Manto tshabalala msimang biography of barack

The death of former Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang marks the end of an era - a period which many South Africans feel deeply embarrassed about.

Without doubt, Dr Tshabalala-Msimang was a brave liberation fighter, a deeply loyal comrade in the ruling ANC, and a woman with a formidable intellect.

But sadly the world is likely to remember her for her for just one thing - her Aids policy.

It was June 2000 when she gained international prominence.

I was then the BBC's health correspondent and was sent to Durban to cover Africa's first ever international Aids conference.

It was a hugely significant affair, coming hard on the heels of the particularly gruesome murder of a 36-year-old woman Gugu Dlamini, set upon by her neighbours after she declared she had the Aids virus.

Durban was bristling