On March 22, 2022, the HIV Legal Network hosted its 10th Symposium on HIV, Law, and Human Rights. This international event explores the relationship between HIV and human rights, how criminal laws can be reformed to uphold the rights of people living with HIV, and how those working in the sector can use their work […]
Publication Topics Archives: HIV Criminalization
10th Symposium Report – HIV Criminalization: Challenging Injustice in Canada and Around the World
Prosecuting HIV-Related Criminal Cases in Canada: A Model Policy
Canada has been identified as a global hotspot of HIV-related prosecutions. As of 2022, there have been well over 200 prosecutions for alleged HIV non-disclosure in Canada. Canada’s use of the criminal law in relation to HIV has been recognized as overly broad and punitive by a wide range of stakeholders including the federal government, […]
MEDIA ADVISORY: PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV, AND OTHER LEADING CANADIAN EXPERTS TO SPEAK AT 10th SYMPOSIUM ON HIV, LAW, AND HUMAN RIGHTS
PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV, AND OTHER LEADING CANADIAN EXPERTS TO SPEAK AT 10th SYMPOSIUM ON HIV, LAW, AND HUMAN RIGHTS Media Invited to Join Virtual Sessions on HIV Criminalization in Canada For immediate release Members of the media are invited to attend HIV Criminalization: Challenging Injustice in Canada and Around the World — a free, bilingual (English/French), […]
HIV CRIMINALIZATION IN CANADA: KEY TRENDS AND PATTERNS (1989-2020)
In Canada, a person living with HIV can go to prison and be registered as a sex offender for life for not disclosing their HIV-positive status to a sexual partner in some circumstances. People are usually charged with (aggravated) sexual assault, due to the Supreme Court of Canada’s ruling that HIV non-disclosure can sometimes amount […]
Submission to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: Human Rights and HIV Criminalization
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, […]
10th Symposium on HIV, Law, and Human Rights
The HIV Legal Network hosted its 10th Symposium on HIV, Law, and Human Rights on March 22nd, 2022 – HIV Criminalization: Challenging Injustice in Canada and Around the World. This virtual event brought together people living with HIV, policymakers, legal and health professionals, along with activists and allies for a discussion about HIV and human rights. […]
Harms of Sex Offender Registries in Canada among people living with HIV
This paper examines the harms of sex offender registries (SOR) in Canada as experienced by people living with HIV. These harms are significant and wide-ranging, and include social harms, psychological harms, and harms to liberty and human dignity. Specifically, this paper examines the experiences of people living with HIV convicted of aggravated sexual assault for […]
MEDIA STATEMENT: WORLD AIDS DAY 2021: FORTY YEARS OF HIV, FORTY YEARS OF PROGRESS
WORLD AIDS DAY 2021: FORTY YEARS OF HIV, FORTY YEARS OF PROGRESS The following can be attributed to the HIV Legal Network. November 30, 2021 – Toronto – Tomorrow is World AIDS Day — a day to reflect on the current state of HIV and AIDS in the world, where we started, and how […]
Respect, Protect, Fulfill: Supporting the HIV Legal Network
Respect. Protect. Fulfill. You can help challenge wrongs, advance rights, and transform lives. Denied basic healthcare. Criminalized and vilified for love. Unfairly targeted by police. These abuses, and more, are too often the experience of people living with HIV and of communities affected by HIV. At the HIV Legal Network, our mission has always been […]
Covering Risk: HIV Criminalization and Condoms
In Canada, people living with HIV can be criminalized for not disclosing their status before engaging in a sexual activity where there is a “realistic possibility of HIV transmission.” Although the possibility of HIV transmission when a condom is used ranges from negligible to none, the law remains unsettled about whether condoms are sufficient on […]