March 1 is Zero Discrimination Day,
an annual worldwide event that promotes diversity and recognizes that everyone
counts. The symbol for Zero Discrimination Day is the butterfly, widely used by
people to share their stories and photos as a way to end discrimination and
work towards positive transformation.
The United
Nations first celebrated Zero Discrimination Day on March 1, 2014, after
UNAIDS, a UN program on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune
Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), launched its Zero Discrimination Campaign on World
AIDS Day in December 2013.
Organizations like the United
Nations actively promote the day with activities to celebrate everyone’s right
to live a full life with dignity regardless of age, gender, sexuality,
nationality, ethnicity, skin color, height, weight, profession, education, and
beliefs.
“Everyone has the right to be
treated with respect, to live free from discrimination, coercion and abuse,”
said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “Discrimination doesn’t just
hurt individuals, it hurts everyone, whereas welcoming and embracing diversity
in all its forms brings benefits for all.”
The theme for 2017 Zero
Discrimination Day is zero discrimination in health-care settings. The right to
health is a fundamental human right that includes access to affordable, timely
and quality health-care services for all, yet discrimination remains widespread
in health-care settings, creating a serious barrier to access to HIV services.
“Health-care settings should be
safe and supportive environments. It is unacceptable that discrimination is
inhibiting access to care today,” said Sidibé.
Data from 50 countries from the
People Living with HIV Stigma Index show that one in eight people living with
HIV report being denied health care. Around 60% of European Union countries
report that stigma and discrimination among health-care professionals remains a
barrier to the provision of adequate HIV prevention services. This year, UNAIDS
is calling on everyone to promote #zerodiscrimination. Zero Discrimination Day
is an opportunity to highlight how everyone can be part of the transformation
and take a stand for a fair and just society.
Find out more about the campaign at
unaids.org
MARTINA NICOLLS is an international
aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of
Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet
(2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
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