Inter Press Service - October 29, 2001
Anthony Stoppard

Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) Member of Parliament (MP) Patricia de Lille, asked Mbeki: "One of the reasons used by government for not providing anti-retroviral drugs, is that it is too toxic. Now why is it toxic only for the poor people of this country who cannot afford it, but it is not toxic for many MPs who are using the same anti-retroviral drugs?"

Mbeki replied: "If these drugs are toxic, they are toxic for everybody, including MPs. The United States government, at the beginning of this year, radically revised the guidelines for the use of anti-retroviral drugs, and they said part of the reason they did this is because experience has shown them that these drugs have toxicities which have not been foreseen."

"I would hope that if any members of parliament are taking those drugs, they need to have a look at that so as to advise their own medical practitioners as to how to proceed. Otherwise they are going to suffer negative consequences," he told Parliament late last week.

Mbeki's remarks come even as his government is being taken to court by the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) in an attempt to force it to - among other things - provide anti-retrovirals and other anti-AIDS drugs to pregnant mothers to prevent them from transmitting the virus to their children.

The case is scheduled for the High Court towards the end of November.

Ironically, earlier this year, TAC strongly supported the South African government when it was taken to court by international pharmaceutical companies who wanted to deny it the right to produce or import cheaper generic versions of anti-AIDS, and other, drugs.

But now, says TAC, after winning the right to bring in cheaper anti-AIDS drugs, government is dragging its feet about making them available to those who need them through the public health system.

TAC is demanding government roll out a programme to prevent the transmission of HIV from mothers to children over the next 18 months.

In an open letter, the TAC secretariat says: "It is an appalling indictment of the government's lack of respect for the constitutional rights to life and dignity that it continues to consciously block a country-wide mother to child transmission prevention programme."

The campaign is also demanding that government produce a comprehensive HIV and AIDS treatment and prevention programme that will include improvements to the country's health-care infrastructure, wider treatment on opportunistic infections, scaled-up condom distribution, anti-retroviral treatment for those who need it, and poverty alleviation measures.

"Most importantly though, we need the President and most of the Cabinet to end the confusion, to affirm unequivocally that HIV causes AIDS and that it is one of the most serious threats to our democracy," says the letter.

For now, the South African government is putting enough money aside for programmes dedicated to education, prevention and treatment of the disease, says the independent Budget Information Service (BIS).

However, it must strengthen the finances and infrastructure of its social services, to make sure they can cope with the impact of the disease. "We are not convinced government has put enough money aside to cope with the impact of HIV and AIDS on teachers, on hospital services and social services," says Albert van Zyl, co-ordinator of BIS.

South Africa's Medical Research Council (MRC) estimates 40 percent of deaths among 15 to 49 year-olds in 2000, was due to HIV/AIDS.

It is almost impossible to say exactly how much money government is spending a year to combat the spread of HIV and AIDS. This year, government has budgeted R294.3 million (36.8 million U.S. Dollars) for anti-HIV and AIDS programme.

In addition, the European Union (EU) has given the Department of Health a grant of R24.5 million (3.1 million U.S. Dollars) for anti-HIV and AIDS programmes.

There is also a large amount of donor funding from other international aid agencies.

These unconfirmed additional grants are expected to be worth around R75 million (9.4 million U.S. Dollars) over the next three years and will come mainly from the United States.

Dedicated government anti-HIV and AIDS spending falls into three programmes: a life skills programme for schools; a voluntary counselling and testing programme; and a community-and home-based care and support programme.

"Initially the bulk of the resources supports life skills training in schools.

As the disease and its impact spreads, the policy emphasis shifts towards treatment and strengthening the care component of the programme," says BIS.

Government also spends millions on HIV and AIDS through the country's provincial administrations - in the form of financial support to boost health-care infrastructure and poverty relief measures - but these are impossible to measure, as the assistance is not clearly marked for anti-HIV and AIDS programmes.
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