Argentina: Treatment of HIV-positive individuals, particularly in La Pampa, Buenos Aires and Mendoza (2000 - April 2001)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 30 April 2001 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | ARG36956.E |
| Reference | 2 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Argentina: Treatment of HIV-positive individuals, particularly in La Pampa, Buenos Aires and Mendoza (2000 - April 2001), 30 April 2001, ARG36956.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3df4be0b34.html [accessed 18 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
While 17,615 cases of HIV/AIDS had been registered in Argentina as of 31 August 2000, the federal Ministry of Health estimates that the true number of infected individuals may be as high as 120,000, with many ignorant of the fact because they have not been tested (Clarín 2 Dec. 2000; Página/12 1 Dec. 2000). According to newspaper reports, roughly 39 per cent of the registered cases involve injection drug users, 25 per cent men who have sex with men, and 23 per cent heterosexual individuals (Clarín 24 Nov. 2000; Página/12 1 Dec. 2000). The City of Buenos Aires is the jurisdiction in which the largest number of HIV/AIDS sufferers live (33 per cent of all cases) (Clarín 24 Nov. 2000). Other cities characterized by large numbers of infected individuals include Rosario, Córdoba, La Plata and Mar del Plata (ibid.). Between 1982 and 1999, 204 cases of AIDS were registered in the Province of Mendoza, and 16 in the Province of La Pampa (FUNDAMIND 2000).
In 1999, the Pan-American Health Organization published a directory of all non-governmental organizations in Argentina involved in HIV/AIDS-related activities. Of the 120 organizations included in this directory, 66 were based in the City of Buenos Aires, 19 in the Province of Buenos Aires, 2 in the Province of Mendoza, and none in the Province of La Pampa.
No information pertaining specifically to the treatment of HIV-positive individuals in Mendoza, La Pampa or the City of Buenos Aires could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
Argentina is one of four Latin American countries which distributes AIDS drugs free of charge to people living with the disease (Clarín 29 Mar. 2001; IGLHRC Sept. 2000; Clarín 31 Aug. 2000). However, a number of reports published in 2000 refer to problems related to the supply and quality of such drugs (Clarín 5 Aug. 2000; ibid. 31 Aug. 2000; IGLHRC Sept. 2000), with the San Francisco-based International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Council (IGLHRC) claiming in September 2000 that:
For the second time in two months, the Ministry of Health in Argentina has failed in its responsibility to provide a continuous supply of life-saving medications to people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs), who depend on the government for their triple therapy drug cocktails. The companies responsible for supplying government health centers with AIDS drugs--including Indinavir, 3TC, d4T, and other antiretrovirals (ARVs)--have repeatedly failed to meet their contractual obligations. Faced with unreliable delivery and an erratic supply, the Ministry has resorted to parceling out dosages, forcing PLWHAs to return more and more frequently to pick up smaller and smaller rations of their medications, often distributed in plastic bags after long hours of waiting.
On 4 August 2000, approximately 100 individuals staged a demonstration outside the headquarters of the federal Ministry of Health, demanding that steps be taken to ensure that an adequate supply of the drugs was available (Clarín 5 Aug. 2000).
Laws guaranteeing the individual's right to privacy are in place in many jurisdictions throughout Argentina, including Mendoza, La Pampa and the City of Buenos Aires. However, according to a December 1999 report by the Pan-American Health Organization, there is often a disjuncture between law and practice, which manifests itself in frequent breaches of confidentiality of those infected with HIV/AIDS, especially in the workplace and in "closed institutions" (instituciones cerradas).
According to a member of the Buenos Aires chapter of the International Community of Women Living with HIV (Comunidad Internacional de Mujeres Viviendo con VIH), a non-governmental organization with headquarters in London, fear of discrimination is a common concern among Argentinean women suffering from the disease, with many hiding the fact that they are infected from their families (Clarín 30 Oct. 2000).
In November 2000, an unidentified man employed by the Assistance Secretariat (Secretaría Asistencial) of the 1st Juvenile Court (Juzgado de Menores No. 1) in San Fernando del Valle, Catamarca complained that he had been discriminated against at his workplace because of a false rumour that he was HIV-positive (La Capital 20 Nov. 2000). The employee alleged that the president of the Court, Ernesto Oviedo, had forced him to undergo an AIDS test, and that colleagues had shunned him and ordered the disinfection of the office in which he worked (ibid.). No information on whether an investigation of the employee's allegations was carried out could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
La Capital [Rosario]. 20 November 2000. "Discriminaron a un empleado judicial catamarqueño."
Clarín [Buenos Aires]. 29 March 2001. "Disminuyeron las muertes por el sida."
_____. 2 December 2000. "El 7,1% son menores de 13 años."
_____. 24 November 2000. "Las cifras de la Argentina."
_____. 30 October 2000. Laura Gentile. "Una asociación que ayuda y da contención a mujeres con sida."
_____. 31 August 2000. Paula Andalo. "Faltan campañas contra el sida."
_____. 5 August 2000. "La protesta de los barbijos."
Fundación Asistencial Materno-Infantil de Ayuda a Niños Carenciados y Discapacitados (FUNDAMIND). 1999. "Casos de Sida según jurisdicción 1982-1999."
International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC). September 2000. "AIDS Treatment Interrupted in Argentina ... Again."
Pan-American Health Organization. December 1999. Digesto de leyes nacionales y provinciales de la República Argentina sobre VIH/SIDA.
_____. 1999. Catálogo de organizaciones no gubernamentales (ONG's) dedicadas al SIDA en Argentina.
Página/12 [Buenos Aires]. 1 December 2000. Pedro Lipcovich. "Los chicos no están primero."
Additional Sources Consulted
IRB databases.
Internet sites including:
Canal 9 Televida [Mendoza]. Sintesis de noticias. Aug. 2000-Apr. 2001.
Clarín [Buenos Aires]. 1999-2001.
Consejo Nacional de la Mujer (CNM)
Diario Los Andes [Mendoza]. Feb.-May; Sept. 2000-Apr. 2001.
Instituto Social y Político de la Mujer (ISPM)
International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF)
La Nación [Buenos Aires]. 1999-2001.
SOS Discriminación.
