President Thabo Mbeki renewed doubts about South Africa’s commitment to fighting Aids yesterday by virtually ignoring the pandemic in a state of the nation address, prompting condemnation from thousands of protesters who picketed parliament.
In a speech lasting more than an hour outlining the government’s priorities for the year, Mbeki allotted one paragraph to the virus affecting 4,7 million South Africans, more than any other country. Some estimates say more than 200 000 will die this year.
The decision to gloss over the issue revived accusations that the president still questions the link between HIV and Aids as well as the worth of drugs which prolong the lives of those infected.
After an avalanche of international criticism the government announced last year it accepted the link between the virus and Aids and would make the drugs widely available, but activists complain that the foot-dragging has continued.
Speaking to a packed chamber in Cape Town, Mbeki devoted most of the annual speech to tackling poverty, promising a rise in old age and disability pensions, and hailed the country’s economic performance as the envy of the world.
He mentioned Aids along with tuberculosis and malaria. ”We will continue to focus on the treatment of sexually transmitted infections… we will continue to implement the government’s comprehensive strategy on HIV and Aids, relating to all elements of this strategy.”
As evidence of its good faith, the government has pointed to the growing number of state-run hospitals which are issuing anti-retroviral drugs, but critics say much more could be done with existing resources and that the problem is absence of political will and ambivalence filtering down to provincial and local administrators.
”Aids has been this government’s achilles heel,” said Judith February from the Idasa thinktank in Cape Town. ”It’s a crisis of great proportions. It’s a pity that he chose to deal with it in one line.”
Tony Leon, the leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA), the main opposition party, said he was amazed the issue had been dealt with so briefly.
Patricia de Lille of the opposition Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) joined the protesters outside rather than taking her seat in parliament. ”We cannot pretend things are normal in this country when so many people are dying from a treatable disease. As an Aids activist I am coming out in solidarity with civil society and labour.”
Nelson Mandela has backed the wider provision of Aids drugs and allowed his image to be used on T-shirts emblazoned ”HIV Positive” to reduce the disease’s stigma. However, joining yesterday’s protest was a step too far for one wedded to the ruling African National Congress. Mandela attended the speech and his foundation issued a statement that he did not endorse the protest.
Trade unions, religious groups and opposition parties backed the march, spearheaded by the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), a leading Aids pressure group which is considering a campaign of non-violent civil disobedience if the government does not amend its policies.
TAC said a court ruling last year that the government universally implement its anti-retroviral treatment programme at all state hospitals had been largely ignored.
Mbeki also kept references to President Robert Mugabe to a minimum: ”We will continue to work with the people of Zimbabwe as they seek solutions to the problems afflicting their country. We hope these solutions will be found through dialogue.” – Guardian Unlimited Â