[REPORT] “Custody and Education”: Arbitrary Detention for Female Sex Workers in China (2013)

China: End Arbitrary Detention Against Sex Workers

(Beijing, December 10, 2013) The Chinese government is arbitrarily detaining sex workers through a flawed government policy purportedly aimed at education and rehabilitation, Asia Catalyst said in a new report released today. The report,“Custody and Education”: Arbitrary Detention for Female Sex Workers in China documents excessive use of force by police in the detention of female sex workers, as well as the women’s subsequent incarceration in the little-known “Custody and Education (C&E)” system.

Asia Catalyst research found that under the C&E system, sex workers and clients are deprived of their freedom for long periods of time with no genuine right to challenge the decision or external safeguards. Public security organs have full control over the decision, execution and supervision of C&E, which authorizes officials to detain sex workers and their clients for a period of six months to two years, without  trial or judicial oversight.

“Sex workers face widespread discrimination and stigma which has enabled this arbitrary detention with little public outcry or a genuine means for redress,” said Charmain Mohamed, Executive Director of Asia Catalyst. “C&E is a punitive measure that does little to improve the education or health of these women.”

Asia Catalyst and two partner organizations interviewed 30 female sex workers and one law enforcement officer in Northern China from December 2012 to July 2013. Interviewees reported experiencing physical violence at the hands of police, including use of force to extract confessions. Police officers also extorted large amounts of money in exchange for the release of detained women, imposing a heavy economic burden on sex workers and their families.

Yi, a sex worker who was put into a C&E center for serving a client told Asia Catalyst: “I think it’s all for money. Any talk of remolding or ideological education is bogus. It’s just a way of extorting money in the name of the government and the law enforcement organs.”

Asia Catalyst also found that detainees inside the Custody and Education centers had to pay for their stay, including for health treatment and services, at costs much higher than outside. Women were subjected to compulsory STD testing, without being informed of the results or access to adequate counseling. There were few opportunities for education, with detainees forced to conduct long-hours of manual labor without compensation.

“Internationally, there is no evidence that facilities such as C&E centers are conducive to the health or medical treatment of detainees, nor do they provide effective care or protection,” said Mohamed. “In fact, the international community has reached a consensus that decriminalization of sex work, with access to rights-based and community-based services is the way to go.”

The Chinese government announced last month it would abolish the Re-education Through Labour (RTL) system but is allowing the similar “Custody and Education” centers for female sex workers and clients to continue to operate.

“The abolishment of RTL shows the government’s commitment to protect human rights and its ability to do so,” said Mohamed. “They should further demonstrate this commitment  by closing down the C&E centers immediately.”

The report is available in English and Chinese.

Selected testimonies from ‘Custody and Education’: Arbitrary Detention for Female Sex Workers in China“:

The names and identifying details of all interviewees have been withheld to protect their safety. All names of sex workers used in the report are pseudonyms.

“You have to pay for everything inside, and things cost triple what they do outside. You have to be rich to be in prison; otherwise you can’t afford to be there. Your family has to come up with the money. I spent more than 10,000 yuan (US $1639) in half a year.”

– Xiao Lan, December 26 ,2012

“The center I was in took on all kinds of jobs: wrapping disposable chopsticks, peeling garlic for dumpling shops, cutting rubber strips to mend tires… What kind of custody and education is this? It’s nothing but forced labor.

– Yi, January 15,2013

“When the police came in they pulled off the client’s pants and saw he was still wearing a condom. The police tore my clothes to expose my breasts and then photographed me with the client.”

–  Lingling, March 16, 2013

“Several [police]men ganged up on beating me. Some hit my head, some my body, and some pulled my hair. One yelled, “Fuck you, you shameless thing!” They beat me for at least ten minutes.”

– Hong, April 20,2013

For further information, please contact:

In New York: Charmain Mohamed, Asia Catalyst Executive Director cmohamed@asiacatalyst.org +1 646 595 6442 (English)

In Beijing: Tingting Shen, Asia Catalyst Advocacy Director tshen@asiacatalyst.org +86 152 101 02437 (English and Chinese)


[UPDATE] Asia Catalyst Newsletter

[UPDATE] Asia Catalyst Newsletter 亚洲促进会简报

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Summer and early autumn were very busy at Asia Catalyst, we hope you’ll enjoy reading the program updates below!

