The number of HIV patients and deaths is stagnating in Serbia due to preventive and treatment measures, stated the Serbian Minister of Health Tomica Milosavljevic last week.

In a press conference held to mark Remembrance Day for AIDS Victims, the Serbian Health Minister stated that only 4% of Serbian citizens are taking HIV tests, and added that the patients with HIV have completely free therapy.

The Serbian Minister of Health declared that the Remembrance Day for AIDS Victims, which was founded in San Francisco in 1983, will be marked on May 18 with a series of events in Belgrade and another 17 cities in Serbia.

Milos Stojkovic, representative of the Belgrade Human Rights Centre, pointed out that people with AIDS in Serbia are often discriminated against at work, thought they rarely report such incidents for fear of losing their jobs. Stojkovic said that the government should adopt laws to prevent discrimination of HIV-positive persons and recalled that two such draft laws were submitted to the previous convocation of Serbian parliament.

According to Serbian Health authorities, a total of 1,398 persons have been infected with HIV in Serbia since 1985, of which 923 died. Last year 42 new cases were registered, as well as 18 deaths.