CAPE TOWN, April 23 (AFP) - Protesters will demonstrate outside South Africa's diplomatic missions abroad on Thursday to demand that the government supply anti-retroviral drugs to AIDS sufferers, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) lobby group announced.
In London, they will place 600 pairs of shoes outside the South Africa's high commission (embassy) to symbolise the number of people who die of AIDS-related illnesses each day in South Africa, it said.
Similar shoe protests will be held in Los Angeles, California, Washington DC and Milan, Italy.
In the Netherlands, marchers will participate in a "die in", and in Japan 600 paper cranes -- a symbol of hope and longevity -- will be delivered to the embassy in Tokyo.
TAC said "solidarity actions" were also planned in other European countries, Canada, Ivory Coast, Venezuela, the Caribbean region, Namibia, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Uganda.
In South Africa, TAC plans demonstrations at the Department of Labour's offices in Cape Town and the Department of Health in Pretoria.
The group has already laid culpable homicide charges against Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and Trade and Industry Minister Alec Erwin, as part of a civil disobedience campaign that began on March 20.
030423
AF030454
©AFP 2003. All Rights Reserved. AFP articles contained on the AEGiS web site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without AFP's prior written permission. You may make one copy of each article for your personal, non-commercial use only; more copies would require AFP's prior written permission. obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP photos or materials. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP stories, photos or graphics. - http://www.afp.com/
AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, the National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2003. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
©1990, 2003 - AEGiS. AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content.
