One of the things that made the “Rethinking Justice: 2017 Symposium on HIV, Law and Human Rights” a “must-attend” for me was the presence of Edwin J. Bernard, Global Co-ordinator of the HIV Justice Network and foremost expert on HIV criminalization worldwide. PositiveLite.com had interviewed Edwin before and published him as well, but that was all the way back in 2012 and 2016 so I attended the symposium hoping for the chance of an interview. I wasn’t disappointed. Edwin proved very

On day three of Marks video coverage of AIDS 2016 we find him chatting with former U. S. Army Colonel Ken Pinkela, who was dismissed from military service and sentenced to 11 months of military confinement after being wrongfully accused of not disclosing his HIV status to a sex partner. We also hear from Rosemary Namiburu, a nurse wrongfully imprisoned for HIV exposure via a needle and jailed for months. Mark also chats with Elizabeth Taylor's HIV activist grandchildren, Ayanda Denge of the S

This article by Edwin J Bernard first appeared in issue 210 of NAM’s HIV Treatment Update, Winter 2012. For more information on NAM and HTU, or to subscribe to HTU, go to www.aidsmap.com “Nothing short of barbaric.” This was the comment of a BBC presenter, confronted with the number and sheer arbitrary injustice of criminal convictions of people accused of transmitting HIV or exposing other people to it. In some cases, people have been jailed for failing to disclose HIV in situations wh

The laws applying to the disclosure of our HIV-positive status to sexual partners are complex, imprecise and a moving target. We know that. Nevertheless as HIVers we expect our health care providers to be able to speak with authority, and offer counsel and guidance which reflect the current state of the law. A new study suggests that isn’t always happening, but it blames the law for the lapse. Edwin J. Bernard, a well-known UK expert in HIV disclosure issues, has written an excellent account

There is no better feed worth keeping an eye on than POZ.com. They update daily and are always at the forefront of providing news on items which directly affect HIVers and the HIV community in general, not just in the U.S., but around the world. I’ve often quoted their stuff on PositiveLite. The latest nugget from POZ.com is a list of resources about criminalization - “what you need to know to say safe and free”. While the information is US-based and there are differences between Ca