James Ngculu

Rape survivors will be able to demand that their suspected rapists be tested for HIV, in terms of a law approved by the cabinet. According to the Compulsory HIV Testing of Alleged Sexual Offenders Bill, survivors of sexual offences can apply for the alleged perpetrator to be tested for HIV and the results disclosed to the survivor. While details of the legislation have not been revealed, a statement after Wednesday's cabinet meeting said the bill provided a speedy and uncomplicated mechanism for survivors of sexual offences to determine the HIV status of their alleged attackers. A legal expert said that while the bill would be welcomed by women's advocacy groups, it was likely to be controversial in terms of personal privacy requirements. Childline South Africa chairperson Joan van Niekerk said that while the bill enforced a rape survivor's right to information and to know the HIV status of the offender, testing of the offender might happen too late to be of any real assistance to the survivor. She added that, whether the perpetrator was tested or not, the survivor should take anti-retroviral drugs within 72 hours. Aids Consortium advocacy officer Sharon Ekambarum applauded the law, adding that more energy should be channelled into the prevention of woman abuse. (Source: John Battersby, Christelle Terreblanche, Jillian Green and Themba wa Sepotokele, The Star,24 October 2002)

Five years after abortion was legalised in South Africa, there is little evidence to show that women have overcome the fear of going to public clinics and hospitals to have an abortion. Studies conducted in 1994 and 2000 show there has been no change in the number of women admitted to hospitals with incomplete abortions, researchers from the Reproductive Health Research Unit (RHRU) told Parliament yesterday. But there was a decrease in the number of unsafe abortions conducted by unqualified persons or in an inappropriate medical environment. Dr Heather Brown, of the RHRU, said it was too soon to see tangible results as abortion was legalised only in 1996. At public hearings held in Parliament yesterday to check on progress in implementing the legislation, Brown said the rate of deaths and infection had decreased, particularly in younger women. She said the overwhelming majority of women who were still aborting outside designated facilities were doing so because they did not know their rights. Brown urged health authorities to improve information about termination of pregnancy by embarking on a public education campaign on abortion rights. Staff at public hospitals who harassed women seeking abortions was another issue that needed particular attention. Many women who were interviewed by the researchers said they chose to seek help from general practitioners - who were not registered to perform abortions - because they felt they would receive better treatment than in public clinics and hospitals. The portfolio committee on health and the Reproductive Rights Alliance (RRA), an NGO representing organisations, and other structures that are active in the reproductive health field hosted the hearings in Parliament jointly. However, anti-abortion activists said they were outraged about not being invited to speak at the public hearings and wrote an open letter to the chairperson of the health committee, James Ngculu, to complain. But Ngculu said the hearings had been publicised by adverts in newspapers and that pro-life activists had not responded to these invitations. (Source: The Star, 8 May 2002)