Day 16/16: ICWEA Statement on Human Rights of Women Living with HIV

10th December2118 – Kampala – Uganda:  The International Community of Women Living Eastern Africa (ICWEA) joins the rest of the world to commemorate the International Human Rights Day, which is the anniversary of the day that the United Nations General Assembly adopted, in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and this marks the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

With the theme “Stand Up For Human Rights”, ICWEA has continued to create human rights awareness among our members so that they are able to stand up for their rights and this day we celebrate the so many achievements that we have in the past year registered including but not limited to ensuring that women living with HIV in all our diversity under the WomanToday continue to engage to ensure that human rights are at the core policy-making, programming and implementation.

Violence is real in the lives of women and girls, at least 1 out of 3women experience violence in their lifetime.  It is also documented that an estimated 35% of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or sexual violence by anon-partner (not including sexual harassment) at some point in their lives.[1]   Globally, as many as 38% of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner.

Studies by the International Community of Women living with HIV (ICW) in India found that HIV positive women using reproductive health services were pinched, punched and scolded by health workers during procedures because of their HIV status. 

While implementing a sexual reproductive Health project in Uganda, dubbed PITCH ( Partnership to Inspire,  Transform the Adolescent Girls and Young Women living with HIV from Uganda shared that they are bullied out of health care facilities, and at the end when they don’t return, they are counted under lost to follow up!  This is the highest form of violence against Women!!

There is evidence that women living with HIV in Eastern Africa have reported being coerced or/and forced into sterilization (The PLHIV Stigma Index Study [NAFOPHANU 2013]).  While written laws and policies do not support this, the unwritten policies and practice at service delivery is to the contrary. Reasons advanced are that it is a longterm family planning method and the best for women living with HIV as a means of reducing mother to child transmission of HIV and usually Health Care Providers use terms like, “it is in your best interest as an HIV-positive woman”. Women also report that there are some projects that give an incentive to project teams who put women on long term family planning methods.

The health consequences of violence against women can be physical, mental, and behavioral and World HealthOrganisation (WHO) says that women who face violence are at a greater risk of adverse mental health outcomes and they may present with depression, suicide attempts, post-traumatic stress disorder, other stress and anxiety disorders, sleeping or eating disorders among others. The more severe the abuse, the greater its impact on women’s physical and mental health. In addition, the negative health consequences can persist long after abuse has stopped.

Click here to read full Statement

[1]World Health Organization, Department of Reproductive Health and Research, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, South African Medical ResearchCouncil (2013). Global and regional estimates of violence against women: prevalence and health effects of intimate partner violence and non-partner sexual violence,