We will not end AIDS: addressing the anti-rights movements

To mark Zero Discrimination Day on 1 March, the Journal of the International AIDS Society (JIAS) invites you to read its new viewpoint, “We will not end AIDS: addressing the anti-rights movements”. It is authored by Allan Maleche, Wame Jallow, Jerop Limo, Timothy Wafula and Solomon Wambua.

Respecting and protecting human rights is fundamental to the HIV response. Evidence shows that safeguarding human rights facilitates effective HIV service delivery while discrimination and stigma hinder communities from accessing life-saving treatments and preventive services. Unfortunately, the rising influence of anti-rights governments and enactment of punitive laws that legitimize discriminatory attitudes jeopardize decades of progress in the HIV response.

In this viewpoint, the authors remind us of the imminent threat of anti-rights and anti-gender movements by outlining the recent trends of increasing attacks on LGBTQ+ rights, rolling back of reproductive health rights, and criminalization of HIV transmission, exposure and non-disclosure. They call on governments and political leaders to repeal discriminatory laws and to protect human rights, and they call on donors to prioritize investing in human-rights-based strategies and community-led advocacy.

As the authors state: “Without upholding human rights, the vision of an AIDS-free world by 2030 will be nothing but an empty promise.”

Read the viewpoint

The Journal of the International AIDS Society is an open-access, peer-reviewed journal, which publishes HIV-related research from various disciplines and particularly encourages submissions in implementation sciences.