Foreign prisoners sue govt over ARVS

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The Botswana Network on Ethics Law and HIV (BONELA) and two prisoners have filed a case in the High Court seeking an order mandating the government to provide non-citizen prisoners with life-saving HIV treatment.

Currently, Botswana provides HIV treatment to prisoners who are Botswana citizens, but requires non-citizen prisoners to pay for the treatment themselves. However, they provide these prisoners with treatment for their opportunistic infections.

“It is irrational and counter-productive to refuse to treat HIV foreign prisoners,” said Cindy Kelemi, the Executive Director of BONELA, which filed a supporting affidavit in the case.

Editor's Comment
Diamond deal demands transparency

Instead, it has sparked a storm of accusations, denials, and unresolved questions about the influence of De Beers on the nation’s politics. Former president Mokgweetsi Masisi’s claims that the diamond giants bankrolled his removal to dodge taxes – and that the new Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) government watered down a favourable diamond deal – are explosive matters. But without evidence, they risk becoming a toxic distraction from...

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