Human Rights Commission: "Punishment for AIDS Transmission is Unconstitutional"… Opinion Submitted to the Constitutional Court

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The National Human Rights Commission announced on the 9th that it has submitted an opinion to the Constitutional Court stating that the provisions of the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome Prevention Act (commonly known as the AIDS Prevention Act), which punish 'transmission-facilitating acts' by individuals infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), are unconstitutional.

Earlier, on the 24th of last month, the Human Rights Commission resolved at a plenary committee meeting to submit an opinion to the Constitutional Court that Article 19 and Article 25, Clause 2 of the AIDS Prevention Act are unconstitutional. These two provisions stipulate that if an infected person engages in transmission-facilitating acts through blood or bodily fluids to another person, they shall be punished by imprisonment for up to three years. The Commission stated, "We decided to submit this opinion because these two legal provisions violate the principle of clarity and the principle of proportionality, infringing upon the general freedom of action and the privacy and freedom of infected individuals guaranteed by the Constitution."

The Human Rights Commission judged that the concepts and scope of 'bodily fluids' and 'transmission-facilitating acts' are unclear, violating the principle of clarity. Furthermore, despite advances in medical pharmaceutical technologies such as antiretroviral drugs that allow AIDS to be managed to a level where it is not transmitted, punishing private acts with imprisonment violates the principle of proportionality. The Commission emphasized, "We hope that the Constitutional Court will issue a ruling declaring these legal provisions unconstitutional, thereby resolving prejudice and discrimination against infected individuals and moving toward a society where the human rights of minorities are respected."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.