The April 2007 UNAIDS Guidance Note: HIV and Sex Work (“the Guidance Note”) is inconsistent with previous UN statements on the central importance of respecting, protecting and fulfilling the rights of sex workers in programs and policies related to sex work and HIV. The Guidance Note fails to consider seriously the precarious human rights situation … Read more
The Interagency Coalition on AIDS and Development (ICAD), the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, and the Canadian Working Group on HIV and Rehabilitation (CWGHR) led a consultative process to gather civil society perspectives on Canada’s global engagement on HIV and AIDS. This document is based on the findings from two sets of key informant interviews, a … Read more
Given the extensive evidence of known risks and successful responses to harm-reduction strategies, denying prisoners access to sterile injection or tattooing equipment infringes their human rights and raises questions about the legal liability of correctional systems.
“We write with regard to the government’s review of Canada’s Access to Medicines Regime (CAMR), currently underway, and to share you with some highlights of findings from a recent international consultation our organizations co-hosted to examine CAMR and related issues. . . . “The full report of the Expert Consultation will follow in due course, … Read more
“As one of the civil society organizations that has been actively engaged over several years in policy discussions with the federal government regarding the issue of intellectual property law and access to affordable medicines in developing countries — and in particular the provisions of Canada’s Access to Medicines Regime (CAMR) — we write to raise … Read more
“I am writing to urge you to reconsider the termination of the Safer Crack Use Initiative, as decided by City Council on July 11, 2007. “Opposition to this program is based in part on the mistaken belief that it contravenes the law . . . . We wish to explain how the distribution of safer … Read more
All people have the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. For people who use addictive drugs, treatment for drug dependence is an essential element of this human right. But social attitudes toward, and criminalization of, people who use illegal drugs have apparently influenced the practice and policy … Read more