A suspended sentence is the result of the court proceedings against Nadja Benaissa. It is welcome news that she has not to go to prison. But the case remains to be a controversial one: The office of the prosecutor clearly violated the rights of Nadja in the way she was arrested and in publishing her HIV status or the number of her past lovers directly after her arrest. The question whether the criminal law is the right tool to clarify such cases remains in doubt. If it comes to sexual intercourse both parties have to play their part to avoid any infection.
By the way: not only those are infectious, who know their status, but also those, who have not been tested. Everybody in our days should be aware of the risk and act accordingly. To put the onus legally only on one party is in my opinion not right.
There is enough legislation to deal with cases of people willingly and with intention infecting other people – otherwise the law is surely not a tool to fight stigma and discrimination. The deeds of the prosecutors in this case have certainly not contributed to advocate testing and de-stigmatisation.
The case shows that also in Europe, not only in Africa, there is a long way to go until people feel comfortable to reveal their infection without fear of discrimination and stigmatization.
Filed under: HIV and AIDS, Politics and Society, Society and living environment, Aids, criminal proceedings, Germany, hiv, Nadja Benaissa, people living with the virus
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