Fassie family wants all to know
2004-07-05 22:21
Llwellyn Prince
Cape Town - The family of pop diva Brenda Fassie wants to make the report of her post-mortem public to "squash all the unfounded rumours regarding the cause of her death, for once and for all".
This was the word from Brenda's brother, Themba Fassie, from Johannesburg on Monday in reaction to a report in a Sunday newspaper that Fassie had been HIV-positive when she died.
Fassie, 39, died on May 9 in the Sunninghill Hospital, Gauteng, after she had been in a coma for more than a week, apparently as a result of an asthma attack.
Since her death, various claims have been published, some saying that she died as a result of a drug overdose and that she allegedly used cocaine mixed with rat poison.
The autopsy report was issued last Monday, but the findings have not been made public yet.
Fassie's brother said the family wanted to publish the post-mortem findings.
'Misleading' reports hurting family
"We have no reason to hide it as nothing will bring my sister back.
He said "bad" reports, which contained misleading information, in some newspapers about his sister were even more hurtful to the family.
He said the report that Fassie was supposed to have been HIV-positive merely showed how desperate, callous, unethical and inconsiderate some people could be.
"It is for these reasons that the family wants to throw the post-mortem report open.
"We are tired of sensational reports regarding my sister's death," he said.
Peter Snyman, Fassie's manager, said rumours that she had been HIV positive were "pure nonsense".
Long history of drug abuse
According to Snyman, there was no evidence Fassie was HIV-positive or that she had been using drugs.
"She did have a long history of drug abuse. Her death could have been the result of many years of drug abuse, but there is no evidence that she was admitted to hospital as a result of a drug overdose," he said.
According to Snyman they would not ignore the negative reports regarding Fassie's death.
"If the information that Fassie was HIV-positive cannot be proven, we will take the reporter to court," said Snyman.
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