"We've learned the hard way that it's impossible to have a sustainable impact on the AIDS epidemic without fighting stigma and discrimination," said Dr. Piot. "And the reasons for that are that as long as stigma and discrimination persist, people will be more vulnerable to becoming infected because why would they come out, when there's discrimination? Why would you go for a test if all that's at the end of positive test is you lose your job, you lose your house?"

This is why Unaids has a program with the International Parliamentary Union to help countries introduce basic anti-discrimination laws. At the panel Dr. Piot was flanked by two women, one South African and one Indian who spoke about the problems of discrimination in their countries. They both illustrated that, while passing laws is an important first step in fighting stigma, educating populations at a grassroots level is equally important.

Mercy Makhalemele was diagnosed with AIDS nine years ago. She lives in Soweto with her 12-year old son. "I dealt with racism and discrimination. Back when I was diagnosed I was working for a very big company. I was dismissed from my work," she said, adding an apology that it was still hard to get used to talking about it even after all her years working as an AIDS educator. "Two days before that my husband threw me out of my house. I was physically abused and a few days after that I began engaging myself in an AIDS education organization and I've seen that happening with almost every woman that I meet."

Piot underlined the fact that not many countries are even as advanced as Africa in viewing racism and discrimination as a punishable crime. But, he said, much work remained to be done in seeing countries not only pass laws, but also implement them.

"There is more work to be done in educating people, because at the end of the day it's all good and nice to have these documents and laws but if the people who need to benefit out of them don't know or understand, it's not going to happen," said Makhalemele.

India has this kind of anti-discrimination law, but, just as in South Africa, it is hard to educate the victims of discrimination on their rights. "The most blatant forms of racism and discrimination experiences by HIV-positive people were reported in the hospitals both private and public," said Dr. Shalini Bharat, speaking of a study done in Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay) in 1998-1999.

According to Dr. Bharat, the study covered: "Denial of adequate care and treatment on the grounds of HIV status, refusal to touch HIV patients during routine examinations, mandatory HIV-testing for patients going into surgery and for pregnant women. Lack of respect for confidentiality of patients' HIV status, deferential care practices for HIV-positive patients, and negative attitudes of the staff are some of the forms of discrimination in the hospitals. The information collected help launch several law suits on behalf of some of the victims."

Dr. Piot pointed out that, "We have cases that lawyers collected in Mumbai, cases of discrimination against people because they have HIV. And because of that citing examples in juris prudence is really going to make a difference." But some patients are beyond the help a lawsuit could provide.

"Discrimination however doesn't end during a patient's life time," said Dr. Bharat. "Selectively wrapping the bodies of HIV patients in plastic sheets, and denying them the customary death rituals completes their stigmatization after death."

Some of the poorest countries in the world are also home to some of the largest HIV-positive populations. While Unaids helps countries battle the disease, a more general pattern of discrimination can be noticed.

"Unaids is concentrated in the poorest countries because it's (AIDS) driven by racism and stigma discrimination and so on," said Dr. Piot. "That is a global discrimination which has, I believe, profound, not only economic roots, but also I wouldn't be surprised--racial roots. I said a few years ago if AIDS would have happened in the Balkans, in Kosovo, and it would have affected white men and women, I'm sure there would have billions coming in much earlier."