Human Rights Watch (HRW) described the approval of the Senate Bill No. 1390 or the Philippine HIV-AIDS Policy Act of 2018 on its third and final reading a “big mistake” as the measure missed to promote the use of condoms.
Carlos H. Conde, HRW’s researcher in Asia, acknowledged the improvement of the bill compared to the previous one, as it “provide more resources Philippine National AIDS Council, it lowers the age young people can be tested for HIV without parental consent from 18 to 15 years, it prohibits discrimination against people with HIV in the workplace and other settings, it makes it unlawful to disclose the HIV status of an individual without their consent, and it makes age-appropriate sex education in schools compulsory.”
But despite these improvements, Conde cited the lack of promotion of the use of condoms as a downfall of the measure.
“The measure does not include specific provisions directing the government to promote condom use. This is a big mistake,” he said, adding that “condoms, when used properly, are scientifically proven to be one of the best methods to prevent HIV transmission.
Conde stressed that unless the government makes proper exposure of the benefits of condoms, the “struggle to contain the epidemic will get even tougher.”
DAILY NEWS ROUND UP FOR 05/ 23 /18