在经过繁忙的夏天和早秋之后,亚洲促进会全体员工祝愿您在阅读我们最新项目信息时有个好心情!

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RIGHTS TRAINING PROGRAM UPDATE  
权利培训项目进展

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In May of this year, Asia Catalyst convened a regional rights training retreat for health rights advocates from East and Southeast Asia.  The advocates will reconvene in Bangkok this month ahead of the International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP).

2013年5月,亚洲促进会为在东亚以及东南亚地区工作的草根组织召开了关于健康权益倡导的地区权利培训。该倡导活动也将会在2013年11月的第十一届亚太地区艾滋病大会之前,在曼谷再次举办。

After the first convening in May, advocates have engaged in regular group coaching calls to refine advocacy plans developed during the May retreat, and to provide peer support and Asia Catalyst mentoring as the advocates have started to implement their plans.

2013年5月份的第一期倡导活动结束之后,参与者在定期的团队辅导会议支持下继续改进制定的倡导计划,并且在亚洲促进会及同伴小组支持和跟进下开始执行倡导计划。

IMG_7344.jpgThe weekend workshop sessions ahead of ICAAP will provide participants an opportunity to share their experiences implementing the advocacy plans, and to collaborate around targets at ICAAP.

在第十一届亚太地区艾滋病大会之前开展培训,参与者将有机会在研讨会上分享他们倡导计划的执行情况,同时也有时间考虑如何将倡导计划与艾滋病大会目标进行资源整合。

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COACHING HIGHLIGHTS      辅导项目进展

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Two-day Workshop on Research Methods and Report Writing for Chinese Sex Workers

为期2天的中国女性性工作者研究方法和报告撰写培训

In July Asia Catalyst Advocacy Director, Shen Tingting provided two days of coaching in a sex worker community organization office located in China. The organization had conducted interviews of sex workers on how arbitrary detention affects their lives. The coaching focused on assisting staff in analyzing the interview notes they had gathered and using the results of the analysis to develop an outline for a report detailing rights abuses within arbitrary detention centers for sex workers in China.

2013年7月,亚洲促进会倡导总监沈婷婷位一家中国国内性工作者社区组织提供了为期2天的辅导,本次培训在该社区组织的办公室开展。该组织在性工作者人群当中开展了一次关于”肆意拘留对性工作者影响”的访谈工作。培训重点是协助小组工作人员分析、总结收集到的访谈信息和结果,协助其制定中国羁押场所对性工作者滥用权利的报告提纲。

Coaching Visit for MSM HIV/AIDS Group in Guangzhou

广州男男性行为艾滋病干预小组项目点辅导

In August and September, Asia Catalyst China Program staff visited one of the largest HIV-testing and service providers in Southern China, the Lingnan Partner Community Support Center. The group has over seven years of HIV/AIDS-related service experience, but has little background in advocacy.

在2013年8月和9月份,亚洲促进会中国项目人员访问了华南地区最大的艾滋病检测和服务提供机构–岭南社区伙伴支持中心。该小组开展艾滋病相关服务已有7年多时间,但是倡导工作才刚刚开始起步。

Thumbnail image for Guangzhou Coaching-1.JPGThe first coaching session focused on strategic planning (as the organization identified this as their weakness). The session triggered the group’s discussion around how to include advocacy into their long-term vision.

Thumbnail image for Guangzhou Coaching-2.JPGThe second coaching visit focused on Lingnan’s current advocacy issue: the lack of counseling for people who receive HIV testing in clinics managed by Center for Disease Control, China’s state agency focused on infectious disease and public health. The coaching has helped Lingnan to gain a deeper understanding of advocacy, obtain skills on develop advocacy strategies, and develop consensus among all staff on the advocacy plan.

