Public Health Bill retains 'discriminatory' clauses

Parliament has retained controversial clauses in the Public Health Bill that, critics charge, trample on the rights of people living with HIV and entrench stigma and discrimination.

Minister of Health Reverend Doctor John Seakgosing yesterday presented the controversial bill for the committee stage, and opposed almost all clauses legislators wanted amended.

One of the contentious clauses, which opposition legislators Isaac Mabiletsa and Nehemiah Modubule wanted scrapped, seeks to make an offence the known transmission of HIV to any "sexual contact, care giver or any person with whom sharp objects are shared."

Editor's Comment
Prosecutors deserve better

These legal professionals, who are entrusted with upholding the rule of law, face numerous challenges that compromise their ability to effectively carry out their duties.Elsewhere in this edition, we carry a story on the lamentations of the officers of court.The prosecutors have raised a number of concerns, calling for urgent attention from all relevant stakeholders, including the President, Minister of Justice and the Attorney General. Their...

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