Foreign-run Cambodian school expels girl, 7, for being HIV positive
Posted : Fri, 16 May 2008 09:27:01 GMT
Author : DPA
Phnom Penh - The foster parents of a seven-year-old Cambodian girl are
considering legal action after a foreign-managed private school
expelled the child for being HIV positive. The Cambodian-owned,
British-managed Footprints School in the capital, which bills itself
as to international-standard and offering "well trained, caring,
professional staff," expelled the girl within hours of becoming aware
of her HIV status, the parents said.
Her Australian foster mother, who asked not to be named for privacy
reasons, said she believed Footprints had acted contrary to Ministry
of Education anti-discrimination legislation but said she expected few
repercussions against a wealthy private school.
"We just gave the school a list of her medications, but they looked
them up and put two and two together," she said.
"Her teacher asked some pointed questions and I didn't lie to him ...
and within 24 hours everyone in the school seemed to know and she was
out," she said.
A woman who identified herself as the director of studies at
Footprints said by telephone that the school did not have an HIV/AIDS
policy in place and despite the girl's unblemished three months at the
school prior to the discovery, she had to leave.
"We are worried about the rest of the children," she said,
acknowledging that the child's HIV status was behind the decision.
But there was also a more cynical reason behind the decision in the
lucrative but under-regulated post-war Cambodian private school
system, she admitted, citing public stigma surrounding the virus.
"We are a private school, and although we would try to keep
information like this confidential, there is no guarantee it would not
become public," she said.
That could result in the school losing business as panicked parents
withdrew their children, she said.
But UNAIDS Cambodian coordinator Tony Lisle said Friday it was a clear
breech of the child's human rights, based on ignorance.
"There is no reason for her not to be at school. There is no evidence
anywhere in the world that a child, even playing in a playground, can
infect other children," he said.
"The school should protect the child's confidentially and treat her
exactly the same way they would any other student," he said. "There is
no reason why this should happen to this or any other child."
Cambodia has one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS in the region.
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