SHILLONG: The chief executive member of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC), HS Shylla, on Thursday denied making any discriminatory comment against persons living with HIV/AIDS.
“There is nothing wrong in my statement. It was the report of MACS (Meghalaya AIDS Control Society) that showed migrants, truckers, factory workers constitute the high-risk group,” he said.
Shylla had said last month that the Khasi Hills Autonomous District (Khasi Social Custom of Lineage) (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018, “will also be one of the ways to prevent the indigenous people from becoming vulnerable to this dreaded disease (HIV/AIDS)”.
His comment created an uproar among activists and persons living with HIV/AIDS and they have been demanding apology from Shylla.The Health Department also appealed to all to be sensitive and non-discriminatory to persons living with HIV and desist from making comments which are tantamount to stigmatising them.
