Glaxo again under fire from AIDS activists

The Network of AIDS Communities in South Africa (NetCom SA) says multinational drug giant GlaxoSmithKline's (GSK) past pricing policies have limited people's access to AIDS drugs in developing countries. Glaxo recently granted its 5th voluntary license to Indian drug manufacturer Cipla to produce generic versions of its patented AIDS drugs for use in Africa. However, NetCom SA claimed in a statement that since 2001, when GSK signed its first licensing agreement with South Africa's Aspen Phamacare, the production of life-saving generic AIDS drugs had moved at a "glacial pace" in hard-hit African countries. Vowing to renew their call to Glaxo to address its past wrongdoing, NetCom executive director Swazi Hlubi said: "GSK's actions on voluntary licensing are once again too little, too late."