Thursday, September 07, 2006

South African health minister called to resign over AIDS remarks!

Manto Tshabalala-Msimang publicly told people living with HIV to eat garlic and beetroot. In a country where more than million people are HIV positive, and infant rape is rampant, the remarks came as a thunderous shock and more than 60 international experts on HIV/Aids have called for the resignation of Ms Msimang. In a letter sent to President Thabo Mbeki, the academics called the government's health policy "disastrous and pseudo-scientific", BBC reports.

The South African government has said it will change the way its Aids message is communicated. But Mr Mbeki, the president has rejected previous calls to sack Ms Tshabalala-Msimang.