第一期的辅导环节主要集中在战略规划制定上(机构觉得缺少战略规划是目前他们的弱势所在)。此次辅导启发了机构就如何把倡导工作安排在他们的长期愿景之内进行了讨论。第二次辅导主要集中在岭南社区伙伴支持中心目前面对的倡导问题:关注于传染病和公共卫生的政府下属的疾控中心所提供艾滋病检测工作缺乏检测前咨询工作。辅导工作使得岭南社区伙伴支持中心加深了对倡导的内容的理解、学习了倡导的策略,并且使得机构全体员工对讨论出来的倡导计划达到共识。

Subgrants and Assistance to Five Groups Working to End HIV-based Medical Discrimination

五个消除艾滋病医疗歧视的小组获得小额资金和技术支持

In previous quarters, Asia Catalyst worked with the Community Based Organization Network (CBO) to provide training in advocacy for 20 of its members. Through a selection process, The CBO Network awarded sub-grants to five groups in order to implement advocacy plans designed to combat medical discrimination on the local level. In July and September of this year, Shen Tingting worked with the CBO network secretary Wang Baoyi to complete two coaching calls with the five sub-grantees. The coaching calls provided opportunities for the sub-grantees to update each other on the progress of their projects and provide peer-support as some of them encounter similar challenges. Through Asia Catalyst’s small grant support and coaching, several projects have made good progress in addressing medical discrimination.

在前几个季度的工作中,亚洲促进会联合中国艾滋病民间组织全国联席会议一起为其20名成员提供了倡导培训。通过筛选环节,亚洲促进会通过联席会议为5家机构提供了小额资助,支持其在当地实施消除医疗歧视的倡导工作计划。今年的2013年的7月和9月份, 沈婷婷和联席会议秘书长王宝义完成了5个受助小组的电话辅导工作。通过电话辅导,5个小组对自己机构目前的工作进度进行分享,对于一些共性问题互相支持和指导。通过小额资助和技术辅导,针对消除医疗歧视的各个项目都取得了不错的进展。

Organizational development retreat for Beijing Gender Health Education Institute

北京纪安德咨询中心机构发展讨论

In mid-August, China Program Director, Gisa Dang facilitated a two-day strategic retreat for the Beijing Gender Health Education Institute (BGHEI), an organization that focuses on LGBTQ health and non-discrimination. BGHEI has been developing quite quickly over the past two years and approached Asia Catalyst to guide them on how to lay the foundation for future growth and sustainability. After several discussions with the director and staff of the organization, the first step was the two day retreat during which program staff prioritized challenges currently inhibiting program implementation and designed targeted responses, as well as discussed challenges that loom in the future. The retreat also resulted in an expanded and updated organizational management handbook outlining internal procedures and systems, and an action plan from recruiting the next staff members from underserved LGBTQ backgrounds.

2013年8月中旬,亚洲促进会中国项目总监吉思涵为工作于性少数人群健康和无歧视的北京纪安德咨询中心提供了为其两天的战略讨论支持。北京纪安德咨询中心在过去的两年中发展较快,在讨论如何为将来的可持续发展奠定基础的问题上,他们邀请了亚洲促进会对他们进行指导。经过和机构全体员工的多次讨论之后,该机构员工认为应该优先考虑解决的问题有两个:一个是如何有针对性的设计和实施目标人群所需要的服务,另外一个是如何应对将来可能出现的问题。此次讨论同时产出了机构管理制度和流程的增加和更新,以及新的性少数人群员工的招聘计划。

Coaching visits to disability group in Central China为华中地区的残疾人组织提供辅导支持

In August and September, Asia Catalyst’s China Program staff paid two visits to a disability rights group in Central China.  The group, run by people with disabilities who advocate for their right of barrier-free access to public facilities, is the only such organization in Central China.

2013年8月份和9月份,亚洲促进会中国项目工作人员分别两次走访了位于华中的残疾人权益组织。该组织由残疾人领导,也是华中地区唯一一家倡导建立残疾人士无障碍通道公共设施的组织。

The two visits, each two days long, were designed to assist the group in clarifying project objectives and generating thoughtful strategies for their current advocacy project. We conducted a half day workshop on the logic model to build the group’s awareness of advocacy planning, cause and effect, and to enable their use of specific terms such as output, outcome, and effect. AC staff utilized exercises designed specifically for analysis of the project’s progress, such as role play games and brainstorm activities.

