Death of South African AIDS Activist Fuels Anger

A single mother who belonged to the activist group suing the South African government for refusing to provide antiretroviral drug therapy at public hospitals was buried Tuesday after dying of AIDS. About 300 friends and activists, many wearing T-shirts with the message "Dying for Treatment," attended the emotionally charged funeral for Kebareng Moyeketsi, 32. Believing that her death represents the plight of many young black South African women, some activists vowed to carry on with the civil disobedience campaign begun last month against the government. Mark Heywood, spokesperson of the AIDS lobby Treatment Action Campaign, said the group would march to the Johannesburg offices of the Human Rights Commission and the Commission for Gender Equality to demand a probe into Moyeketsi's death. "We believe her death is another example of preventable deaths," Heywood said.

Back to other CDC news for April 4, 2003

Previous Updates | Search the CDC archive