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Note: This document is from the archive of the Africa Policy E-Journal, published
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Africa: March 5 Action on Treatment Access
Africa: March 5 Action on Treatment Access
Date distributed (ymd): 010226
Document reposted by APIC
+++++++++++++++++++++Document Profile+++++++++++++++++++++
Region: Continent-Wide
Issue Areas: +health+ +economy/development+
Summary Contents:
This posting contains a brief note from APIC/Africa Fund Executive
Director Salih Booker on recent developments in the campaign for
access to affordable treatment for HIV/AIDS, as well as information
on actions planned by South Africa's Treatment Action Campaign
(TAC) and other groups.
Note in particular for immediate action the letter to the editor
for which TAC and ACTSA in London are seeking organizational
signatures from as many groups around the world as possible. Please
send organizational endorsements by February 28 to
[email protected].
For more information, see the note from TAC
and ACTSA below. For additional updates, consult the web sites
http://www.tac.org.za and http://www.globaltreatmentaccess.org
+++++++++++++++++end profile++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
APIC Note
On February 20, in response to rising criticism about its reported
review of the Clinton administration executive order mandating that
the U.S. not challenge African countries seeking "flexibility to
bring life-saving drugs and medical technologies to affected
populations," the U.S. trade representative's office issued a brief
statement agreeing to continue "flexibility." The move is welcome,
but insufficient.
The USTR statement in full reads:
"The HIV/AIDS crisis is a terrible tragedy for countries, families
and individuals. USTR is not considering a change in the present
flexible policy: Consistent with our overall effort to protect
America's investment in intellectual property, USTR will seek to
contribute to Administration efforts to work with countries that
develop serious programs to prevent and treat this horrible
disease."
Despite this statement, in practice the aggressive defense of
"intellectual property" is still taking priority over human lives.
The administration is continuing its case at the World Trade
Organization against Brazil, and pharmaceutical companies go to
court in South Africa on March 5 to challenge South Africa's 1997
law which has still not been implemented.
The outcome of the March 5 case will be a major influence in
determining how quickly millions in South Africa and around the
continent gain access to treatment. Opinion on the issue in the
world media is shifting rapidly against the drug companies and in
favor of expanded access. But African governments are still
hesitating to follow the example of Brazil or of non-governmental
organizations which are taking their own initiatives to import
generic drugs. How much the pressure builds during the next few
months - from the South African court case through the OAU summit
on HIV/AIDS in April and the UN Special Session in June - will be
decisive in making it possible to move from rhetoric to action on
treatment access.
To keep the pressure on the companies and the administration, I
urge you to join APIC, the Africa Fund and many other groups
supporting South Africa's Treatment Action Campaign's call for
action on March 5. Read the material below and in earlier APIC
postings (http://www.africapolicy.org), join in protests in your
location, send in your organizational endorsement of the letter to
[email protected],
or take other actions such as your own letter
to the editor of your local newspaper.
- Salih Booker
ABOUT THE MEDICINES ACT OF 1997:
A STEP TOWARDS ENDING APARTHEID IN HEALTH CARE
The Medicines and Related Substances Control Amendment Act 90 of
1997
How does the South African government intend making medicines more
affordable?
The Medicines Act introduces four important elements to contain
health care costs to government and the private sector.
Generic substitution of medines that are no longer under patent is
an important part of the law. This means that a pharmacist must
offer a patient the generic version of a brand name medicine. A
generic medicine is a drug with the same quality active ingredient
that a brand name drug.
Another element of the Medicines Act is the introduction of a
pricing committee that will set up transparent pricing mechanisms.
Pharmaceutical companies will have to justify the prices they
charge. The third part of this law is the parallel importation
provision - known as section 15C of the Medicines Act. This measure
allows the government to import the same medicine sold by the same
company or its licensee at a lower price in another country.
The Medicines Act also allows international tendering for medicines
used in the public sector.
On 18 February 1998, the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association
(PMA) and forty multinational drug companies tried to stop the
Medicines Act by going to Court against the South African
government. After nearly three years of delays and counter-delays,
the case will be heard in the Pretoria High Court from 5th - 12th
March 2001. In this period of delay, more than 400 000 people have
died of AIDS-related illnesses. Many people have died because they
cannot afford expensive medicines.
