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Denied healthcare, Zimbabwean illegals risk AIDS and TB

    JOHANNESBURG

    HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) are affecting illegal Zimbabwean immigrants who are denied medical care in South Africa, said the Southern African Women's Institute for Migration Affairs.

    The director of the NGO, Joyce Dube, said the situation was "terrible", as immigrants afraid of being arrested and deported avoided hospitals and clinics.

    According to South African law, immigrants have to produce identity documents or passports with visas or permits before they can obtain medical care at public health facilities.

    Dube told Zimbabwe's Daily News Online that being unable to access healthcare had resulted in thousands of the estimated 2.5 million illegal immigrants becoming infected with HIV/AIDS or TB.

    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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