HIV on Trial in Australia? Court Weighs Evidence for Claims of Isolation, Transmission and Testing

February 2007
HIV on Trial in Australia
Court Weighs Evidence for Claims of Isolation, Transmission and Testing
By Christine Maggiore

"It's difficult to tell if Gallo was defending HIV or if his testimony is a public admission of guilt."

A motion for appeal in a criminal hearing in Adelaide, Australia has become the focus of international attention as fundamental claims by orthodox AIDS researchers — including the infamous Dr Robert Gallo — come under vigorous cross-examination by an attorney demanding scientific evidence that the virus exists. Top AIDS industry spokespersons from around the world have appeared in person or by satellite in Adelaide to defend the HIV hypothesis against charges by a local team of scientific and medical ex-perts known as "The Perth Group." The Perth Group asserts that two decades of AIDS research have failed to produce a purified isolate of HIV, validation of the accuracy so-called HIV tests, or proof that HIV is transmitted through bodily fluids.

Below are two news articles about the legal proceedings. Other information about the trial and actual transcripts of testimony can be found at http://aras.ab.ca/index.php. For this week's testimony by alleged HIV discoverer Dr Robert Gallo, go directly to Gallo-Transcript.pdf

Michael Geiger, a close observer of the events in Adelaide, reports being "stunned and amazed" by Gallo's statements to the court. Geiger says, "It's difficult to tell if Gallo was defending HIV or if his testi-mony is a public admission of guilt."

Geiger urges transcript readers to note:

Page 1294 where Gallo agrees that he found evidence of HIV in only 40% of the AIDS patients in his original study, and that 40% is not enough to prove HIV is the cause of AIDS:

Attorney to Gallo: "You had…48 out of 119, or 40%?"

Gallo: "I agree"

Attorney: "Do you agree that the isolation of HIV from only 40% of patients is not proof that HIV causes AIDS?"

Gallo: "I would say of course, in and of itself, 40% isolation of a new virus, I would not say is the cause."
Page 1300 where Gallo admits to finding low percentages of HIV positivity in people with AIDS symptoms:

Attorney: "For…adults with KS, 30%; for adults…with AIDS opportunistic infections 47%. Do you accept your figures?"

Gallo: "I accept the figures."
Page 1317 where Gallo acknowledges finding no HIV in KS lesions or in T cells, and testimony on page 1318 in which Gallo admits that "viral load" tests cannot be used to prove infection with a virus.

The language in news articles covering the Adelaide trial speaks loudly and clearly of media prejudice in AIDS reporting. In the first of the two pieces that follow, medical and scientific experts challenging the no-tion that HIV has been isolated according to proper, scientific standards are branded "an organized group of HIV deniers" and lack official titles such as MD, while those being called by the court to produce evi-dence are referred to as "experts" with repeated references to their professional credentials. The obvious bent of Australian coverage is at least one step up from the US media response: Not a single story on the uproar from down under has appeared in American news.