But why are the drug companies taking the government to court?
Across the world, drug companies made sales of more than $315
billion in 2000. This is more than the gross domestic product of
all the 12 countries in the Southern African Development Community
(SADC). Fortune Magazine has shown that the drug companies make
super-profits. The drug companies complain that the government is
trying to expropriate its property and that it is giving the
Minister of Health too much power. In fact, they fear competition
and being exposed as organisations that profiteer from medicines.
Conclusion
The Medicines Act deserves the support of all people in South
Africa and internationally. It is an attempt to improve health care
by lowering the price of essential medicines. In a country with
over four million people living with HIV, this is especially
important. If the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association succeed
with their legal action, it will be an enormous blow, and could
delay by many years the possibility of affordable medicines and
quality health care for poor people in South Africa and throughout
the developing world.
Endorse Open Letter for 5 March 2001
International Letter on SA Court Case
Copied below is the text of a letter that we would like you to
support. The aim is to try to get it published as a letter to the
editor in as many key newspapers around the world as possible,
signed by as many groups as possible, on the 5th of March, in
solidarity with South Africa as their court case with the
pharmaceutical companies begins about legislation that would
increase access to medicines.
The letter could also be used as text for an advertisement if
groups in a country thought that appropriate and had the funds
needed.
This letter is being sent out by the Treatment Action Campaign
(TAC) in South Africa and Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA) in UK
to international contacts we know are working on this issue, but
because we want as many groups as possible to sign up, please
forward it to your own contacts.
To sign up to this `international letter on SA court case' please
email [email protected] with name of signatory, name of
organisation and contact details. The deadline is 28 February.
On the 1 March we will send a complete list of signers to everyone.
It may be helpful if each country could nominate a contact point
for us to help co-ordinate the placement of this letter in the
press in their country.
Please do also let us know is you are planning any solidarity
actions or protests on the 5 March.
text of 'international letter on SA court case'
To: The Editor
Today [5 March] over forty of the world's largest pharmaceutical
companies; including Boehringer-Ingelheim, GlaxoSmithKline,
Merck, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Roche - take the South African
Government to court. They are fighting a law, that was passed by
the South African parliament and approved by Nelson Mandela,
which would allow life-saving medicines to be imported from
countries where they are cheaper. They claim that the law
infringes intellectual property rights.
Nearly five million South Africans are living with HIV. But few
can afford the drugs which have enabled richer countries to
transform the disease from a killer into a manageable illness.
These companies, with the support of some Western governments,
are protecting their monopolies at the expense of millions of
lives. This legal action shows that the pharmaceutical industry
is more concerned with staving off competition and protecting
their high profit margins than with genuinely increasing access
to medicines.
We believe that this lawsuit is legally flawed and morally
reprehensible. We call on the companies involved to drop the case
and on Western Governments to provide clear support to the South
African Government as it strives to tackle the urgent HIV/AIDS
epidemic.
Signed:
Many thanks & look forward to campaigning together.
In solidarity,
Mark Heywood
Deputy Chairperson
Treatment Action Campaign
tel: +27 11 717 8634
fax: +27 11 403 2341
email: [email protected]
Aditi Sharma
Head of Campaigns
Action for Southern Africa
tel: +44 20 7833 3133
fax: +44 20 7 837 3001
email: [email protected]
MEDICINE ACCESS IN SOUTH AFRICA
Updated 2/23/01 [to check for more recent versions see
http://www.globaltreatmentaccess.org
or
http://www.tac.org.za
BIG PHRMA SUES GOVERMENT TO BLOCK AFFORDABLE MEDICINE
TREATMENT ACTION CAMPAIGN (TAC) CALLS FOR GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION
AGAINST DRUG COMPANY PROFITEERING AND PATENT ABUSE: MARCH 5, 2001
SOUTH AFRICA GLOBAL CALL TO ACTION: TAC calls on people in every
country to mobilise against drug company profiteering on Monday 5
March 2001. On this day, the court action by more than 40
multinational drug companies against the South African government
will be heard in the Pretoria High Court. TAC will mobilise actions
against drug companies throughout the week 5-12 March 2001.
ABOUT THE CALL TO ACTION:
The March 5 Global Day of Solidarity was initiated by South
Africa's Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), a grassroots advocacy
organization which has been struggling to make anti-AIDS drugs
available to South Africa's estimated 4.2 million people living
with HIV.
