February 6, 2008

Egyptian Authorities Allegedly Torture HIV-Positive Men

The global humanitarian organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has announced that it is investigating charges that two HIV-positive men in Cairo were chained to beds and tortured for up to 23 hours a day while awaiting their court date, Agence France-Presse/IC Publications reports (africasia.com, 2/6). Egyptian authorities have yet to comment on these allegations.

AFP reports that the men were arrested and charged with homosexuality, which conflicts with the country’s morality legislation.

In response to these arrests and alleged discriminatory actions, HRW said in a statement, “Egypt threatens not just its international reputation but its own population if it responds to the HIV/AIDS epidemic with prison terms instead of prevention and care.”

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skyteman, San Diego, 2008-02-07 14:12:51
Fear and ignorance is an ugly thing. I expect this has gone on for some time but only now is coming to light. Our government should boycott this country instead of giving it money. These people have to come into the 20th century (much less the 21st!)

daltexguy, , 2008-02-07 11:20:49
I am not running off to Egypt for my next vacation, but I am not surprised that this has happened there.