Church Bodies Condemn Travel Rule on HIV-Infected Tourists

By Ethan Cole, Christian Post Reporter Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Church groups around the world condemned a U.S. immigration policy restricting HIV-positive travelers from entering the country unless they receive a special waiver.

Debate on the policy, which has existed since the 1980s during the early HIV epidemic, was recently revived when the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a new regulation proposal last month.

The department had provided a 30-day period – which ended last Thursday – for public comment on the suggested policy change that claims to ease restrictions.

In a response letter, Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance – a global network of churches and Christian organizations working on HIV/AIDS advocacy – dismissed the proposed new rule titled "Issuance of a Visa and Authorization for Temporary Admission into the United States for Certain Nonimmigrant Aliens Affected with HIV Infection."

The EAA criticized the new proposal and the original policy for fueling discrimination against people living with HIV and called on the U.S. government to abolish all HIV-specific restrictions on the entry or stay of travelers in the United States.

"We believe that the only just practice of the United States should be the elimination of the requirement of a special visa waiver for people living with HIV, putting an end to the intrusive interviews, and abolish the practice that permanently marks a person's passport with a stamp when granted a waiver for admission in light of their HIV status," stated the EAA in its letter dated Dec. 7.

"By protecting the rights of people living with HIV and AIDS and promoting an attitude of care and solidarity which rejects all forms of stigmatization and discrimination, their dignity as human beings is best protected," noted the Alliance.

In recent years, churches and Christian humanitarian organizations have increasingly campaigned and worked towards eliminating stigma and discrimination against HIV victims. Christian leaders have acknowledged that the Church played a large role in creating the stigma and are now emphasizing that it is the Church's responsibility to remove the shame associated with the disease.

Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., is leading the campaign. The prominent megachurch held its third annual Global Summit on AIDS and the Church last month, urging local churches and Christians to be part of the effort to stop discrimination against HIV victims. Attendees are often reminded to not concentrate on why someone has HIV but rather how they can help care for them.

Other Christian ministries that are active in the HIV/AIDS battle include World Vision, Compassion International, e3 Partners, SIM, and Food for the Hungry, among many others.

The United States is one of only 13 countries that places a ban on HIV-positive foreigners from entering its borders. Other countries that have a similar regulation include China, Iraq, Libya, Russia, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea.

Under the new Department of Homeland Security proposal, an HIV-positive visitor is required to travel with all the medications needed during his stay in the States; prove he has medical insurance that is accepted in the United States and would cover any medical needs; and prove he will not engage in behavior that might put the American public at risk. The maximum waiver term would be 30 days.

The new regulations claim to speed up the waiver application process because consular officers would be able to make decisions, cutting out the involvement of DHS headquarters.

Opponents of the travel ban argue that the United States ignored recommendations from the Department of Health and Human Services whose research shows that HIV is not a dangerous communicable disease, which Congress describes HIV as.

"Since HIV is not a highly infectious disease, and people living with HIV pose no grave threat by traveling to the U.S., there seems to be no public health rationale for this policy," commented U.S.-based Church World Service in its response letter last week.

"Rather, it serves to single out men, women and children from countries most affected by HIV (predominantly persons of color and from other socially marginalized groups," CWS added.

The new rule also poses a risk for HIV-positive travelers when they return to their homeland. Their passport would be permanently marked with the waiver disclosing their HIV status, which could lead to discrimination and persecution in countries with intolerant attitudes toward the disease.

There are more than a million Americans infected with HIV, and an additional 60,000 new infections each year. Overall, an estimated 33.2 million people in the world are living with HIV, and daily 6,800 people are infected with the virus, according to the UNAIDS and WHO 2007 AIDS Epidemic Update.