| UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) have both welcomed the removal of travel restrictions based on HIV status by South Korea and the United States.
The lifting of the restrictions took effect on January 1st in the Republic of Korea and on January 4th in the United States.
The Secretary-General repeated his call to all other countries with such discriminatory restrictions to take steps to remove them as soon as possible.
The head of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé, said that such discrimination has no place in today's highly mobile world.
According to UNAIDS, some 57 countries, territories and areas have some form of HIV-specific travel ban.
The Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria added its voice to applauding the measures taken by the United States and South Korea.
The agency, a major partner with the United Nations in the fight against AIDS, said the decision by the two countries is an important step towards removing the stigma surrounding AIDS worldwide. |
