RFI: Expert in HIV/AIDS - For a Court Case
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Dear Friends:
SERAC needs your assistance in finding a medical scientist who is an
expert on HIV/AIDS issues. In July 2000, SERAC filed Nigeria's first
ever lawsuit challenging the unconstitutional discrimination and
unlawful dismissal of an employee by a hospital on grounds of her
HIV-positive status (for details of other arguments raised in the
case please see attached.)
At the hearing of the case on January 22, 2001, the presiding Judge
expressed her extreme aversion to having the plaintiff appear physi-
cally in her courtroom. At the hearing today, February 5, 2001, she
ruled that before the plaintiff is allowed into the court room, ex-
pert evidence must be taken to provide assurances that neither her-
self nor others in the court room would become infected with HIV. The
Judge ignored oral arguments to the effect that HIV is not a conta-
gious disease and that denying the plaintiff access to court in order
to present her testimony amounted infringing her constitutional right
to fair hearing and would constitute unconstitutional discrimination.
Our first impulse was to appeal the ruling. However, we have decided
to call expert witnesses to establish our position that HIV is not
transmitted by casual contact and that no one in the courtroom was at
risk of infection merely by her attendance. We were already proposing
to call expert witnesses anyway in the course of the proceedings,
only that this ruling is making us do so sooner than we thought.
We need help to identify a medical expert in this field from the US,
Canada or Europe (Unfortunately, this was a part of the Judges re-
quirements.)
We have already identified a Nigerian expert who will also testify to
the same effect.
The case has been fixed for March 26, 2001, for expert evidence to be
taken.
Any information or references you may have will be highly appreci-
ated.
Thanks.
Felix Morka
SERAC
mailto:serac@linkserve.com.ng
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