-Caveat Lector- ----- Original Message ----- To: "*OBRL_News" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, April 05, 2001 11:09 PM Subject: OBRL - Drug Companies, EU, Try to Intimidate South Africa > Orgone Biophysical Research Lab <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > http://www.orgonelab.org > Forwarded News Item > > Please copy and distribute to other interested individuals and groups > > ********** > > Two items follow: > > (Note: The $56 mentioned below, for a "month's treatment" of claimed > "antiretrovirals", is well above the total per-capita budget for health > care in South Africa. The statistics mentioned above and below, on the > incidence of "AIDS" are also fabricated data, without a scientific basis.) > > > Date: Tue, 3 Apr 2001 21:07:46 EDT > Subject: S.Africa clashes with EU on AIDS policy criticism > > Extra , Extra, Read all about it... > M.E. > > S.Africa clashes with EU on AIDS policy criticism > > By Steven Swindells > > > JOHANNESBURG, April 3 (Reuters) - South Africa has rebuked European Union > criticism of its controversial AIDS policy, saying that Europe should instead > learn from South Africa's success in combating an outbreak of foot-and-mouth > disease. > > South African Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang on Tuesday released a > letter sent to the European Parliament in which she admonished the union for > recent criticism of Pretoria's handling of the country's AIDS health crisis > while Europe was embroiled in its own public health crisis. > > "The foot-and-mouth disease and the cholera epidemic that we have > successfully managed have taught us to be modest about our successes. > Hopefully the European Union has also learnt some lessons in the containment > of the foot-and-mouth disease and perhaps will avoid being prescriptive to > other nations," Tshabalala-Msimang wrote in her letter dated March 29. > > Tshabalala-Msimang's missive to Brussels was a sharp response to public > comments made by a visiting European parliament delegation last month that > criticised the government for not doing enough to combat AIDS which > officially affects one in nine South Africans. > > South Africa has the world's biggest AIDS problem with an estimated 4.7 > million South Africans living with the disease. > > An estimated seven million South Africans are forecast to be HIV-positive by > the end of the decade and only a fraction of these will be able to afford > antiretroviral drugs that could prolong their lives. > > Pretoria's approach to the epidemic has been embroiled in controversy since > President Thabo Mbeki, who succeeded Nelson Mandela as the country's > second-only democratic leader in 1999, questioned whether AIDS was caused by > HIV. He denied the use of anti-AIDS drugs such as AZT on cost and safety > grounds. > > Nearly one million animals have had to be slaughtered to contain an outbreak > of foot-and-mouth in Britain which has spread to at least three other > European Union states. > > South Africa was able to control an outbreak of foot-and-mouth last September > but has struggled to eradicate cholera which is endemic because of a lack of > clean drinking water supplies. > > S.AFRICA STRIKES OUT AT DRUGS > > Tshabalala-Msimang also used her letter to criticise the developing world's > insistence that Pretoria simply buy drugs to combat its AIDS epidemic. > > The world's biggest drug firms resume a landmark court case against the South > African government on April 18 in an attempt to strike down legislation which > they argue would allow the health minister unfettered power to override their > drug patents. > > "It is quite interesting that developing nations have been advocating the > pumping of AIDS drugs to developing nations and loans for purchasing these > drugs," the minister said. > > South Africa was "beginning to get a hold on the epidemic," mainly through > its attempt to educate people on the disease, change sexual behaviour, treat > opportunistic diseases associated with HIV-AIDS and through efforts to > alleviate poverty, Tshabalala-Msimang said. > > 10:47 04-03-01 > > ++++++++++ > > > Drug firms say South Africa fails to take up AIDS offers > > By Steven Swindells > > > JOHANNESBURG, April 4 (Reuters) - The world's biggest drug firms have > attacked South Africa for failing to take up offers of cheap AIDS drugs to > combat the country's health crisis. Accusations that Pretoria was not > interested in securing discounted anti-AIDS drugs despite an AIDS epidemic > were levelled in an affidavit obtained by Reuters on Wednesday. > > "(There is) general unresponsiveness on the part of government to utilise the > offered assistance...it is unjustifiable to blame the non-use of > antiretroviral HIV/AIDS medicine in the public sector on the price of these > products," said the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers of South Africa (PMA), which > submitted the affidavit to the Pretoria high court. > > The latest affidavit was prepared by 39 leading drug firms in their landmark > legal action against the South African government, which resumes in Pretoria > on April 18. > > Drug firms are aiming to strike down legislation that they fear would give > South Africa's health minister unfettered power to override their cherished > patent rights by importing or manufacturing cheaper generic or copy-cat > medicines. > > At stake in the case is the extent to which governments in the developing > world will be able to secure affordable supplies of medicine, especially AIDS > drugs. > > South Africa argues that the pharmaceutical industry has failed to deliver on > promises of cut-price drugs, that buying the drugs would bankrupt the state > health budget and that there is insufficient infrastructure to monitor use of > the drugs. > > AIDS activists and aid organisations have denounced the drug firms for > putting profits ahead of lives and for abusing their patents rights by > demanding prices that are out of reach of ordinary people in the world's > poorest continent. > > South Africa has more people living with HIV-AIDS than any other country in > the world with 4.7 million people estimated to have the disease. The vast > majority cannot afford drugs that could prolong their lives. > > DRUG FIRMS OFFER DISCOUNTS > > Drug companies say they are prepared to sell drugs to South Africa at no > profit. > > Britain's GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has offered its combination AZT/3TC > antiretroviral drug Combivir to Pretoria at 39.10 pounds sterling ($56.03) > for a month's treatment, a company spokesman said. This represents a 84 > percent discount to the average world sterling price and works out as less > than $2 a day for treatment. > > Correspondence contained in the affidavit between the drug firms and the > South African Ministry of Health over a three-year period reveals an at times > testy relationship. > > Letters between the parties also reflect growing frustration by leading firms > such as GSK with Pretoria's reluctance to accept offers of cheaper drugs at a > time when firms were being made uncomfortable by an increasingly vocal public > campaign against the firms by AIDS activists. > > Drug firms are also seen trying to reassure South African ministers that > details of their negotiations will not be released to the media. > > In sworn testimony, senior managers at GSK and Germany's Ingelheim Pharma > ceuticals detail their dealings with the health minister, which failed to > result in supply deals being reached despite a series of price discounts > offered by the firms on their antiretroviral treatments. > > The letters build on earlier arguments from the drug industry that Pretoria > failed to take up offers through the United Nations or used the state > tendering system to buy bulk volumes of AIDS medicines at competitive prices. > > They also reveal reluctance by two South African health ministers to use > antiretrovirals as a leading tool in the fight against AIDS sweeping the > country, especially in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of the > virus. > > 09:38 04-04-01 > > ********** > > OBRL News is a product of the non-profit > Orgone Biophysical Research Lab > Greensprings Research and Educational Center > PO Box 1148, Ashland, Oregon 97520 USA > http://www.orgonelab.org > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > Building upon the discoveries > of the internationally acclaimed natural scientist, > Dr. Wilhelm Reich > <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
