GAA calls for SA Health Minister's resignation

Washington DC, USA-based charity the Global AIDS Alliance has joined with several South African organizations in calling for the resignation of the country's Minister of Health, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, citing the slow and confused response to the HIV epidemic as justification.

Mpho Tut, chairman of the GAA's board of directors, said that "the policies of the South African government with regard to HIV/AIDS are outrageous." He added that the country has the knowledge skills and resources to be at the forefront of the worldwide fight against the disease, but that, under the leadership of the current minister, it is lagging poorer neighbors in its response to the problem.

The GAA referenced a study by Nicoli Nattrass of the University of Cape Town, which found that an additional 278,000 patients would have received treatment if the Ministry of Health had used more of the funding earmarked for the purpose, as this would have alleviated some of the delays in drug procurement. The Alliance also said that the government's poor response to the crisis was damaging the climate for investment in the country, and that new leadership is required to reassure business leaders.