Zimbabwe Rejects Proposal To Implement Mandatory HIV Testing
Zimbabwe's Ministry of Health and Child Welfare has turned down a proposal -- submitted last week by a group of nongovernmental organizations -- to implement mandatory HIV testing, saying it would violate human rights, The Herald reports. The ministry's deputy minister, Edwin Muguti, said making HIV testing compulsory would be "a clear violation of human rights, and we are not by any chance endorsing this request." He added that the ministry will continue to educate the public about the virus and allow people to seek HIV testing voluntarily. "People should be left to make informed decisions and not to be forced to expose their status against their will," Muguti said, adding that the country's voluntary testing and counseling program has been successful in encouraging people to get tested (Herald, 3/7).
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