Lithuanian Prisoners Go On Hunger Strike to Demand Better Treatment for HIV-Positive Inmates

Nearly half of Lithuania's prison population went on a hunger strike yesterday to protest living conditions and demand better treatment for HIV-positive inmates, Agence France-Presse reports. In Alytus prison, 222 of the facility's 1,900 inmates have tested positive for HIV, and inmates in other prisons are also demanding that prisoners from Alytus not be transferred to other facilities (Agence France-Presse, 6/11). An evaluation by the Lithuanian AIDS Center last month revealed the outbreak of HIV in the Alytus prison, with the majority of infections being transmitted through intravenous drug use (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 5/28). The Lithuanian government has earmarked $8.7 million over the next several years to fight drug use in prisons (Agence France-Presse, 6/11).