Concern is mounting among delegates at the Barcelona 14th International Aids Conference about the health of Treatment Action Campaign leader, Zackie Achmat.
The South African activist who has been ailing for sometime has cancelled trips to address the plenary session on Wednesday because it is feared he has tuberculosis, a life threatening opportunistic infection of HIV/Aids.
He has consistently refused to accept antiretroviral medication until all South Africans have access to such medication.
Although the South African government last week lost its court case to limit antiretrovirals to pregnant mothers to its 18 sites, Achmat is determined that every HIV-infected person should have the capacity to access the medication known universally as Lazarus drugs, because they bring those close to death back to life if taken timeously.
Friend and fellow activist Mark Heywood said ”no-one has been able to persuade him to now go onto lifesaving antiretrovirals.”
He said that even though government promised to give drugs to prevent mother to child transmission and post exposure prophylaxis after rape on April 17, ”This has yet to happen, with little indication of when exactly it will, and this is still not medication for everyone infected.”
Achmat is due to speak to the conference on ”Treatment access as a human right” and conference organisers have already organised a live satellite link up for his address.
Achmat who left home at the age of 12 to fight actively against apartheid, was jailed on a number of occasions for anti-apartheid activities.
He became prominent in the gay and lesbian community and was responsible for significant progressive changes to legislation to advance gay and lesbian rights.
He was director of the Aids Law Project for some years before founding the Treatment Action Campaign after the death of United Democratic Front activist and gay Liberationist, Simon Nkoli in the early 1990s. – Sapa