5 December 1999

Zackie Achmat tells South Africa on Beat It! broadcast that he will not be taking antiretroviral therapy until it becomes available to all South Africans who need it through the public sector. He says: “The reason I won’t take treatment is because the vast majority of people with HIV/AIDS in our country…cannot afford to be healthy.”

Beat It! 1999 Episode 8 - Zackie Achmat

"People who support me are very sad, they are sad because they know that I won't take treatment. And the reason I won't take treatment is because the vast majority of people with HIV/AIDS in our country...cannot afford to be healthy."