16 • PART FOUR : BACKGROUND READING
Our responsibility in this regard extends to
respecting the rights of children to information,
safe birth, prevention of infection from HIV
positive mother, provision of nutrition and
immunization services; and education and other
related services. If the Convention is understood
and implemented, it can provide the backbone for
reducing children’s vulnerability to HIV infection
and thereby prevent the relentless spread of
the epidemic.The Right to Protection
Article 2 states that children have a right to be
protected from all forms of discrimination and
exploitation. Children should not experience
discrimination because of their HIV status in any
education, leisure, or cultural activity.
Children have a right to access health and social
services on an equitable basis irrespective of their
HIV status or that of members of their families.
All infected children should be provided with
adequate HIV treatment and care. Attention mustbe paid to ensure that orphans receive adequate
support services.Children living with HIV in their family continue to
experience discrimination, exploitation and abuse
in the most extreme form in most countries. This
kind of violation of children’s rights, on account of
either real or perceived HIV status of the child or
his/her family members, increases the tremendous
burden these children already carry. Often, it is the
attitude of society more than the illness itself that
disempowers them. Our responsibility is to pay
attention to the circumstances that make them
especially vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.The Right to non-discrimination
Children of HIV positive parents are especially
vulnerable to various forms of abuse and
exploitation. The Right to non-discrimination
protects them from various violations like being
withdrawn from school, forced to work, sexual or
other forms of exploitative abuse.