AIDS phobia hits city of Narva

NARVA - The parents of an 18-year-old Narva girl who died of AIDS last August were allegedly fired because the employer suspected them of being HIV-positive, it has emerged.

The owners of Alelis, a private baking company, declined to comment on dismissing the 47- and 48-year-old parents of the girl.

The girl died when giving birth to her only son on Aug. 29. The child, now five months old, is living with his unemployed grandparents. The family barely makes ends meet using unemployment and child support, which make up 450 kroons ($27) and 300 kroons a month, respectively.

"We can say that Narva is experiencing AIDS phobia right now," said Irina Moroz, a specialist at Narva's anti-AIDS center. "Firing those two people is nothing but a reflection of the position of society, which is afraid of AIDS because it lacks information on how the disease spreads."

The center plans to help the dismissed grandparents and shoulder their legal expenses or at least apply for greater support for the child.

Prime Minister Mart Laar confessed that he was embarrassed this could have happened in Estonia but said the government couldn't put pressure on businessmen.

Moroz said people think the so-called risk groups consist only of anti-social elements, such as prostitutes, drug users and so on.

"The management at Alelis was probably guided by fear. But anyway, what happened was outrageous, and those people should turn to the courts," said Moroz.

Veronika Povarova, an adviser at the Legal Center for Human Rights, said that the disease of a relative can't be a reason for terminating a work contract.

"By doing so, the company's violated Estonian and international laws," she said.