每次走访时间为两天,目的在于协助该组织为达到倡导目标而理清工作目标和适合其现状的工作策略。工作人员用了一天半的时间为机构讲解了项目逻辑模式,让机构更清楚的明白倡导计划中的逻辑关系,使得机构能够切实使用到产出、成果和影响。亚洲促进会工作人员利用角色扮演和头脑风暴方式协助机构分析自己的项目进展。

The participation of every volunteer in the Asia Catalyst sessions contributed to an increased joint understanding of the issue at hand and led to an enriched strategy in which many key community members had input. As a positive result, the number of people who are highly involved in the advocacy project has increased from four to nine.

亚洲促进会的活动环节让每位参与活动的志愿者更清楚的明白目前所面对的问题,并且能够引导大家找出解决问题的策略。此次培训后,之前参与倡导工作的核心成员从4名增加到了9名。

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CONTRIBUTING TO CHINESE CIVIL SOCIETY对中国的公民社会发展的贡献

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Changsha One day Workshop长沙的一日研讨会

For the first time, Asia Catalyst held a one-day workshop in central China based at the invitation of a local activist. The workshop, with 20 participants, was larger than we usually prefer, but agreed to because capacity building opportunities in Hunan are reportedly low, which was widely reflected in the evaluation forms for the event. Participating organizations worked mainly on migrant worker and labor rights, lung health, and children and women’s health. The workshop introduced strategic planning, which several participants had heard of before, but none had ever attempted. Hence, we received very positive feedback and several requests for follow up and future workshops. A report about the workshop was featured on a local civil society website. https://wm.changsha.cn/k/1/201308/t20130830_1442416.htm

这是亚洲促进会首次受邀为华中的社区组织开展一日的工作坊。该工作坊共有20名成员参加,参与者人数实际上多于亚洲促进会以往一日工作坊的参与人数。最终接受这么多的参与者是因为考虑到湖南社区组织能力建设的机会实在是少,而此原因也在活动后的评估表里也再次体现。工作坊参与的机构大部分工作于流动工人口和打工者权益、尘肺病以及妇女儿童健康领域。在工作坊期间,工作人员向参与者介绍了战略规划,很多人表示以前听说过战略规划,但是却没有机会真正接触到,而我们收到的反馈也是参与者多次提及希望以后亚洲促进会继续跟进此次培训,并且将来为他们提供更多的培训。此次活动被长沙文明网所报道https://wm.changsha.cn/k/1/201308/t20130830_1442416.htm.

Workshop in Shenzhen Charity Forum深圳慈善交流展示会

China Program Director, Gisa Dang, at the invitation of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation,  participated in the Shenzhen Charity Forum as speaker and trainer. The Forum, held in Shenzhen on September 21-23, was to support the One Foundation’s release of the Grassroots Transparency Index. This was an excellent opportunity to discuss Asia Catalyst’s approach to building transparency within organizations; among staff, volunteers and the community through participatory processes such as strategic planning. This was especially prescient, because the current transparency discussions in China’s nonprofit sector focus almost exclusively on organizational transparency towards current and potential institutional and individual donors.

中国项目总监吉思涵,受邀于康拉德·阿登纳基金会参与了深圳慈善论坛。在会议当中,吉思涵作为发言人和培训师的身份参与了此次活动。本次慈善论坛于2013年9月21日至23日在深圳举行,此活动主要以壹基金发布草根组织透明指数为主。该活动和亚洲促进会强调公益组织对机构员工、志愿者和社区以及一些诸如战略规划等的参与过程保持透明的工作方式非常契合,此活动也是亚洲促进会和社区组织进行此类讨论的好机会。目前中国非营利组织对于透明的探讨主要还是在讲对目前和潜在的资助方的透明,因此,这是一次具有远见性质的会议。

China Program Officer Filmed for Training Video for China Philanthropy Research Institute (CPRI) at Beijing Normal University

中国项目官员为北京师范大学中国公益研究院录制了培训视频

This Spring, Asia Catalyst was approached by China Philanthropy Research Institute at Beijing Normal University in the interest of developing an online course for non-profit practitioners in China. The course video titled “Collective Strategic Planning” was delivered by the China Program Officer. The one hour video covers three main parts: “What is Strategic Planning”, “Why is Strategic Planning a collective exercise?” and “How to use the Asia Catalyst Logic Model.”

