Title to the Article: A Short Long Sleeve below the Wrist: A Critical Analysis of Enugu State Hiv/Aids Anti-Discrimination and Protection Law, 2005
Author
Simon Uche Ortuanya, SJD, (Loyola, Chicago), LL.M, (Unilag, Lagos); LL.B, (University of Nigeria Enugu Campus); B.L.; Associate Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Nigeria Enugu Campus; Former Visiting Scholar, Loyola University, Chicago, School of Law; Former Adjunct Professor, Chicago State University; Executive Director Nigeria HIV/AIDS Law Project (NIHALP), presently on leave of absence serving as the Honourable Commissioner for Education, Enugu State, Nigeria.
Abstract
Discrimination and stigmatisation have become a major problem of persons living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). It is beyond question that that the disproportional burden of the HIV/AIDS pandemic is on developing countries, African countries especially. The scale of discrimination and stigmatisation is equally unbearable in these countries. It is perhaps in a bid to stem this tide that the Enugu State Government enacted the Enugu State HIV/AIDS Anti-discrimination and Protection Law, 2005. The provisions of this Law are laudable in that they aim for the most part to stem the tide of discrimination and stigmatisation and thus ameliorate the predicament of persons living with HIV/AIDS. It will however be seen that laudable as the Law is, many of its provisions make it appear to overreach itself. In this paper therefore, we have attempted a critical analysis of the provisions of the Law and it is our contention that the Law can at best be approximated to a short long sleeve below the wrist. A long sleeve in the sense that it makes far reaching provisions for protection and against stigmatisation, but short in the sense that it falls short in many a significant area.