TAC calls on people in every country to mobilise against drug
company profiteering on Monday 5 March 2001. On this day, the
action by more than 40 multinational drug companies against the
South African government will be heard in the Pretoria High Court.
Millions of people will die from HIV/AIDS and other illnesses, if
the drug companies succeed in their action. A victory for the drug
companies in this case will set back the struggle for access to
essential medicines in all countries. TAC will mobilise actions
against drug companies throughout the week 5-12 March 2001.
MOBLISE LOCAL AND GLOBAL ACTION AGAINST DRUG COMPANIES
The drug companies, Glaxo SmithKline, Bristol-Meyer Squibb,
Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck, Abbott and many others will try to
stop the South African government's attempt to make medicines
affordable to all its people. The law passed by the country's first
democratic Parliament under the leadership of former President
Mandela is now under attack. TAC calls on all people to oppose the
drug companies and to support the legislation.
CALENDAR OF ACTIONS
AUSTRALIA
Sydney: 3 March: Global Treatments Access Network (Aust) group in
the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade on night of 3 March. --
Contact [email protected]. 17 Feb to 5 March: Gathering
signatures for open letter to Glaxo SmithKline.
BRAZIL
Brazilian activists will use the international day of action to
launch a campaign to make Brazilians aware of the PMA court case
against the South African government and the US complaint against
Brazil at the WTO. -- Contact Ezio Santos-Filho
[email protected].
CANADA
Vancouver: 12:00, Protest outside the World Trade Centre at Canada
Place, right beside the Pan Pacific Hotel, Waterfront SkyTrain.
Protest against the USA government using the WTO to protect
pharmaceutical company profits and the PMA lawsuit against South
Africa. -- Contact [email protected] or phone 893-2239.
FRANCE
Paris: ACT-UP Paris is organising an action in the financial
district. -- Contact Khalil at [email protected].
ITALY
Rome: 1 March, 2001: Activists are organising a postcard campaign
against TRIPS. The postcards will be delivered to the Italian Prime
Minister. Contact Mauro Guarinieri [email protected] or
Italian Community Advisory Board ([email protected]) or phone +39 051
26 16 76 or mobile +39 347 96 31 837.
SOUTH AFRICA
Cape Town: 12:00, US Consulate -- Contact TAC Cape Town office :
(021) 364 5489
Durban: 12:00, US Consulate -- Contact Durban TAC
office : (031) 304 3673
Pretoria: 10:00, Church Square, in front of High Court where PMA vs
Govt. hearing is taking place -- Contact TAC JHB (011) 403 7021
UNITED STATES
Berkeley, California 12:00, Bayer plant front gates, 7th and Parker
Streets, picket, rally and voluntary non-violent civil disobedience
under the slogan "Stop Medical Apartheid". Speakers include
Berkeley Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek, Berkeley Councillor Kriss
Worthington, San Francisco Supervisor Matt Gonzales, Bongane Nyatai
from South Africa, California Nurses Association, Father Bill
O'Donnell, Rev. Mark Wilson, and Act Up/East Bay. Info:
(510)568-1680. [email protected]
Philadelphia : (Time unknown) Starts at Glaxo Headquarters in
Philadelphia and then moves by bus to Washington to demonstrate
outside White House and PhRMA (DC targets are tentative). Contact
[email protected].
New York City : 12:00 PM, 59th Street and 5th Avenue in midtown
Manhattan. Rally and march to GlaxoSmithKline and Bristol Myers
Squibb offices. Take the N/R to 60th street ; or B/Q to 57th and
6th Ave. Contact Cindra Feuer at [email protected] or Sharonann
Lynch at [email protected].
Boston: 2:00, State House. Rally calling on Massachusetts state and
federal representatives to take a stand on the issue of affordable
AIDS drugs for Africa, on pharmaceutical companies to drop their
lawsuit against affordable medications in South Africa; on the U.S.
government to drop WTO complaint against Brazil. Contact
[email protected] or Amy Farber [email protected].
This material is being reposted for wider distribution by the
Africa Policy Information Center (APIC). APIC provides
accessible information and analysis in order to promote U.S.
and international policies toward Africa that advance economic,
political and social justice and the full spectrum of human
rights.
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