Rise & Decriminalize: Addressing Public Health and Human Rights in CEECA

Over recent years, governments in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (CEECA) have increasingly imposed laws that restrict civic freedoms, adding pressure to already marginalized populations such as LGBTIQ+, people living with HIV, people, who users, and sex workers. The ongoing war in Ukraine has exacerbated these negative trends, disrupting access to essential medical and social services and increasing HIV vulnerability throughout the region.

The convergence of geopolitical instability, rising authoritarianism, and shrinking civic spaces, combined with a narrow focus from donors, highlights the urgent need for comprehensive approaches to tackle interconnected issues of HIV, public health, gender equality, and human rights. 

The Rise & Decriminalize movement emphasizes that intersectionality among these communities can be a powerful force for decriminalization advocacy, fostering unity and leveraging collective knowledge and networks.

This movement unites five regional networks— Eurasian Coalition for Health, Rights and Sexual Diversity (ECOM), Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA), Eurasian Network of People Who Use Drugs (ENPUD), Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS (EWNA), and Sex Workers’ Rights Advocacy Network (SWAN) and aims to advocate for the rights of vulnerable populations. Their focus includes bodily autonomy, access to justice, freedom from legal restrictions, community-led interventions, and comprehensive service availability.

The movement calls on the international community, development agencies, donor governments, and private donors to:

• Recognize the shrinking civic space in CEECA as a significant challenge to public health and social care.
• Ensure sustainable, community-led responses through flexible funding to address complex regional issues.
• Focus on inclusive, coordinated, and holistic responses that incorporate a wide range of stakeholders.
• Support efforts to combat the criminalization of marginalized communities.
• Lead and coordinate international efforts to maintain service sustainability, community leadership, and decriminalization, ensuring the safety and security of civil society and activists.

Communique-Secure-the-Future-ENG

You can support a communiqué initiated by the Rise & Decriminalize Movement on behalf of a person or organization.

For more information, visit Rise & Decriminalize web-page. 

Learn more about Eastern Europe and Central Asia at AIDS 2024: aids2024.virusoff.info – or our main web page: VirusOFF.info 
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