Thumbnail image for CPRI film.png今年春天,亚洲促进会受邀为北京师范大学中国公益研究院开发一套针对于中国非营利组织员工的在线课程。此课程命名为”群策群力的战略规划”,由中国项目官员负责实施。通过一个小时的视频课程,内容包括三个部分”什么是战略规划?战略规划为什么需要群策群力?如何使用亚洲促进会的逻辑框架?”

The film will be published online at the e-school platform of CPRI this fall and is aimed at nonprofit practitioners.

视频将在北京师范大学中国公益研究院的公益网校上公布,供中国的非营利组织工作者参阅。

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GLOBAL FUND ADVOCACY 全球基金倡导工作进展

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From July 10-12, together with 30 women activists from all over the world, Advocacy Director Shen Tingting was invited to Geneva to take part in a retreat with the goal of “Strengthening Women’s Engagement with the Global Fund to Champion Gender Equality through the New Funding Model and Beyond”. During the retreat, participants identified gender issues related to the Global Fund and developed recommendations on strengthening women’s participation. Recommendations and outcomes of the retreat were used to inform discussions at the Global Fund’s Strategy, as well as the Investment and Impact Committee, which met shortly after the retreat.  On September 3rd, Shen joined six retreat participants for a call with Mark Dybul, Executive Director of Global Fund and the senior staff team. In the call, the advocates briefed them about discussions at the retreat, its outcomes, and raised critical issues for strengthening the Gender Equality Strategy and women’s participation in Global Fund.

2013年7月10日至12日,全球30名妇女积极分子聚在一起,本机构倡导总监沈婷婷受邀赴日内瓦参加了”全球基金通过新的融资模式加强妇女参与倡导性别平等”会议。在会议当中,参与者认识到了性别问题和全球基金的关联关系,并且制定了提高女性参与的策略及建议。在会议结束不久之后,委员们的投入、会议产出和会议收集到的建议形成了全球基金新的工作策略。2013年9月3日,全球基金执行总监Mark Dybul及其资深员工和沈婷婷在内的6名参与者一起参与了一次电话会议,在该电话会议当中,倡导者向大家分享了全球基金会议上的讨论、产出、加强性别平等战略和女性参与的议题。

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IN THE OFFICE 行政工作

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In September, we welcomed four new members to the board of directors. Please join us in our welcome of Randall Chamberlain, an immigration lawyer; Sarah Lubman, public relations executive; Andrea Worden, an expert on Chinese Law; and Shannon Wu, a human resources executive. This quarter we also expressed our appreciation to Chad Bolick who has finished his term on the board.

2013年9月份,机构的理事会成员迎来新的理事。再次欢迎移民律师Randall Chamberlain、公共关系专员Sarah Lubman、中国法律专家Andrea Worden、人力资源专员Shannon Wu的加入。同时也感谢Chad Bolick完成他在理事会的任命工作。

In the office, we welcomed Charmain Mohamed as Executive Director, Fionnuala Seiferth as Coordinator of the Rights Training Program and Nisaa Askia as Administrative Associate.  We bid farewell to Acting Executive Director Andrea Worden, Rights Training Coordinator Shalena Krumm, and Administrative Associate Mikaela Chase.

在告别了执行总监安卓雅、权利培训协调员Shalena Krumm、行政执行Mikaela Chase之后,欢迎莫逍作为我们的执行总监,Fionnuala Seiferth作为权利培训项目的协调人员、Nisaa Askia作为行政执行的加入。

During the summer, we also hosted legal intern Dai Bin.  We thank her for her research and dedication

在此,我们也感谢法律实习生戴冰在整个夏天所做的调研工作和其他贡献


ICAAP 11: Meet the Delegates: Xiaomi Li

Xiaomi Li and the Lingnan Partner Community Support Center: The Success Story of an Internet Intervention for MSM in Guangzhou

Xiaomi Li lives and works in Guangzhou, China’s third largest city. She works for one of the largest HIV-testing and service providers in Southern China, the Lingnan Partner Community Support Center. The group has over seven years of HIV/AIDS-related service experience.

