The Ontario government announced Friday, World AIDS Day, that Crown attorneys will no longer prosecute cases of HIV-positive people who don’t disclose their status to their sexual partner when the person who is HIV-positive has had a suppressed viral load for six months.

Viral load is the amount of the HIV virus in a person’s blood.

The announcement was a response to the federal justice department’s report titled “Criminal Justice System’s Response to Non-Disclosure of HIV,” released Friday.

The report, backed by analysis from the Public Health Agency of Canada, concludes that the criminal law should generally not apply to people who are on HIV treatment (which suppresses their viral load and makes transmission unlikely), are not on treatment, but use condoms, or engage only in oral sex.

“The realistic possibility of a transmission test is likely not met in these circumstances,” the report concludes.

The federal report recognized that HIV “is first and foremost a public health issue,” and concluded that non-disclosure prosecutions disproportionately affect people who are Indigenous, gay and Black.

While the province’s announcement to limit prosecutions was seen as modest progress, a number of organizations quickly pointed out that the government should only be prosecuting cases where there was actual, intentional transmission of HIV.

Ontario has been criticized by advocates as being a world leader in unjustly prosecuting HIV-positive people, typically charging them with aggravated sexual assault for failing to disclose their HIV status to their sexual partner.

Cases have included individuals who had a suppressed or undetectable viral load, but, because they had also not used a condom, they were considered to have violated the law by failing to disclose their status.

Daniel Brown, a Toronto director with the Criminal Lawyers’ Association, said the government “should also undertake to carefully scrutinize past convictions of sexual assault for HIV non-disclosure” in light of its announcement.

Friday’s statement from the provincial government was issued jointly by Ontario Attorney General Yasir Naqvi and Health Minister Eric Hoskins.

“The scientific conclusions (in the federal report) reflect the growing body of evidence that shows that there is no realistic possibility of transmission of HIV if a person is on antiretroviral therapy and has maintained a suppressed viral load for six months. Ontario endorses the (Public Health Agency of Canada) scientific analysis included in the federal report,” the ministers said.

“The Supreme Court of Canada has said that the scientific understanding of risk of transmission as well as advances in medical treatment, may evolve over time, and allowed for the law to evolve accordingly.

“Therefore, in light of this compelling science, for cases where an individual has a suppressed viral load for six months, Ontario’s Crown prosecutors will no longer be proceeding with criminal prosecutions.”

They also said that, in early 2018, their ministries would establish a joint roundtable with members of the HIV/AIDS community, health officials and others to hear their views on the topic.

“We believe strongly that HIV should be considered with a public health lens, rather than a criminal justice one, wherever possible,” the ministers said. “We must continue to work towards reducing the stigma and discrimination of people living with HIV/AIDS and their families.”

A statement released by five organizations — the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, the HIV & AIDS Legal Clinic Ontario, the Ontario Working Group on Criminal Law and HIV Exposure, the Canadian Coalition to Reform HIV Criminalization and Canadian Positive People Network — said Ontario’s announcement does not reflect all of the findings in the Justice Canada report.

For example, the Ontario announcement was silent on whether Crown attorneys would still pursue prosecutions in cases of oral sex, or anal or vaginal sex where the person with HIV was wearing a condom, where the individual is not on treatment — instances which Justice Canada concluded should generally not be dealt with by the criminal law.

“These conclusions need to be reflected in clear prosecutorial directives issued by federal and provincial attorneys general,” said the organizations’ statement.

While the decision to prosecute a case is a provincial responsibility, it is up to the federal government to amend the Criminal Code, which currently contains no specific provisions related to HIV non-disclosure, although prosecutors generally pursue aggravated sexual assault charges.

Naqvi said, in his statement, that he joins the calls of activists who want law reform, saying he hopes federal justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould considers amendments to the Criminal Code “to align with new scientific evidence and reduce the stigma of HIV/AIDS in Canada.”

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The report released Friday was commissioned following a statement by Wilson-Rabyould on World AIDS Day last year, when she acknowledged an “over-criminalization of HIV non-disclosure.”

She said Friday the report released by her office “clearly demonstrates” that the criminal justice system must adapt to reflect the scientific progress made regarding HIV/AIDS.

“Our government is taking action to help reduce the stigmatization of persons living with HIV, including undertaking an evidence-based approach to addressing HIV non-disclosure in the criminal justice system,” she said in a statement.