Overly broad use of criminal law has been problematic for the HIV response, failing to prevent harm and negatively impacting public health, social justice and human rights. There have been several calls for the repeal of punitive laws, including from the Global Commission on HIV and the Law.

This issue brief shares lessons and reflections on enabling legal environments, including decriminalisation, to inform the implementation of key commitments in the 2021 Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS and the Global AIDS Strategy. These include a shared understanding of the harms caused by the overly broad and unjust application of criminal laws; sensitization of key stakeholders and their engagement in legal review processes; A well-informed judiciary; Coordinated, multi-pronged and multisectoral legal advocacy; and, global and regional advocacy to advance national-level changes to HIV-related punitive and discriminatory laws, including decriminalization.

UNDP has worked with governments, civil society organizations and other partners to advance the recommendations of the Global Commission on HIV and the Law in 90 countries. This is part of a set of four issue briefs highlighting lessons learned coming out of the external evaluation of the Global Commission on HIV and the Law.

For access to the rest of the briefs, please click on the following links: Issue Brief #2: The role of the judiciary in the HIV response | Issue Brief #3: Regional spaces for HIV responses | Issue Brief #4: Safe and open civic spaces for HIV responses