Re: HIV+ Mom can't take care of child: Court

September 21, 2007

Dear forum members

Hundreds if not thousands of positive women in Manipur are looking after their

families’ needs (all earthly needs) and more. My own aunt is a widow and has

three beautiful daughters, all growing up and doing well. She is positive and

POSITIVE like **** ABOUT LIFE! And because she is, we are all positive too.

This “HIV +” status thing is persisting to be a very personally and socially

stigmatizing qualification despite our efforts to combat this. Perhaps, all this

has something to do too with our own efforts, which continue to project the +

status in a way that casts people in a particular role (even a role model in

certain settings), sometimes even lionizing and stereotyping such persons or

communities as a “minority”.

Fighting this out in court can possibly solve the legal problem, but the woman

has to still live in her environment and that’s something that needs to change

significantly. Showing the world that discrimination does not work can

contribute, but the courts are a fickle lot. Like everything in life and the

world, things will and do change. Way to go, PUCL!

Roy Laifungbam

e-mail: <roy.laifungbam@...>

September 24, 2007

Dear and the Forum,

My sincere appreciation for the stand your organisation (the YMCA) has taken in

this matter.

Despite the years of community based efforts to create and maintain awareness on

these socially relevant issues, it is really incredible to find even the

judiciary in such a contrary position! I wonder if the Lawyers Collective could

be a co-sponsor in the approach to this matter.

Maybe even all CJs/ selected Judiciary of the HCs of states and selected members

of the Supreme Court should be facilitated to a National Tour to let them get

insights in the the situation (concerning both HIV and Drug Abuse/ IDU related

issues) as dealt with by CSOs and affected populations on a daily basis.

Such an initiative could be an excellent counterpoint to oft repeated

insufficient evaluation and reporting when available through the current

bureaucratic processes.

Best wishes,

Dr Shashi Menon.

e-mail: <msmenon@...>

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