Prime Minister considers banning HIV-positive immigrants
John Howard, the Prime Minister of Australia, has said that he would consider banning HIV-positive immigrants and refugees from Australia. Howard made his remarks in response to new statistics which show that the number of HIV-positive people moving into the Australian state of Victoria had increased by 400% in the last two years. Howard said that humanitarian issues may be cause for exception for his proposed law, but that otherwise HIV-carriers would not be permitted to immigrate.
AIDS activists attending an international conference in Dar-es-Salaam were outraged. Many saw Howard's remarks as a step backwards in the attempt to destigmatize HIV-positive people. Others saw it as a pointed attempt to limit the immigration from Africa.
Although it is important to take steps to limit the spread of infectious disease , and in some cases quarantine and a limit on mobility are enacted, these measures are not used for HIV because of its mode of transmission. HIV is not an airborne pathogen. It cannot be passed simply by being in the vicinity of an infected individual. Therefore, measures which limit mobility are not helpful and only contribute to the stigmatization of individuals. Rather prevention should focus on education as transmission is largely because of behaviour. Only by giving people the means to protect themselves and change behaviour will the spread of AIDS be limited.
