Article by Pierre Somse and Patrick Eba. Vol. 22, No. 1. Health and Human Rights Journal.
April 1, 2020.
Almost 40 years ago, the Central African Republic, like other countries in Africa and around the world, was confronted with the HIV pandemic that would shake the human, social, and economic foundations of entire societies. Since the beginning of that epidemic, more than 32 million people have died of HIV-related illnesses globally.
Like HIV, the spread of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19)—which as of March 31, 2020, had infected more than 750,000 people globally and caused 36,405 deaths—is accompanied by rampant stigma. Around the world, stigmatizing behaviour is reported against those diagnosed with COVID-19 and people perceived as potentially infected with the coronavirus, often because of their national origin.
Addressing the harms of stigma and misinformation must thus be a priority with COVID-19 and indeed effective responses to the pandemic would greatly benefit from all the lessons of the multi-sectoral and rights-based approaches to the HIV epidemic.
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