At the congress, Xiaomi presented on Lingnan Partner Community Support Center’s online interventions for men who have sex with men (MSM). For the past 15 years, the Guangzhou Tongzhi, a popular local newspaper for Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgenders (LGBT), has been operating a national website with over two million visitors per year.Xiaomi.jpg

Xiaomi and her colleagues were interested in game-based social networking on the site, where users can earn credits to upgrade game levels, which is particularly popular with MSM in Guangzhou, who, according to statistics by the Guangzhou Center for Disease Control (CDC), make up about 46,000 active users.

This game-based social networking platform was the entry point for the research and development of the Lingnan Partner and Community and Support Center’s online HIV/AIDS education and intervention tools. According to Xiaomi, these tools increase risk awareness and promote HIV-testing, including scheduling appointments with CDC and sending reminder text messages. They also enable queries into test results and collect feedback.

For many years, only a few dozen test-takers from the MSM community were recorded in Guangzhou. But in 2012, 5,389 MSM that underwent HIV-testing were mobilized through these online tools. These men account for 83% of the city’s annual total. The proven effectiveness of this internet intervention approach led government partners, including the Guangzhou CDC, to support HIV-testing by community-based organizations.

This piece is the second in a series introducing you to the partners that Asia Catalyst is supporting through scholarships, strategy and translation to attend the 11th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific.  The Congress brought together over 4,000 delegates from 22 countries in the region in Bangkok this month.


[PRESS STATEMENT] Widespread medical discrimination against People Living with HIV/AIDS undermines the global fight against the disease

Bangkok, November 20th 2013

A coalition of international organisations call for an end to medical discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA).  Governments and civil society organizations meeting in Bangkok, Thailand this week for the International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP) should prioritise education and services to eliminate discrimination in health care provision.

U.S based Asia Catalyst, the China HIV/AIDS Community-Based Organization Network (CBO Network), the Women’s Network Against HIV/AIDS China (WNAC), the National Federation of Women Living with HIV/AIDS, Nepal (NFWLHA), Healthy Options Project Skopje (HOPS), Macedonia, Youth LEAD, Thailand, Kenya AIDS NGOs Consortium, Fundación para Estudio e Investigación de la Mujer-FEIM, Argentina, and AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Mexico urge governments in Asia take actions to address medical discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) today.

“Across Asia, people living with HIV/AIDS experience widespread discrimination in all spheres of life,” said Tingting Shen, Advocacy Director for Asia Catalyst.”Medical discrimination is one of the key factors preventing PLWHA from accessing critical life-saving treatment.”

The CBO Network has documented cases in China in which hospitals refuse to provide surgery to PLWHA.  WNAC has reported cases of positive pregnant women who were asked by their doctors to have an abortion.

“In China, there are laws and policies in place to protect PLWHA from discrimination, including the 2006 Regulation on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control,” said Wang Baoyi, secretariat of the CBO Network. “But there has been little action or measures to ensure the implementation of these laws and policies.”

A 2009 survey conducted by UNAIDS, among more than 2000 PLWHA in China, found that 12% of interviewees reported discrimination in health care settings by health care providers. In Nepal, a 2011 survey conducted among 848 PLWHA found that 7.3 % of respondents had been denied health services, with an even higher proportion of sex workers and drug users  also experiencing denial of health services. NFWLHA has collected cases of positive women experiencing discrimination to prevent them from receiving PMTCT (Prevention of mother to child transmission).

“Medical practitioners in Nepal have negative attitudes towards women living with HIV/AIDS, as they associate HIV with immoral behavior, ” said Rishu Shrestha, project officer at NFWLHA. “The government should ensure that women living with HIV/AIDS  have access to life saving medical treatment without discrimination. ”

Across Asia People Living With HIV/AIDS are regularly turned away by hospitals when they are seeking medical services that address their health needs. Medical discrimination not only endangers the lives of PLWHA, it also violates their right to the highest attainable standard of health and increases stigma towards HIV/AIDS. This drives PLWHA, who are already marginalized, further underground to the point where they will not be willing to seek key HIV prevention, care and treatment services. This must change.

