Beauty queen's woes reflect HIV stigma in Russia

[ccharles000]

Svetlana Izambayeva wants to free her little brother from an orphanage but there's a big problem: she's HIV-positive and this is Russia, where discrimination against people with AIDS is rampant.

Izambayeva, 28, has been seeking custody of 10-year-old Sasha since their mother died in February, but Russian authorities sent her an official refusal, citing her "incurable" disease.

It is an another indication that, even as governments and campaigners mark World AIDS Day this Tuesday, discrimination is still the norm rather than the exception for many people living with the condition.

The irony is that Izambayeva has become something of a poster child for the campaign to win better treatment for HIV-positive people, being crowned "Miss Positive" in Russia's first beauty pageant for women with HIV in 2005.

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=CNG.fcb4fc92a9305375e4acdefd664ce4bd.241&show_article=1