Religious leaders call for an end to discrimination against people living with AIDS

In the first summit of its kind, about 40 religious and spiritual leaders from every continent and many faiths pledged this week to work to eliminate stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS. They stressed that “AIDS was an illness, and not a sin,” and spoke of “remorse” for the harm people with HIV have suffered in the name of religion.

The summit, held in the Netherlands, was organised by the Geneva based Christian network, the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance. Leaders who were Buddhist, Christian (Protestant and Roman Catholic), Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Baha’í, and Sikh met with executive directors of the Joint United Nations Programme …