Judge slams Medicines Council for obstructing HIV research

The university\'s Nelson Mandela School of Medicine has been trying for more than 3½ years to get approval for an internationally funded clinical trial. The trial is to focus on the effect of Nevirapine as a prophylaxis to reduce mother-to-child HIV transmission through breastfeeding. The MCC, which maintained the clinical trial would lead to the infection of innocent babies with HIV, steadfastly refused to give heed to decisions by first an Appeal Committee and then two High Court judges, forcing it to approve the trial, says a report on the News24 site. The university said the delay could cause it to lose more than R47m in international donor funding, infringed on its right to academic freedom of research and aggravated the situation of HIV transmission from mother to child. Judge Willie Hartzenberg dismissed the MCC\'s application for leave to appeal against a court ruling, ordering it to immediately approve the clinical trial, even although an appeal was pending. Hartzenberg criticised the MCC for deliberately delaying matters and being ‘obstructive’ in an attempt to have the application ‘disappear’. Full report on the News24 site