Posted on 07/17/2005 4:36:35 PM PDT by Aussie Dasher
FORMER US president Bill Clinton arrived in Mozambique early today on the first leg of a six-nation Africa tour aimed at boosting his foundation's work in the fight against AIDS on the continent, a spokesman said.
Clinton Foundation spokesman Joachim Salvador told AFP the former president had arrived, and an earlier press release said he would visit the pediatric section of Maputo Central Hospital later today. Some 300 children with HIV and AIDS are being treated with anti-retroviral drugs at the hospital, which is a beneficiary of Clinton Foundation funds.
Ira Magaziner, who heads the Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative, said in New York last week the visit to Mozambique, Lesotho, South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya and Rwanda would seek to "reinvigorate political will" in those countries for scaling up AIDS treatment programs.
Clinton also plans to evaluate progress made by the foundation since 2003, a spokesman said.
He will partly be following in the footsteps of US First Lady Laura Bush, who kicked off her own AIDS-related African tour taking in South Africa, Tanzania and Rwanda in Cape Town on Tuesday.
The Clinton Foundation's work in Africa has concentrated on helping governments design and implement AIDS treatment programs, with a special focus on children, rural areas and widening access to affordable AIDS drugs.
Mozambique, where up to 1.8 million people are estimated to be HIV positive, is Clinton's first stop. Magaziner said the foundation had managed to increase the number of people under treatment from just several hundred two years ago to about 12,000.
Clinton is expected to meet with political and religious leaders throughout his tour in an effort to break down remaining resistance to expanding AIDS initiatives.
..am I being too harsh in suggesting Bill Clinton is one of the last people we'd want as a role model against AIDS?..
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Not at all - he and his adulterous, so-called "wife" are real role models of proper sexual behavior...God, don't make me puke - these two must be given credit though, in that they have proven that two embodiments of the LIVING LIE can get into the White House...so, yes, perfect role models for only the devil himself, their mentor!
Wonder if we will ever see his medical records? Another free pass from the MSM.
Not too harsh. It's as if he is unaware of what people think about when they hear his name or see his face. Of course, we think about his legacy. And we all know what that is.....
If the Clinton Foundation is helping with AIDS, as are many other private entities, why is our tax money being spent to fight AIDS in Africa?
Poor Dumbass Clinton...
Looking for love and legacy in all the wrong places....
I see he's still playing the role as the "First Black President"...
Semper Fi
It appears Bill has found another tax shelter. He can go where he wants like Jesse (hi)Jackson at the foundations expense.
Nothing out of his pocket. And, of course, there are side dishes waiting for him whereever he goes....
He heard Africa had really good yellow cake - with chocolate icing.
He better be VERY careful what he "nibbles" on over there...
Wonder if Clinton double bags it while in Africa.
Thirty years ago, I was stationed in Rome. One of my pals from the bar at the Ambasciatore Hotel, across the Via Veneto from the Embassy, was the ABC Rome Bureau Chief. Bill disappeared for about a month. When he got back, he regaled us with stories from Mozambique, where he'd been to cover the independence of that country from their Portuguese colonial masters. Bill told us that "every odious creature that God ever made" could be found in that poor country. If only he'd know who'd turn up 30 years later.
No, you're not wrong. I'll bet that the MSM is covering his visit from top to bottom, unlike how they covered Mrs. and Ms. Bush on their trip last week, who also met with many HIV/AIDS victims and program coordinators. Cheri Blair even flew in and joined them 1 day.
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