Revisiting the Criminalization Case of HIV/AIDS Transmission in Local Regulations and the Urgency of Its Revision by the Indonesian Government

Abstract

UNAIDS and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) published a Policy Brief on Criminalization of HIV Transmission on 6 December 2015 that recommends countries to repeal criminal regulations that criminalize the transmission of HIV/AIDS and other rules that are counterproductive to the HIV response and apply general criminal law only to cases of intentional HIV transmission. Still, in Indonesia, there are approximately 85 local regulations at the provincial and district/city levels that criminalize the transmission of HIV/AIDS. The criminalization of HIV/AIDS transmission perpetrators can cause individuals with a high risk of HIV/AIDS exposure to ignore HIV/AIDS screening tests, resulting in the spread of HIV/AIDS that cannot be controlled. The articles that criminalize perpetrators of HIV/AIDS transmission have the potential to criminalize HIV/AIDS sufferers who have done their best to prevent the transmission of the virus. Therefore, decriminalization efforts are needed to limit criminal proceedings against HIV/AIDS sufferers who have made efforts to prevent HIV/AIDS. Criminalization is only allowed for HIV/AIDS transmission perpetrators accompanied by deliberate malicious intent to transmit HIV/AIDS that damages the health of their victims and can be charged with articles of persecution resulting in serious injury. Yet, it is necessary to establish evidentiary guidelines that show the origin of the HIV/AIDS virus suffered by victims of the virus transmission. Moreover, there must be very convincing evidence (beyond reasonable doubt) that HIV/AIDS transmission is used as a “weapon” in sexual contact or other transmission routes involving coercion, abuse of power, and fraud.