A.I.D.S. campaign for prisons 'educational’

Press, 30 May 1987, Page 3

A.I.D.S. campaign for prisons 'educational’

By

PETER LUKE

in Wellington

A Justice Department campaign to prevent the spread of A.I.D.S. into New Zealand prisons will stop short of the issue of condoms.

The Acting Secretary for Justice, Mr Mel Smith, said last evening that the campaign would be educational. Condoms could not be issued because it would legitimise homosexual acts, or heterosexual acts during visiting, either of which would not be recog-

nised in New Zealand prisons, he said. The department has announced a policy “to treat all inmates as potentially infectious and take precautions accordingly.”

A video on A.I.D.S. will be shown to both staff and inmates. A departmental source described the video as very graphic and blunt.

Training and education sessions for staff and inmates have already started at all prison institutions. Prisoners will not be

automatically tested for A.I.D.S. although blood tests are made on all prisoners for such diseases as hepatitis B.

This test would not be adequate for A.I.D.S. testing, the department said.

Mr Smith said that no case of A.I.D.S. was known in prisons. It was important for prisoners to be well informed about A.1.D.5., given habits such as sharing razor blades. Prisoners could approach staff if they wished to be tested for A.I.D.S.