“No Retreat on AIDS,” Says AHF As Obama hits Cape Town

In Global, South Africa by AHF

Press Conference, Sunday, June 30th, 10:00am – 11:00am Cullinan Hotel


As President Obama continues his African visit in Cape Town, South Africa, advocates will urge Mr. Obama to continue to honor the US’ commitment to PEPFAR, the lifesaving global AIDS program.

CAPE TOWN (June 29, 2013)⎯As U.S. President Barack Obama continues his official visit to Africa—with a stop Sunday in Cape Town, South Africa—advocates from AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the African Council of AIDS Service Organizations (AfriCASO) and South African AIDS patients will host a press conference in Cape Town Sunday, June 30th from 10:00am to 11:00am at the Cullinan Hotel. Advocates will decry funding cuts made by the Obama administration to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the landmark US global AIDS program which has saved millions of lives worldwide, and urge Obama to continue to honor the US’ commitment to the respected AIDS program.

WHAT: Press Conference—S. Africans Say, “President Obama: No Retreat on AIDS!”

WHEN: SUNDAY, June 30th 2013 10:00 am – 11:00 am

WHERE: Cullinan Hotel, 1 Cullinan Street, Cape Town Waterfront

WHO:

  • Dr. Bright Mhlongo, Consultant/Physician, AHF South Africa Umlazi Healthcare Center
  • 8Diana Horzook,Global Chair, AHF Board of Directors
  • Hilary Thulare, AHF Country Program Director, South Africa
  • Monica Nyawo, 37 year-old South African who was diagnosed in 1996, had full-blown AIDS in 1998 and was admitted at McCord Hospital for one month and later referred to a hospice where she stayed for 9 months before discharging herself. She miraculously survived. In 2004, she was diagnosed with TB Meningitis, and was later started on ARV’s. She has been on treatment for 9 years, and works as a research lay counselor at AHF South Africa’s Ithembalabantu Clinic
  • Nokuthula Khathi, has been has been an outspoken client advocate for nearly 10 years, one of the very first patient advocates from AHF’s Ithembalabantu Clinic.

VISUALS/B-ROLL:

  • AIDS patients and advocates with ‘No Retreat on AIDS’ placards and banners
  • Video Clip—Archbishop Desmond Tutu: “President Obama: Keep the Promise on AIDS’, a video message from Rev. Tutu, recorded last summer for the ‘Keep the Promise on AIDS’ Rally & March in Washington, DC.
  • Newspaper advocacy ad, ‘President Obama: No Retreat on AIDS,’ published in newspapers in the three African countries Obama visits. In South Africa, the ad will run Saturday, June 29th in the Cape Argus in Cape Town, where Obama travels Sunday



Obama—the first US president to cut AIDS funding—cut over $200 million from global AIDS programs. Many of those cuts are already having devastating—and deadly—impact, notably the closure of the AIDS clinic at McCord Hospital in South Africa.

AHF Kenya: New HIV Testing Record of 17,600 in One Month
#KnowYourStatus: AHF Marks Nat'l HIV Testing Day June 27!