8.4: The Criminalisation of HIV
Criminal law v public health
This issue focuses on the criminalisation of HIV transmission and exposure in Australia and internationally. Contributors analyse recent prosecution trends and discuss the stigmatising effects of criminalisation. We also provide a list of information and policy resources on these issues.
January 2011
Download as a PDF (1.58 MB) or browse articles below
In this issue:
News and commentary
Michael Kirby's remarks at the launch of Enabling Legal Environments for Effective HIV Responses: A Leadership challenge for the Commonwealth of Nations at the Police and Justice Museum, Sydney on 30 November 2010. This article only available online
Punitive laws that harm HIV responses: a CHOGM priority? JOHN GODWIN discusses the use of HIV specific laws in Commonwealth countries and considerations for the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Perth
The Vienna Declaration: full-on global drug prohibition versus HIV control DR ALEX WODAK comments on the international declaration signed at the recent International AIDS Conference, calling for a harm minimisation approach to ‘the war on drugs’
Criminal law and HIV
Australian criminal law and the sexual transmission of HIV: a contemporary policy response SALLY CAMERON examines options for policy and law reform to address arbitrary application of criminal laws in relation to HIV transmission and exposure
HIV transmission and the criminal law: a discordant relationship SEAN SLAVIN advocates for the repeal of laws pertaining to HIV transmission and exposure, calling for greater reliance on public health mechanisms
Don’t ask: don’t tell – Act right: play safe! IAIN BRADY outlines the operation of HIV disclosure law in NSW and its impact, both in theory and in practice, on HIV-positive people
Closed courts for open justice MELISSA WOODROFFE explains how suppression orders are used protect the confidentiality of a person’s HIV status in court
HIV and consent: when yes means no INDRAVEER CHATTERJEE highlights problems arising from the use of archaic laws to inform contemporary cases, such as how legal definitions of ‘consent’ affect criminal cases involving HIV transmission
Whose safety? Regulation of the sex industry in Western Australia SCARLET ALLIANCE outlines the development of the Western Australian government’s stance on regulation of the sex industry
HIV and criminal law: global advocacy for justice EDWIN J BERNARD proposes an advocacy approach to combat the overreaching application of criminal law in cases involving HIV non-disclosure and transmission
Sex work: equal justice under law THE HON MICHAEL KIRBY AC CMG addresses delegates at the inaugural Asia-Pacific Consultation on HIV and Sex Work, held recently in Pattaya, Thailand. Includes full speech as download
Support for prison NSP trial – but where? SEAN COSTELLO reports from the ACT on the ongoing struggle to introduce the first trial of a needle and syringe program in an Australian prison
Resource profile A list of current Australian and international resources relevant to HIV and criminal law
Regular features
Regional Feature: HIV and prison in Thailand – a double sentence KARYN KAPLAN profiles an innovative program model for injecting drug users in a Thailand prison
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