Groups representing people with HIV say the state government has not gone far enough in fighting discrimination against those with the virus.
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Living Positive Victoria and the Victorian AIDS Council have campaigned to dump the state’s only HIV-specific law, labelling it counterproductive to prevention efforts and harmful to public health.
On Sunday, Health Minister David Davis said the government would amend section 19A of the Crimes Act, which says a person who ‘‘intentionally causes another person to be infected with a serious disease is guilty of an indictable offence’’. The act specifically mentions HIV as a serious disease.
Mr Davis said the law – which carries a maximum penalty of 25 years jail – would be reviewed to reduce discrimination against people with HIV. The government has not yet specified how the law would be changed.
Speaking at the 20th International AIDS conference in Melbourne on Monday, advocates for those with HIV cautiously welcomed the announcement but called for a complete repeal of the law that criminalises transmission of the virus. They warned it fuelled the stigma associated with HIV and caused confusion among people who have the disease.
Paul Kidd, chairman of the Victorian HIV Legal Working Group, said existing criminal laws were sufficient in dealing with intentional transmission of infectious diseases. ‘‘One of the reasons why we say section 19A should go is because it’s redundant,’’ he said.
‘‘We’re not calling for the complete decriminalisation of HIV or for the complete removal of HIV from the law generally. What we’re saying is that the law should be reserved for only the most serious cases, that criminal law should only be applied in cases of malicious, intentional and actual transmission of HIV.’’
Victorian AIDS Council chief executive Simon Ruth said section 19A discouraged the HIV-positive from telling their partners and doctors because of the ‘‘potential legal risks’’ they may be exposed to. ‘‘We would like to see this law repealed,’’ he said.
Ian Muchamore, president of Living Positive Victoria, said scrapping section 19A would help reduce the stigma for people who have HIV. ‘‘Its repeal would remove an embarrassing anachronism from the law of this state and puts us on the path to eliminating HIV infections by 2020.’’
Asked why the law would not be dumped, a spokesman for Mr Davis said the public ‘‘should be protected in law from the rare case of intentional transmission of a serious disease, but this law should not be discriminatory’’.
An opposition spokesman said: ‘‘Labor welcomes any measures that decriminalises and destigmatises what is primarily a public health issue not a criminal law matter, but now we need to see how the government intends to implement it.’’
Ambassadors at the International AIDS Conference have called for countries to repeal discriminatory laws that criminalise people on the basis of their sexual orientation.
The Age on Monday incorrectly reported that the Victorian government planned to repeal 19A of the Crimes Act. The government plans to amend the act, not repeal it.