The coalition urged governments and other attendees at this year’s ICAAP to:

*   Protect the equal rights of PLWHA for treatment by developing and implementing laws and policies that prevent discrimination;

*   Fund programmes for medical practitioners to learn and disseminate knowledge of HIV/AIDS and standard precautions in health care settings to ensure that health care providers have appropriate protections when providing medical services;

*   Conduct education campaigns to the general public, to address ignorance and discrimination on HIV/AIDS.

For further information please contact:

Asia Catalyst, Advocacy Director- Shen Tingting (Chinese & English),+66 – 928108615 tshen@asiacatalyst.org

The China AIDS CBO Network, Secretariat -Wang Baoyi (Chinese), +66 – 908936816

NFWLHA, Project officer – Rishu Shrestha (Nepalese & English) , +977 – 9841489299

Download the full statement and view signatories here.


[PRESS STATEMENT] Chinese Government Denies Travel to Bangkok for AIDS Activist

Bangkok, 20 November, 2013

Yuan Wenli, a women’s rights and AIDS activist from China, was forced to cancel her plan to travel to Bangkok for this week’s International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP), due to the Chinese government’s cancellation of her passport, Asia Catalyst said today.

Mrs Yuan Wenli, a prominent AIDS activist from Zheng Zhou, Henan province, was stopped by customs officials at Guangzhou airport on November 15, 2013 and informed that her passport had been revoked by the local authorities. She was specifically told that she was not to go to Bangkok for ICAAP.

Yuan Wenli was due to participate at this year’s ICAAP where thousands of AIDS activists from across Asia are gathering in Bangkok this week. The Congress brings together policy makers, civil society, academics and relevant regional stakeholders to share information and discuss strategies to control the epidemic. Asia Catalyst had organised for Yuan Wenli to participate in a panel discussion and meeting with UN agencies and international organizations in Bangkok to share her experiences around documenting medical discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS in China.

“This is a great opportunity for me to meet with organizations from other countries, to learn their experiences and to show what we have achieved in China,” said Yuan Wenli. “But now I can do nothing but stay at home.”

Yuan Wenli’s case highlights ongoing restrictions on freedom of association and assembly for AIDS activists in China. Rights activists operate in a difficult and oppressive environment. Henan province, the home of Wenli, was the main site of China’s blood disaster in the 1990s, in which the HIV virus was transmitted to hundreds of thousands of citizens through unsafe blood transfusions and blood donations.

Decades later activists continue to advocate for accountability and
compensation for the victims, in an environment rife with police surveillance, arbitrary detention, arrest and harassment. It is difficult for activists to organize events and many meetings have been canceled by the authorities.

China’s Prime Minister Li Keqiang has stressed that “civil society
organizations play an important role in the response to HIV/AIDS. ”

“The cancellation of Yuan Wenli’s passport undermines efforts to strengthen community voices and build the leadership of civil society organizations, which is essential to an effective response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in China,” said Tingting Shen, Advocacy Director for Asia Catalyst. “We urge China to protect the right of expression and association for its citizens and to ensure a space for civil society leaders to have their voices heard.”

As the mother of an HIV positive child, Yuan Wenli founded Golden Sunshine in 2005, an organization that provides support to women and children living with HIV/AIDS. In 2010, she established the Henan Regional Network of Women Living with HIV/AIDS, the first regional network in China that builds the leadership of women in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Due to her leadership and commitment to women’s rights she was elected secretary of the Women’s Network Against AIDS China (WNAC) in 2012.

Asia Catalyst works with grassroots groups from marginalized communities in East and Southeast Asia that promote the right to health.

For further information on Yuan Wenli’s case, please see:

Why Deprive Me of My Right to Participation? Zhengzhou police revoked passport to prevent AIDS activist from participating in regional AIDS Congress. (Chinese and English:  https://goo.gl/y44NUi)

 

CONTACT:

Shen Tingting, Asia Catalyst Advocacy Director (Chinese
& English)

+66 – 92 810 8615 (until 22 November)

+86 -138 117 10833 (after 22 November)

tshen@asiacatalyst.org

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Download the PDF of this Press Statement Here