(IRIN) VIENNA, 2 August 2010 (PlusNews) – Most of the estimated 5.2 million people worldwide on antiretroviral (ARV) treatment are taking generic versions manufactured primarily in India, but tighter global intellectual property rights and trade rules could shut down “the pharmacy of the developing world”. While the patents on many older, first-line ARVs have expired, leaving generic manufacturers free to produce them, newer, less toxic and more effective drugs are patented and priced out of reach of less developed nations. The main way generics manufacturers can produce newer drugs is to obtain a “voluntary licence” from the patent holder. This... Continue Reading
By Russell Simmons – We visited schools both in Botswana and South Africa, such as CIDA City Campus in Johannesburg. We spoke with workers, family members, and visited schools and hospitals in mining communities. We also met with tribal leaders in both Botswana and South Africa who expressed their support of the diamond industry’s contributions to the ongoing development of their communities. We assessed first-hand our observations of how these communities were being positively impacted and the quality of life in these communities was being directly improved as beneficiaries of revenue generated through the diamond industry. We also met with... Continue Reading
By Nacha Cattan – Mexico City – Mexico staged a handful of protests today against the new immigration law in Arizona, where up to 530,000 undocumented workers live and 88.6 percent of the Hispanic population is Mexican. The country was joined by Black Eyed Peas star Taboo, who debuted a protest video online this week against the law. “I believe there’s been an injustice in the state of Arizona,” Taboo, a Mexican-American, says in the video (below). “I oppose Bill 1070.” Protests against the law have crossed international borders – with a rallies also held Thursday in the United States... Continue Reading
SABOTI, 30 July 2010 (IRIN) – With only days to the constitutional referendum in Kenya, the issue of land – ownership, quantity and usage – remains the most controversial, with proponents and opponents suggesting different interpretations of land rights detailed in the draft. “For us who have lived on government trust land all our lives, the same way our fathers and grandfathers did, some of us hope the draft will help us claim what is rightfully ours,” Daniel Sambrumo, chairman of a group of 2,750 people evicted from a nearby forest in Trans Nzoia West District in western Kenya, told... Continue Reading
By Martin Chemhere, in Johannesburg – New York Film Academy agitation has clasped inaugural Class Act winner Sdumo Mtshali, and the exceedingly capable actor is delighting in the looming big time and the Big Apple. By August this year he will be attending classes, interacting with the world’s finest film prospects at the eminent US institution. Exposing his fervent feelings recently, he thought: “I feel awesome, awesome, and awesome! I get to go to a school that’s regarded as one of the best in the world in the field that I love. And it’s an honour.” For 8 weeks in... Continue Reading
