Why are key populations on the blindspot in the global HIV response?

Bobby Ramakant – CNS
Contd from previous issue
Christine Stegling, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director said: "We need to empower communities to advocate for prevention at both national and global levels. This is crucial for realizing human rights. We need to make noise (again) to ensure that addressing human rights is a crucial part of furthering biomedical interventions."
Dr Nikolay Lunchenkov is a medical doctor who focusses on serving key populations. “Key popu- lations are still highly stigmatised around the world including the region of my origin in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. We see more oppressive laws coming leading to limited access to HIV and other health services for key popu-lations.”
He added: “We should not forget migration when it comes to key populations and challenges they face. I had myself moved to Germany from Russia due to oppressive and dictatorship regime that had left little space for me to develop personally. We have to consider that people move from a country to country not only because they have an option but also because they are forced to survive. This is a critical point to consider when we have a political conversation around HIV response.”
(To be contd)