Biomaterial Database

HIV/AIDS and human rights in prison. The Costa Rican experience. 1998

C J Valerio Monge

HIV and AIDS issues deal directly with Human Rights and Public Health. Four basic principles have been acknowledged internationally in connection with HIV/AIDS: Autonomy, confidentiality, right to health and non-discrimination. According to these principles, it is not possible to adopt illegal or unethical measures toward HIV- infected persons. However, these may rarely be necessary in the case of prisoners, taking into account the possibilities of unpredictable behavior, violence and use of drugs, which are common in prisons. The World Health Organization as well as the United Nations have established the possibility of taking measures, different from those outside the jail, that may be illegal but necessary in order to protect the human rights of inmates, the general prison population and the security of the penitentiary system. Therefore coercive measures such as isolation may be imposed upon an inmate infected by HIV when he or she deliberately may try to infect others. This paper examines different types of situations dealing with HIV/AIDS in prison and reviews the international recommendations and the way the Costa Rican legal and penitentiary system have adopted them in accordance with its legal system and national prison characteristics.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D011329	Prisoners	Persons deprived of their liberty; those held is against their will, or who are kept in confinement or custody.	Detained Persons,Hostages,Imprisoned Individuals,Incarcerated Individuals,Inmates,Detained Person,Hostage,Imprisoned Individual,Incarcerated Individual,Individual, Imprisoned,Individual, Incarcerated,Inmate,Person, Detained,Prisoner
D011330	Prisons	Penal institutions, or places of long-term confinement for prisoners.	Penitentiaries,Penitentiary,Prison
D003364	Costa Rica	A country in CENTRAL AMERICA, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between NICARAGUA and PANAMA.
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D006806	Human Rights	The right of the individual to cultural, social, economic, and educational opportunities as provided by society, e.g., right to work, right to education, and right to social security.	Linguistic Rights,Right to Housing and Shelter,Rights of Indigenous Peoples,Collective Human Rights,Equal Rights,Human Rights, Collective,Indigenous Peoples Rights,Rights, Collective Human,Rights, Equal,Rights, Linguistic
D000163	Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome	An acquired defect of cellular immunity associated with infection by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a CD4-positive T-lymphocyte count under 200 cells/microliter or less than 14% of total lymphocytes, and increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections and malignant neoplasms. Clinical manifestations also include emaciation (wasting) and dementia. These elements reflect criteria for AIDS as defined by the CDC in 1993.	AIDS,Immunodeficiency Syndrome, Acquired,Immunologic Deficiency Syndrome, Acquired,Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome,Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome,Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome,Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndromes,Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndromes,Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome, Acquired,Immuno-Deficiency Syndromes, Acquired,Immunodeficiency Syndromes, Acquired,Syndrome, Acquired Immuno-Deficiency,Syndrome, Acquired Immunodeficiency,Syndromes, Acquired Immuno-Deficiency,Syndromes, Acquired Immunodeficiency
D015658	HIV Infections	Includes the spectrum of human immunodeficiency virus infections that range from asymptomatic seropositivity, thru AIDS-related complex (ARC), to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).	HTLV-III Infections,HTLV-III-LAV Infections,T-Lymphotropic Virus Type III Infections, Human,HIV Coinfection,Coinfection, HIV,Coinfections, HIV,HIV Coinfections,HIV Infection,HTLV III Infections,HTLV III LAV Infections,HTLV-III Infection,HTLV-III-LAV Infection,Infection, HIV,Infection, HTLV-III,Infection, HTLV-III-LAV,Infections, HIV,Infections, HTLV-III,Infections, HTLV-III-LAV,T Lymphotropic Virus Type III Infections, Human