A human rights group says that the abusive policies of the Zimbabwean government are fuelling the HIV/AIDS epidemic

BBC News:

Human Rights Watch says despite a recent drop in infection rates, 20% of the population had HIV with thousands dying each week.

They say current policies, including forced evictions and expensive health care, were squandering progress in the fight against the disease.

The Zimbabwean government has not yet responded to the report.

"Zimbabwe has been hailed as a 'success story' in the fight against Aids," said Joe Amon, director of the HIV/Aids programme at Human Rights Watch.

"But abusive government policies are blocking treatment for those who desperately need it and making even more people vulnerable to infection."

The New York based rights group said up to 1.6 million people in Zimbabwe were living with HIV but only 25,000 of the 350,000 people in immediate need of antiretroviral drugs had access to treatment.

They claimed forced evictions had left HIV sufferers living in appalling conditions and had also interfered with prevention measures.

Police are alleged to have destroyed nearly 2,000 outlets providing condoms in urban townships during demolition programs, which took place last year.

The report also claimed that non-government groups attempting to fight the disease, which kills more than 3,000 people a week, were harassed and intimidated by government officials.

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