Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Sunday Times (Johannesburg) - April 20, 2003
Shanthini Naidoo
The two are among 36 people from Europe, Africa and the Middle East, who are to be acknowledged in a special edition of TIME magazine next week.
Achmat will be honoured for his dedication to the fight for anti-retrovirals and years of activism in the country.
Others on the list include Harry Potter author J K Rowling, English soccer star David Beckham, British chef Jamie Oliver, U2 star Bono and French football genius Zinedine Zidane.
Achmat said in Cape Town this week that he never expected to be called a hero and that the honour should go to the many Aids activists and people living with HIV/Aids on the continent.
"I am proud because many of the people on the list are opposed to poverty, inequality and war. Also, Africa is often very underestimated in its contributions because of the bad reputation our continent has for poor governance, corruption, etcetera. I believe that there is much more talent than anyone gives Africa credit for," said Achmat.
Mutombo, 35, now a National Basketball Association star in the US, is being honoured for his hands-on charitable work in the DRC, including supervising the building of a hospital.
The senior editor of TIME Europe, Jim Ledbetter, said the list honoured inspirational people, some of whom would otherwise go unrecognised.
Other world heroes are conservationists, campaigners for human rights and helpers of the weak and needy.
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