Pioneering Aids professor awarded national order by President Zuma

28 April 2016 - 10:39 By TMG Digital

Professor Helen Rees is on Thursday being awarded the Order of the Baobab (Silver) at the 2016 National Orders Awards ceremony in Pretoria. Executive Director of the Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute‚ Rees is an internationally renowned expert in HIV prevention‚ reproductive health‚ vaccines and drug regulation.She serves in leadership roles in both national and international structures including research bodies of the World Health Organization related to Ebola vaccines‚ polio and immunisation. She is currently chair of the Medicines Control Council in South Africa."Her work gives hope to communities who have been affected by the scourge of HIV and Aids‚" according to the award citation.Rees is among four Wits recipients of National Orders this year - the others are Professor Benedict Wallet Vilakazi (posthumous) (Father of Zulu poetry)‚ Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng (President of Wits Convocation)‚ and Wits alumna‚ Sylvia “Magogo” Glasser (choreographer).“Wits congratulates all those honoured‚ and especially those Witsies who have made a mark in our society‚” Professor Adam Habib‚ Wits Vice-Chancellor and Principal‚ said in a congratulatory statement.Winnie Madikizela-Mandela is among those being honoured for their role in the struggle against apartheid. Her award is the Order of Luthuli in silver. “She bravely withstood constant harassment by the apartheid police and challenged their brutality at every turn. She became a symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle and of the bravery and determination of the oppressed to gain their freedom‚ against all odds‚” the award citation reads.Receiving the same honour will be Mac Maharaj‚ a former transport minister who recently retired as official spokesman for President Jacob Zuma.Other well-known personalities who will be honoured at the ceremony include Afrikaans singer Laurika Rauch‚ who will receive the Order of Ikhamanga in bronze‚ which recognises South African citizens who have excelled in the fields of arts‚ culture‚ literature‚ music‚ journalism and sport.The award is being bestowed on her for her “outstanding contribution in the field of music and raising awareness on political injustices through music.”“She bravely deployed her artistic talents to highlight the injustices and tyranny of the apartheid rule‚” the citation reads.Also among those to be honoured on Thursday is Chile’s president‚ Michelle Bachelet Jeria (Chile) who will have the Order of the Companions of OR Tambo bestowed on her. The award recognises eminent foreign nationals for friendship shown to South Africa. According to the Presidency‚ the award is being bestowed on her for her “exceptional contribution to the fight for democracy at the global stage”.“She was imbued with a deep sense of justice and the courage of her convictions‚ which drove her from Chile to exile.”..

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