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1994 ICPD : Right of couples and individuals to:  Decide freely and responsibly on the number, space and timing of their children, and to have information, education and means to do so:  Attain the highest standard of sexual and reproductive health and make decisions about reproduction free of discrimination, coercision and violence 2

1995 Fourth World Conference on women : PFA  Sexual rights defined as: ….the human rights of women include their right to have control over and decide freely and responsibly on matters related to their sexuality including sexual and reproductive health, free of coercion, discrimination and violence 3

 Constitution of Zimbabwe -Highest law in the land -Does not deal specifically with HIV and AIDS – only by inference e.g right to life and physical disability -no right to health - no right to privacy Already the highest law in the land has a gap 4

 NRHP an AIDS policy- goals – every person entitled to comprehensive health care  OI clinics and VCT centers  CD4 count – no machines or expensive  Misconception that once one tested HIV positive eligible for ART  Law silent on right to health or food 5

 Rape and marital rape  Correlation between violence and HIV infection  Criminal Code and DVA  Women stay in abusive relationships  AIDS policy addresses GBV  Gender policy – JDS, NRHP Section 3.12 : physical and sexual violence resulting in genital injuries, unwanted pregnancies, STIs, HIV infection, unsafe abortion and death  Need to link with women’s economic empowerment policies 6

 Strategies differ in the three policies egg NRHP- develop life skills, community awareness AIDS policy- provide resources to strengthen existing community structures, make facilities for reporting available while GP, GBV is a strategy under JDS.  Legal response: DVA, Code-marital rape – consent by AG before prosecution 7

 TOP Act and Criminal Code  Legal but limited : danger to life of mother –physical health, physical or mental deformities of unborn child, unlawful intercourse ( rape, incest) but not marital rape  Definitions of abortion more wide in the National Guidelines for comprehensive abortion care in Zimbabwe : unsafe, spontaneous, threatened, inevitable, incomplete, complete, missed, induced, therapeutic, septic, medical 8

 Criminal Code – Abortion – terminate pregnancy while growing in female person’s womb, or by its expulsion from a female person’s womb  Guidelines state that termination of pregnancy may be permitted for HIV positive women but the law is silent 9

 Yes but need to synchronize them  Laws and policies running parallel  Saying different things  Implementation plans  Change under lying conditions e.g. gender inequalities 10