GENEVA, Dec 11, 2006 (AFP) - The United Nations agency leading the global campaign against HIV/AIDS on Monday called for a full investigation into the fire that swept through Russia's largest drug rehabilitation clinic in Moscow, killing 45 women.
UNAIDS said many of the women trapped behind locked doors and barred windows during the blaze on Saturday were HIV positive and had become infected through injecting-drug use, like the vast majority of people with HIV/AIDS in Russia and in most eastern European countries.
"It is really important that the cause of their death is fully investigated to determine whether this was arson, negligence or the result of insufficient safety standards," said UNAIDS Executive Director Peter Piot.
Russian officials have said the blaze was suspected to be arson. The Prosecutor General's office said it had opened a criminal inquiry into the blaze.
Hundreds of drug addicts and alcoholics were treated at the hospital, which was one of three state drug rehabilitation clinics in Moscow and the largest such institution in Russia.
"There must always be a non-judgmental approach to all those who voluntarily decide to be treated for drug dependency," said Bertil Lindblad, UNAIDS Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia.
"They must not be portrayed in mass-media as criminals or as people who do not deserve rehabilitation, services and support," he added.
"For drug dependent people living with HIV, specific programmes and services must also be in place."
UNAIDS said measures to deal with drug addiction and HIV must be compassionate and tolerant, respect human rights, and be based on effective scientifically-proven strategies.
"We welcome the statements made today by Russian officials that an investigation is underway and that safety equipment and procedures of all health facilities will be inspected," Piot said.
Latest data from the UN agency released last month estimated that 940,000 people were living with HIV/AIDS in Russia, four out of five of them aged between 15 and 30.
Russia and Ukraine accounted for 90 percent of an estimated 270,000 people who were newly infected in Eastern Europe and Central Asia in 2006, UNAIDS said.
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