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Loading ...Swedish health agency blasted for HIV stance
10.22.2008 3:32pm EDT
(Stockholm) A Swedish health agency revealed in an article published Wednesday that it had refused to help police track down people who knowingly infect others with HIV.
The revelation triggered harsh criticism; the government agency, the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control, agreed later in the day to resume helping police.Officials for the agency were quoted in a medical newspaper as saying they had declined to cooperate with police because they disagreed with current legislation that criminalizes the willful spread of the AIDS virus.
The report in the Dagens Medicin weekly sparked anger among prosecutors, police and government officials, who accused the institute of placing itself above the law.
The institute backtracked and its officials clarified their position, saying they had no problem with the law itself, but believed the penalties for spreading HIV were too severe. The willful transmission of the virus is punishable by a maximum 10 years in prison.
Jan Albert, an expert at the agency, said the threat of imprisonment harms prevention efforts because some people who suspect they may have the virus refrain from getting tested for fear of prosecution.
Albert said the agency had declined to help police on many occasions, “but we’ve come to the understanding that we’ll resume work with the police.”
Back in 1985 spring time here in USA I had an affair with an woman who passed to me the Virus Hepatitis C. I was treated for it for three months. In 1994/1995 I was in an car wreck was taken to the Hospital they run several test on me to find out why I was passed out some test found I had several things that told me what was wrong with me including the HIV test that came back was positive then they sent me to the HIV/AIDS CLINIC they ask me several questions on who I was having sex with and have had blood transfusion or share needles. I told them I had the Hepatitis C back in 1985 I got it from an woman to whom I had sex with. They said alone with that she passed the Virus HIV to me. And they ask me if I ever had been tested for the HIV before and I said no. Back in 1985 I tried to find the woman in her home town and she and her family had moved on to another city. I need to ask the governments across this world is whom to be blame for this two problems that happen to me, Who is the criminal? It is not me nor the woman that gave me both. It is the Scientist in the early 1900’s who develope these deseases with the UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT backing thier researching and development program in which it got out of hand and spreaded all over the world for different reasons. As far as the criminalization it is the State not the indiviual or indivuals who has the desease who did not ask for it. I need to tell everyone that one Day God will hold every one accountable for such activities at THE JUDGEMENT DAY and will send each person to HELL OF FIRE AND BRIMSTONE FOREVER who has fail to repent and ask for forgiveness of SIN and make things right. You have an choice to make now or forever it is your decision not mine.
YOu can never be too careful who you take a shine to. Best spend time getting to know someone and to feel you can trust the person before you put your life in their hands. It takes only one act of “careless what the hell” unprotectted sex to become infected with HIV or something else you might not be able to get rid of.
Most HIV criminalization laws actually go much further than outlawing “willful” transmission. These laws have been assailed across the board by knowledgeable groups like UNAIDS because they do more harm than good, are ripe for abuse, and because in almost all cases it is impossible to prove which person infected the other.
Readers should educate themselves about this issue, be critical of mainstream media reports around HIV criminalization, and not take for granted that the Swedish agency was acting in the wrong.
http://data.unaids.org/pub/BaseDocument/2008/20080731_jc1513_policy_criminalization_en.pdf
http://www.xtra.ca/public/viewstory.aspx?AFF_TYPE=1&STORY_ID=5153&PUB_TEMPLATE_ID=7
In a liberal country like Sweden, this is saddening.