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Call for more attention to be paid to HIV/AIDS in prisons

    JOHANNESBURG

    Zambia's government can no longer afford to ignore the growing problem of HIV/AIDS in prisons, a visiting Canadian activist has warned.

    During a workshop on 'HIV/AIDS in Prisons', held in Lusaka this week, Ralph Jurgens, a human rights advisor to the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, said the increasing numbers of HIV-positive prisoners could have a devastating impact on society once they were released.

    There was also a need to ensure that prisoners receiving antiretrovirals before their imprisonment continued with the drugs to prevent the development of drug resistance, a local newspaper, The Post, reported Jurgens as saying.

    A former inmate attending the workshop called for increased funding for HIV/AIDS education campaigns for prisoners.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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