Dokument #1043185
IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (Autor)
In a telephone interview on 3 March 1995,
the Moscow Chair of An Affective Shield of Protection, a Moscow
organization that promotes AIDS awareness, provided the following
information. The Chair stated that STD clinics do exist, that they
are operated by the federal government, and that most people,
especially homosexuals, avoid the clinics. The source stated that
the clinics are staffed with "poorly trained, judgemental
specialists who employ very harsh tactics." Consequently,
homosexuals usually get tested for STDs by their own doctors or
doctors referred to them by friends. Some homosexuals may also test
themselves for STDs and treat their conditions themselves in order
to avoid the clinics.
The source also stated that for the past
several years, police have been forcibly taking homosexuals to
sexually transmitted disease clinics where they are forcibly tested
for STDs and AIDS; this practice still occurs today. The source
added that is likely that men the police believe to be homosexual
are forcibly taken to STD clinics and forcibly tested.
The Chair also stated that the results of
AIDS tests are available within several weeks. It is usually
extremely difficult to obtain anonymous AIDS tests, although it is
possible to a limited degree in the major cities. The results of
AIDS tests are provided over the telephone, and therefore the
confidentiality of the results may be compromised.
For additional information on the
above-mentioned subject, please consult the attachment.
This response was prepared after
researching publicly accessible information currently available to
the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does
not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular
claim to refugee status or asylum.
An Affective Shield of Protection,
AESOP, Moscow. 3 March 1995. Telephone interview with Chair.
Lecturer in the Department of European
Studies, University of Central Lancashire, Preston, England. 2
March 1995. Facsimile sent to the DIRB.