RIYADH, 2 January 2007 — The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) has called on HIV carriers who received unfair treatment from their employers or from the public to come forward and register their cases with the rights body. The process is part of an initiative by the NSHR to gather information from HIV-positive persons on the sort of maltreatment they receive in Saudi Arabia due to their conditions.
Legislation to protect the rights of these people is likely to be announced by March. “We have sent some members of the (NSHR) board to meet with experts on HIV cases to gather their opinions and observations on the new law,” Mufleh Al-Kahtani, NSHR’s vice president, told Arab News.
The NSHR proposed the national law to protect HIV-positive persons because currently there are no laws in the Kingdom that define the rights of these patients according to Islamic law and international conventions.
“The NSHR has listened to the experiences of HIV-positive persons in the Kingdom and how they suffer from neglect,” a spokesperson said.
Among the points raised in the new law, which is still under discussion, are:
• Establishing a national AIDS center to monitor and register cases and follow up on treatment.
• Guaranteeing patient confidentiality except when requested by senior officials for specific reasons or when a spouse needs to be informed by a medical professional.
• In the case of HIV-positive minors, parents must inform school officials.
• Guaranteeing the right of HIV-positive Saudis to travel abroad.
• Guaranteeing rights to education, employment and participation in athletic, political or other social activities.
On another front, the human rights watchdog is holding a workshop in Riyadh on Saturday to discuss the introduction of human rights into the school curriculum. According to the NSHR, 16 academics from local universities in addition to NSHR officials will take part in the workshop. They are expected to discuss strategies and methods to introduce the subject in Saudi universities as well as secondary schools as part of the organization’s efforts to create greater human rights awareness in the Saudi public.
