vulnerable to HIV/AIDS due to the discrimination they face

General anti-discrimination laws should be enacted or revised to cover people living with asymptomatic HIV infection, people living with AIDS and those merely suspected of HIV or AIDS। Such laws should also protect groups made more vulnerable to HIV/AIDS due to the discrimination they face. Disability laws should also be enacted or revised to include HIV and AIDS in their definition of disability. Such legislation should include the following:
The areas covered should be as broad as possible, including health care, social security, welfare benefits, employment, education, sport, accommodation, clubs, trades unions, qualifying bodies, access to transport and other services;
indirect discrimination should be covered, as should cases where HIV is only one of several reasons for a discriminatory act, and prohibiting HIV vilification should also be considered;
Independent, speedy and effective legal and/or administrative procedures for seeking redress, including such features as fast-tracking for cases where the complainant is terminally ill, investigatory powers to address systemic cases of discrimination in policies and procedures, ability to bring cases under pseudonym and representative complaints, including the possibility of public interest organizations bringing cases on behalf of people living with HIV;
(iv) Exemptions for superannuation and life insurance should only relate to reasonable actuarial data, so that HIV is not treated differently from analogous medical conditions.
(b) Traditional and customary laws which affect the status and treatment of various groups of society should be reviewed in the light of anti-discrimination laws. If necessary, legal remedies should be made available, if such laws are misused and information, education and community mobilization campaigns should be conducted to change these laws and attitudes associated with them.
(c) General confidentiality and privacy laws should be enacted. HIV-related information on individuals should be included within definitions of personal/medical data subject toprotection and should prohibit the unauthorized use and/or publication of HIV-related information on individuals. Privacy legislation should enable an individual to see his or her own records and to request amendments to ensure that such information is accurate, relevant, complete and up to date. An independent agency should be established to redress breaches of confidentiality. Provision should be made for professional bodies to discipline cases of breaches of confidentiality as professional misconduct under codes of conduct discussed below.16 Unreasonable invasion of privacy by the media could also be included as a component of professional codes governing journalists. People living with HIV should be authorized to demand that their identity and privacy be protected in legal proceedings in which information on these matters will be raised.
Laws, regulations and collective agreements should be enacted or reached so as to guarantee the following workplace rights:
A national policy on HIV and the workplace agreed upon in a tripartite body;
Freedom from HIV screening for employment, promotion, training or benefits;
Confidentiality regarding all medical information, including HIV status;
Employment security for workers living with HIV until they are no longer able to work, including reasonable alternative working arrangements;
Defined safe practices for first aid and adequately equipped first-aid kits;