We are deeply shaken by the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. We are also compelled to speak up because this is an area of the world in which we at the HIV Legal Network work, a region where the HIV pandemic rages on. The devastating occupation of Ukraine has enormous impacts on our work and … Read more
In February 2022, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights undertook a review of The Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act. The HIV Legal Network appeared before the Committee to describe how human rights violations against sex workers have escalated with the passage of the law, which has fueled stigma, … Read more
SUBMISSION TO THE OFFICE OF THE UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS: HIV, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND DRUG POLICY IN CANADA In 2021, the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution on “Human Rights in the context of HIV and AIDS” which calls on States to “end all inequalities and human rights violations and abuses faced by … Read more
SUBMISSION TO THE OFFICE OF THE UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS: HUMAN RIGHTS AND HIV CRIMINALIZATION In 2021, the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution on “Human Rights in the context of HIV and AIDS” which calls on States to “end all inequalities and human rights violations and abuses faced by persons living with, … Read more
A growing body of research confirms that the criminalization of any aspect of sex work, including the criminalization of clients, sex workers, and third parties in sex work, violates sex workers’ human rights and is in itself a social determinant of health by creating barriers to accessing health care services and building relationships with health … Read more
In response to the call for input from the Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity (to inform his presentation to the 50th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council), the HIV Legal Network makes this submission regarding human rights violations against LGBTQ+ people in the … Read more
In its Concluding Observations of March 2015, the Committee recommended the Russian Federation take all the measures necessary to ensure that: (a) its policies vis-à-vis drug users deprived of their liberty fully conform to its obligation to effectively protect them against the pain and suffering associated with the withdrawal syndrome and that timely, adequate and … Read more
On February 8, 2022, Wilfrid Laurier University’s Centre for Public Safety and Well-Being and the HIV Legal Network hosted a webinar about the science, public health, and human rights implications of HIV and Hepatitis C virus (HCV) as it relates to the provision of policing services. In this webinar, we explored how police forces in … Read more
For seven years, I have been in court fighting the Jamaican government and nine anti-gay religious groups for the right to kiss my partner. An 1864 British colonially imposed law makes acts of intimacy between men illegal, and my partner and I could be imprisoned for up to ten years at hard labour. Even worse, … Read more
This report is submitted by the HIV Legal Network and the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association. The report is based on official statistics, information from open sources and communications with civil society activists in Belarus. In the country report, the Government of Belarus informed CESCR that all HIV prevention programmes recommended by WHO have been implemented in … Read more