PRESS ALERT -- 24 AUGUST 2001

TAC TO PICKET PROVINCIAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS AND NATIONAL PARLIAMENT

Pickets will be held at the following venues on Monday, 27 August:

Cape Town: Parliament                   10h30 - 15h00
JHB: Bank of Lisbon (Dept of Health)    10h30 - 12h30
PMB: Natalia Building (Dept of Health)  10h30 - 13h00

Contact persons for more details are:
Mandla Majola: 021 364 5489
Sizwe Shezi: 031 304 3673
Pholokgolo Ramothwala: 011 403 7021
Sipho Mthanti: 021 685 1440
Zamo Zwane: 031 301 1015 or  082 929 1210

On Tuesday last week (21 August 2001), TAC launched an application in the 
Pretoria High Court demanding that the minister of health institute a 
comprehensive programme across the country to reduce mother-to-child HIV 
transmission. Relief is being sought in two areas:

1. The state must make Nevirapine available to women who are HIV positive and 
give birth in the public health sector. The state must allow doctors clinical
independence to prescribe this drug in the public health service.

2. The state is obliged to implement and set out clear time frames for a 
national programme to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. This includes
voluntary testing and counseling, anti-retroviral therapy and the option to use 
formula milk for feeding purposes.  
 
This was so done so as to voice the cries of millions of South Africans who feel 
that something needs to be done to save the lives of the children and women of 
our country.  

It is also our constitutional, social and moral duty as citizens of South Africa 
to mobilize in solidarity with our parents, siblings, colleagues and partners 
who are already infected with HIV, for the availability of anti-retroviral 
drugs.  

Therefore TAC has launched a  public mobilization campaign which is aimed at:

1. Getting more people involved in support of this social and political campaign 
to make essential medicines to pregnant mothers and their babies. 

2. Convincing the MECs in all nine provinces not to oppose the court case and to 
start implementing the MTCT programme as widely as possible.  

Please come along and join the picket nearest you.