HIV patients suffer stigma at work, says Aids tribunal

Hostility towards people with HIV is growing in the workplace, according to the Aids tribunal.

Anyumba Nyamwaya, the tribunal’s secretary, said stigma is now more prevalent among professionals than it was among the general public when HIV first became a scourge in Kenya.

The agency, which handles complaints relating to discrimination of HIV-positive people, fears the situation could reverse gains made in the fight against the virus.

Discrimination against HIV patients at the workplace seems to be on the rise, according to Mr Nyamwaya.

Most of the 400 complaints that the tribunal has received since its establishment in 2006 border on discrimination at the workplace, he said.

He raised the alarm that many cases that require the tribunal’s intervention go unnoticed because they are not reported.

The private sector, colleges and boarding schools are some of the places where an urgent intervention is required, he added.

Plantation workers, casual employees at industrial parks and professionals are the most affected by the new trend in stigmatisation.

“We have a lot to do about the discrimination at most work places especially in private companies where low cadre staff fail to secure day-offs to attend clinics,” Mr Nyamwaya told a news conference in Kisumu, where the Kenya Network of Positive Teachers was launched to fight the new form of stigmatisation.

SUFFERING IN SCHOOLS

The network’s Kisumu chapter chairman, Caleb Ochieng, warned that many children could be suffering in schools.

The children are victims of discrimination by teachers who decline to allow them time off to visit clinics, he said.

“We also don’t want to see instances where even teachers die as a result of the fear of disclosure,” Mr Ochieng said.

Margaret Achesa, a member of the network, said the fight against HIV in schools requires a new strategy since many teachers still fear going public about their status.