler-Jones, past President of the Canadian Public Health Association.
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