Human rights approaches to an expanded response to address women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS

Research from around the world has revealed how gender-related sociocultural norms and economic realities contribute to women's vulnerability to HIV infection, and how gender-related discrimination contributes to their vulnerability to the impact of AIDS. As the global response to the epidemic enters its second decade, the need for an expanded response to address the societal determinants of women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS is widely accepted. However, public health has been ill-equipped to address the broader context of vulnerability. This paper analyzes the research on gender and vulnerability, including five key policy and programmatic responses that have emerged from the research, through the lens of human rights. Each recommendation will be presented in terms of the promotion and protection of enumerated rights under four human rights treaties, the realization of which can support the objectives of an expanded response to reduce women's vulnerability to HIV and the impact of AIDS.