Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2004. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
South African Press Association - February 11, 2004
Speaking to reporters in Johannesburg, Achmat said the president had made some "serious factual misrepresentations" in a speech on SABC television on Sunday.
He said Mbeki was incorrect when he said there were no reliable statistics on deaths due to HIV/Aids -- several government-endorsed studies were available.
Mbeki's comparison of Aids and diabetes was "unfortunate", said Achmat: Aids is responsible for 39% of lost life-years, whereas diabetes is responsible for about 1%.
He also said South Africa's HIV/Aids programme is not one of the best in the world, as Mbeki claimed. Many developing countries with fewer resources offer better treatment.
With regard to the rollout of anti-retrovirals, TAC national treasurer Mark Heywood contended that the delays are not justified and that capacity is less of a problem than lack of political will.
He said the TAC will be monitoring the government's progress and will report on it on March 21.
Responding to a report in The Star newspaper on the human body's resistance to nevirapene, Professor Jerry Coovadia said he is aware of resistance issues but there is no suitable alternative.
"Nevirapene still is and will remain a very useful drug."
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