By Izunna Okafor
Residents of Anambra State have been advised to avoid stigmatising and discriminating against people living with HIV/AIDS, as doing such amounts to crime punishable by the law.
Executive Director of the Anambra State AIDS
Control Agency (ANSACA), Mr. JohnboscoEmenta gave the advice on Monday, during
a community dialogue between the agency and the leadership of the Amawbia Town
Union (A.T.U.), as well as other relevant critical stakeholders in the state.
The event, which held in Amawbia, Awka South
Local Government Area of Anambra State was attended by the leaders of the
various religious institutions in the community, as well as the youths and
women organisations. Representatives of the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs),
Nigerian Correctional Service (NSC), National Human Rights Commission (NHRC),
Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWAN), Association of
Positive Youths in Nigeria (APYIN), and the Media were also present at the
event.
Addressing the participants, the ANSACA ED,
Mr. Ementa, said the aim of the dialogue was to engage and interact with the
stakeholders in the community about the myths and the by facts about HIV/AIDS,
and also sensitise them against discrimination and stigmatisation of people
living with HIV/AIDS.
He
also sensitised the people on HIV/AIDS, explaining how one can contact it, how
to go about it when contacted, as well as how to treat it to a suppression
level, such that it can no longer be transmittable.
Mr. Ementa further highlighted the various
recent advancements and innovations in the treatment of HIV/AIDS, such as the
invention of HIV self-test kits, with which an individual can use to personally
test himself or herself in their comfort zones and see their result.
While warning against subjecting an
individual to a compulsory HIV test and publicly disclosing a person’s HIV
status as a pre-condition for wedding, employment or other such services,
offers, and opportunities; the ANSACA boss further exposed the participants to
the various laws that protect the rights of the people living with HIV, warning
that anybody or organisation found wanting or defaulting any of the laws, will
be legally dealt with.
According
to him, these laws, which include the HIV/AIDS Anti-Discrimination Act of
2014, Violence Against Persons
(Prohibition) Act of 2015, and others, also stipulate various degrees of
punishments (which could come in form of fine, imprisonment, or both) for
anybody or organisation that defaults any of the provisions contained therein.
While calling for full adherence to the
relevant HIV/AIDS-related laws, Mr. Ementa further advised the stakeholders to
take the message down to the grassroots and sensitise their members; even as he
reassured them of the agency’s availability and readiness to assist them and to
respond to all HIV/AIDS-related issues of concern at any point in time.
These, he said, are aimed towards achieving
Governor ChukwumaSoludo’s vision of making Anambra a liveable and prosperous
homeland, as well as achieving the United Nation’s goal of ending HIV/AIDS by
2030. He further gave out the agency’s control room number (09060486600) and
the toll-free number of the National Agency for Control of AIDS (NACA) (6222),
through which one can contact the Agency for intervention and enquiries.
In a vote of thanks, the president-general of
the Amawbia Town Union, Godwin Aronu appreciated ANSACA for the sensitszation,
which, he said, had enlightened and exposed them to the various things they did
not know about HIV/AIDS, even as he also assured to water down the message to
his people.
The well-attended event also featured
questions and answers session on HIV/AIDS; while the representatives of the
various participating groups and stakeholders also gave their remarks on
diverse issues revolving around the pandemic.
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