Rath suffers another blow

The controversial vitamin entrepreneur Matthias Rath has dropped a libel action against The UK's Guardian newspaper and has been ordered by a court to pay initial costs of 220 000 pounds, The Guardian reports.

Rath sued the newspaper over three articles that condemned his promotional activities among Aids sufferers in South African townships.

The Guardian articles appeared in January and February last year in the Bad Science column written by Dr Ben Goldacre, who said Rath "aggressively sells his message to Aids victims in South Africa that Rath vitamin pills are better than medication", the paper reports.

The Guardian's editor, Alan Rusbridger, was quoted as saying: "We are very glad that Rath has dropped his libel action, doubtless designed to discourage other journalists - in Britain and abroad - from looking too closely at his dubious claims and methods. We will seek to recover the costs of defending our journalism."

Bad year for Rath
In June this year the Cape High Court ruled that clinical trials conducted by Rath were unlawful, and banned him and his Rath Foundation from conducting unauthorised clinical trials.

The court also ordered that Rath may no longer publish advertisements claiming that his vitamin products, VitaCell, cure Aids. – (Health24)

Read more:
Fire Manto over Rath: TAC
Manto Rath's imbongi?

September 2008