March 2009:

This meeting, chaired by Vera Baird QC and Baroness Northover looked at the way gender affects a woman’s ability to protect herself from HIV. Three speakers looked at the issue from very different perspectives. The Revd. Kristiana Sutton Koroma spoke about the impressive Women Won’t Wait national campaign in Sierra Leone to tackle violence against women. The campaign called for, and achieved, specific legislation to protect women from different forms of violence and discrimination. Alice Welbourn from the International Community of Women living with HIV spoke about the impact of criminalising HIV transmission on women. Angelina Namiba from the African HIV Policy Network updated us on progress in developing female controlled HIV prevention methods and the need to promote existing forms.