What rights do victims have?
HIV positive? Get out
By Thiruni Kelegama
"Black gates enclosed me. My legs were fettered," says Ramesh*.

"Police stood guard outside the gates all the time. I was a prisoner. I had to wait like that until my visa was cancelled so that I could be deported to Sri Lanka."

Why was Ramesh a prisoner? Why was he treated in such a manner even though he had not committed a crime?

He was HIV positive. A medical check up by the hotel where he worked revealed his plight, thereby condemning him to this treatment.

"I was the only Sri Lankan there. There were a number of Indians and people of other nationalities," he says.

Young and handsome, Ramesh left for West Asia some 15 years ago to earn a better income. "I was happy there. The pay was good and I was able to send money to my family in Sri Lanka. I had not even thought of coming back to Sri Lanka."

How did he find out that he was HIV positive?

"My leg started swelling. I went to a hospital and a doctor performed some tests to find out the cause. He asked me whether I had had unprotected sex and I said I had. Even then I had no idea what he was trying to tell me. He added that I should be more careful and if he divulged this information my visa would be cancelled," says Ramesh.

But the reality did not strike him. Two years went by. "Of course, I was more careful. But I forgot that my blood tests had revealed something serious."

The hotel where Ramesh worked insisted that all the employees get a medical check up every two years. That sealed his fate. "I was immediately notified by the embassy that my visa was cancelled, as I had tested HIV positive. I was manacled and confined to a room," he recalls sadly.

Those were terrible times. "The nurses were kind, but I felt as if I had committed a crime. Even when we were leaving the country, we had to enter the airport through a separate door. That was the way criminals were taken. However, the airport here was different. I was allowed to come in as a normal person, and that was a relief."

Back home, Ramesh got himself checked at the Colombo National Hospital. Yes, he was HIV positive. He took homeopathy treatment. Life had to go on.

"I got a job in a good hotel. Working was such a relief. I made it a point to be at work every day, and never took sick leave. I loved this job so much."

But that happiness was short-lived. "One day I met this person who had worked with me in the Middle East and knew why I had been sent back. He was surprised that I was working at the hotel. He said he, too, had worked there sometime ago and would look in on me when he next came."

The very next day all the hotel employees were asked to get a medical check up done. When the results came, Ramesh was requested by the Personnel Manager to stay at home for two weeks. "We shall call you in two weeks," he was told but the call never came. When he queried from the hotel he had been told that they did not want to employ a person who was HIV positive. "I was told that they would take me back if the National Hospital gave a letter saying that I was not HIV positive. I never went back again," he says.

He never found a job after that. "My family urges me to get a job. They do not know that I am HIV positive. I cannot bear to tell them, because I have no idea how they will react. I do not know what to do. I cannot confide in many people, as being HIV positive will make me an outcast. I will be ostracised," adds Ramesh.

As the number of people who are HIV positive increases worldwide and in Sri Lanka, many questions about the rights of the victims arise.

Do they have a right to lead a normal life with dignity? Do they have a right to hold down a job without being thrown out soon after a blood test? Do they have a right to confidentiality? Shouldn't they be treated like any other sufferer of a terminal illness?

These are some of the questions which are crying out for answers.

* The name has been changed to protect his privacy

Human rights and HIV/AIDS
HIV/AIDS patients should be treated with respect, stresses Rohan Edrisinha, Director, Centre for Policy Alternatives.

"True, AIDS is deadly, but it is not as common as air-borne diseases. They should be given the benefit of the right to non-discrimination, in order that they are protected against mistreatment if they seek help or are HIV positive," he says.

According to him, the right to privacy is even more important. It would ensure that people are protected against mandatory testing and their HIV status is kept confidential. "Either way, mandatory testing is not feasible economically in the first place in Sri Lanka. We should encourage voluntary testing, and guarantee that even when the results come, it will be completely confidential. This would mean that people will get themselves tested without anyone having to force them to."

Confidentiality is a serious issue. "Long ago, there was a regulation that required a doctor to notify the district medical officer, if he ever found out a patient was HIV positive. It was removed after numerous protests because it definitely led to discrimination," he says.

"The rights of an HIV/AIDS person are violated when hospitals reveal that this particular patient is HIV positive, to outside people. They are also not treated properly in the hospital. There is segregation." says Mr. Edrisinha.

He adds: "They should have the right to education, information and health to enable them to have access to services for health care and prevention, including condoms and clean injections."

A patient's rights
The right to privacy of an individual is not expressly recognised in the Sri Lankan Constitution, but it is generally accepted that everyone has a right to live his/her life without unnecessary interference.

The right to privacy should be observed where individuals are not compelled to reveal information regarding their HIV status and undergo any examination to determine it. A person's identity and HIV positive status should not be subjected to public or private inquiry.

The right to work includes the right to equal opportunity of employment, security of tenure, common and favourable conditions of work and the right to form and join trade unions and worker organisations.

Persons with HIV/AIDS who are not incapacitated in any way should be guaranteed access to opportunity for work, security of tenure, including the enjoyment of all benefits and other terms and conditions which are extended to other workers. The right to work includes the freedom against all forms of discrimination in the workplace.

- Law, Human Rights and HIV/AIDS, a guide by the Centre for Policy Alternatives.

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