discrimination that surround HIV and promote a supportive

States should take measures to reduce the vulnerability, stigmatization and discrimination that surround HIV and promote a supportive and enabling environment by addressing underlying prejudices and inequalities within societies and a social environment conducive to positive behaviour change. An essential part of this enabling environment involves the empowerment of women, youth and other vulnerable groups to deal with HIV by taking measures to improvetheir social and legal status, involving them in the design and implementation of programmes and assisting them to mobilize their communities. The vulnerability of some groups is due to their limited access to resources, information, education and lack of autonomy. Special programmes and measures should be designed to increase access. In many countries, community-based organizations and NGOs have already begun the process of creating a supportive and enabling environment in their response to the HIV epidemic. Governments must recognize these efforts and lend moral, legal, financial and political support to strengthen them.States should support appropriate entities, such as media groups, NGOs and networks of people living with HIV, to devise and distribute programming to promote respect for the rights and dignity of people living with HIV and members of vulnerable groups, using a broad range of media (film, theatre, television, radio, print, dramatic presentations, personal testimonies, Internet, pictures, bus posters). Such programming should not compound stereotypes about these groups but instead dispel myths and assumptions about them by depicting them as friends,relatives, colleagues, neighbours and partners. Reassurance concerning the modes of transmission of the virus and the safety of everyday social contact should be reinforcedStates should encourage educational institutions (primary and secondary schools, universities and other technical or tertiary colleges, adult and continuing education), as well as trades unions and workplaces to include HIV and human rights/non-discrimination issues in relevant curricula, such as human relationships, citizenship/social studies, legal studies, health care, law enforcement, family life and/or sex education, and welfare/counselling.States should support HIV-related human rights/ethics training/workshops for Government officials, the police, prison staff, politicians, as well as village, community and religious leaders and professionals.
States should encourage the media and advertising industries to be sensitive to HIV and human rights issues and to reduce sensationalism in reporting and the inappropriate use of stereotypes, especially in relation to disadvantaged and vulnerable groups. A training approach of this kind should include the production of useful resources, such as handbooks containing appropriate terminology, which would serve to eliminate use of stigmatizing language; and a professional code of behaviour in order to ensure respect for confidentiality and privacy.
States should support targeted training, peer education and information exchange for people living with HIV staff and volunteers of CBOs and ASOs as well as for leaders of vulnerable groups as a means of raising their awareness of human rights and of the means to enforce these rights.Conversely, education and training should be provided on HIV-specific human rights issues to those working on other human rights issues.
States should support the use of alternative efforts such as radio programmes or facilitated group discussions to overcome access problems for individuals who are located in remote or rural areas, are illiterate, homeless or marginalized and without access to television, films and videos and specific ethnic minority languages