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Government vows to lead national HIV/AIDS battle
Charles Phahlane. The Star. 16 October 2002. Republished courtesy of Independent Newspapers (Pty) Ltd.
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Although the government has shown a change of attitude towards HIV/AIDS treatment, it must now act, the Treatment Action Committee (TAC) has urged.
Deputy President Jacob Zuma met with TAC officials but failed to reach agreement on a deadline to implement a national treatment plan which includes anti-retroviral drugs.
In a joint statement on Wednesday the two parties agreed that HIV/AIDS prevention, care, treatment, and the promotion of openness and awareness was the responsibility of every South African, with the government leading the campaign.
The TAC asked the government to commit to a December 1 deadline to implement a national treatment plan, but Zuma said this was not possible.
"The deputy president pointed out that the timeframes presented by TAC might not be feasible. However, both parties recognised the need for urgency based on the impact of the disease and the suffering and death in communities," the statement said.
TAC spokesperson Nathan Geffen said there was a need for the government to back its commitment with action.
He said there had been little real progress and that the rollout of the Nevirapine programme was the result of a court order.
"There definitely seems to be an attitude change, but it needs to be followed up with action. We need to see hard evidence of this," Geffen said.
The government said it was studying the possibility of providing anti-retroviral drugs in the public health sector to improve the quality of life of people with HIV/AIDS.
It also added that it wanted to lower the cost of anti-retroviral drugs and would submit technical amendments to legislation to facilitate the importation and manufacture of cheap and generic drugs.
A technical task team of the national treasury and the department of health is examining the cost implications of an expanded response to the impact of HIV/AIDS on all sectors of society.
The government and the African National Congress previously rejected the use of anti-retroviral drugs, saying they were "poison."
However, in April, the government had a change of heart amid staunch criticism of its HIV/AIDS policies, and a Constitutional Court judgment that compelled the government to roll out prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS beyond specified test sites. |
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