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 in April after dying with 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, of the 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.