Rights and wrongs:: HIV/AIDS research in Africa

This paper, which is based on a pilot study in Africa, raises a host of ethical issues in relation to 'applying' anthropology and collaborative HIV/AIDS research. The author identifies major issues related to the reproductive rights of women and the welfare of their infants in the context of HIV/AIDS research in Africa. The account considers the implications of apparently well-intentioned research that fails to safeguard the well being and dignity of the people involved. It exposes serious problems concerning the lack of informed consent in a medical research project on antenatal testing and motber-to-child-transmission of HIV Furthermore, the study draws attention to the need for repeated screening for new ethical issues in ongoing medical (and other) research projects involving research participants whose rights might be overlooked in outdated ethics considerations. The paper cautions anthropologists (and other researchers) about being "co-opted" by those in authority, and serves as a reminder about the 'do no harm' dictum.