AIDS 2016: Inclusion of vulnerable communities tops agenda
Updated | By Khatija Nxedlana
Delegates at the International Aids Conference in Durban have heard exclusion and discrimination can fuel the spread of HIV and reduce the likelihood of people to go test and seek treatment.
Panellists, including the president of the International AIDS Society, have been deliberating on the topic of vulnerable communities including homosexual men, transgender people, sex workers, drug users and prisoners.
President of the International AIDS Society Chris Beyrer says these vulnerable populations share not only high burdens of HIV but also low access to essential services that would help them protect themselves and get treatment.
Abhina Aher, who’s a transgender woman, says it’s time for minority groups to be included in the conversation.
" We do not have enough capacities within the trans networks and organisations to implement the program. We don't need anymore lip service. What we need is your action and your engagement. When you do that - make sure that you are sitting on the right table," he said.
Justice Edwin Cameron of the Constitutional Court of South Africa has echoed Aher’s sentiments calling for the recognition of vulnerable communities. Cameron was diagnosed with HIV nearly 30 years ago.
"We've had to struggle for that representation, ownership, and recognition. Ladies and gentlemen - we live on a continent in which levels of homophobia are appalling. We have to protect the rights of the key populations - transgender people and sex workers," he said.
(File photo)
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