Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge was the Deputy Minister of Health of South Africa under President Thabo Mbeki until she was dismissed by him on August 8, 2007, after which she was automatically reduced to her role as a member of Parliament representing the African National Congress. From 1999 to April 2004 she was the Deputy Minister of Defence. She has also been a member of the South African Communist Party since 1984 and became Deputy Minister of Defence in 1999. Madlala-Routledge is well known for helping combat AIDS in South Africa, and is considered by many to have resisted government denial of the severity of the epidemic. She was also an opponent of the use of alternative medicine treatments of HIV in place of scientifically tested methods. Full bio and links »