This is a part of No Pride in Prisons’ Abolitionist demands. These demands were originally published as a book. To see a pdf of the book, click here. To buy a copy, please email info@noprideinprisons.org.nz

Sexual activity between incarcerated people is an inevitability of incarceration, and the Department of Corrections must take appropriate steps towards preventing sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Though Corrections makes condoms available to all prisoners at no cost, they are available only following an appointment at the Health Centre.[1] Many incarcerated people do not wish to disclose their sexual activity as it is “not encouraged” by Corrections.[2] It is therefore not good enough to make condoms available only through this avenue. In order to prevent the spread of STIs between incarcerated people, condoms should be readily available at no cost in every bathroom of a facility, along with free access to dental dams and regular sexual health testing.

Access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), which helps HIV negative people who are at risk of HIV exposure to prevent infection, is extremely limited and costs $1,200 a month as it is not funded by Pharmac.[3] This is a potentially life-saving medication that could help “end the AIDS epidemic.”[4] PrEP should be funded and readily available to all people in New Zealand. For incarcerated people, access to PrEP is a particularly pressing issue. International studies have shown that prisoners are substantially more likely to be HIV-positive than the general population, so particular attention must be placed on the prevention of HIV transmission in prisons. PrEP should therefore be available and accessible to all incarcerated people through healthcare services.

[1] Jeremy Lightfoot, “Response C76661,” FYI.org.nz, 20 April 2016. https://fyi.org.nz/request/3700/response/12643/attach/html/3/Response%20C76661.pdf.html.

[2] Ibid.

[3] GayNZ, “New Zealand PrEP Trial Gets Green Light,” GayNZ, 11 June 2015. http://www.gaynz.com/articles/publish/2/article_16946.php.

[4] Ben Tinker, “Can This Pill End the AIDS Epidemic?,” CNN, 1 December 2015. http://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/01/health/truvada-prep-hiv-prevention-debate/.