South African court issues ban on Aids trials
18/06/2008
A court in South Africa has issued a ban on unauthorised clinical trials of vitamin therapies for Aids patients.
The tests were being carried out by a team that included a former adviser to President Thabo Mbeki - himself a controversial figure in the country's fight against HIV/Aids.
South Africa has the world's highest total number of HIV sufferers - 5.5 million - and yet accusations have abounded that senior politicians such as Mr Mbeki actively undermine Aids healthcare initiatives.
In the latest ruling by the Cape High Court, German physician Matthias Rath and US doctor David Rasnick - a former advisor to Mr Mbeki - were ordered to stop conducting the "illegal" trials among poor blacks.
Both men have also been prohibited from advertising any of their products in the country.
Lobbyists the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and the South African Medical Association (SAMA) had accused the pair of profiteering by selling unregistered vitamin treatments to vulnerable and desperate HIV-positive individuals.
Wrapping up the case, Judge Dumisani Zondi said simply: "It is declared that the clinical trials conducted in South Africa ... are unlawful."
TAC and SAMA are among the organisations accusing the South African government of failing to implement the measures that are necessary to ensure its population is shielded from the threat of HIV.
An estimated 500,000 new infections are believed to occur each year in the country, with some 1,000 South Africans dieing from Aids-related illnesses every single day.
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