Search
  1. Home
  2. Southern Africa
  3. South Africa
  • News

High AIDS rates predicted in police force

    JOHANNESBURG

    With the possibility of one in seven police officers living with HIV/AIDS by 2015, experts have warned that crime in South Africa could escalate.

    The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) said eight percent of police officers had already contracted HIV in 2000, and the figure could rise to 14 percent by 2015.

    ISS said members of the police force also faced a high risk of infection as a result of dealing with injured people who could be HIV-positive.

    According to the local newspaper, Die Burger, the institute also warned that HIV/AIDS orphans experiencing social isolation and discrimination could become antisocial individuals, or even violent offenders.

    Research shows that some 420,000 AIDS orphans are presently living in South Africa.

    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

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join