AIDS council: Gays, lesbians deserve services too

National

By OGIA MIAMEL
POLICE officers need to be educated on how to deal with “key populations” – lesbians, gays, sex workers and person living with HIV – so they can access police services, an official says.
National AIDS Council Secretariat regional manager Valentine Tangoh told a media sensitisation workshop in Port Moresby yesterday that these groups of people had equal rights as everyone else and should access all public services available.
“Key populations go through challenges not only with the police but also the public, especially people mocking them and saying all kinds of things about them,” Tangoh said.
“We advocate on their behalf so that they are able to access the services that citizens like us access.
“They have equal rights, they are citizens of this country. Because they are discriminated against, they go into hiding, and sometimes are afraid to report rape or other human rights abuse cases to the police in fear of being discriminated against.”
He said the major barrier in their accessing HIV and sexually transmitted infections services was “shame”.
A Friends Frangipani representative, who wanted to remain anonymous, told the workshop that some of the barriers facing key populations in accessing clinics were the clinic location, health workers’ impolite approach, fear or shame to know their HIV status, delay in giving status result.