I’m not sure if this is good or bad.

China’s southwestern province of Yunnan will require annual AIDS tests for people working in hotels, nightclubs and other entertainment outlets, a local official and the government’s Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday. Under the new rules, announced Monday and effective immediately, those testing positive will be fired, Xinhua said, citing the text of the regulation.

But Wang Yinsheng, an official with the Yunnan AIDS Prevention Center, said health authorities wouldn’t insist that those found to be infected be fired. They could instead be moved to jobs not involving contact with the public, he suggested.

The free tests are meant to identify people with HIV and AIDS in order to provide them with treatment and curb the disease’s spread, said Wang.

“Identifying this special group of people helps to reduce the chance of spreading and helps them to get timely treatment,” Wang said.

Those who test positive for HIV/AIDS or for venereal diseases would be denied a certificate of good health, without which they cannot legally work in the hospitality or service industries, Xinhua said.

They make it sound as though this is an act of altruism. But I remember the horror stories about mandatory testing for hepatitis B and the misery that ensued for those unfortunate enough to be carriers. Will those who test positive be treated with magnanimity or stigmatization? China’s track record in protecting AIDS sufferers has been less than admirable (though it’s certainly getting better).

As I said, I’m not sure whether this is good or bad. I can understand taking extreme measures to stop the spread of a disease that runs rampant among sex workers. The other side of the coin is how these people will be treated after the test.