JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - South African doctors blasted a supermarket franchise for hawcking HIV/AIDS kits, saying self-testing without counselling would be disastrous and lead to possible misuse by employers, insurers and even state officials.

Imagine allowing a 13-year-old to self-diagnose cheaply and without any support or counselling, it could destroy their lives," said Kgosi Letlape, chairman of the independent South African Medical Association (SAMA) which groups some 17,000 doctors.

"It could lead to suicide or someone going on a spree and infecting as many people as possible," he said reacting to a report on Monday that a supermarket franchise had put up a do-it-yourself HIV/AIDS kit for sale.

"There are many tests with different levels of accuracy, I'm not too sure about the characteristics of the one being offered in supermarkets," he underlined.

"To allow cheap diagnosis to destroy lives cheaply is simply not acceptable," he told AFP.

A franchise of the popular South African chain Pick'n Pay sold a home test kit for about three weeks but withdrew it following an uproar.

Andrew Nathaniel, director of Homelab which is marketing the US-developed product in South Africa, said it was a screening test which was 99.5 percent accurate, according to The Star newspaper on Tuesday.

But he added that "people using the product still need to go to a doctor or a laboratory to have a diagnostic test."

AIDS is a burning issue in South Africa, which has one of the world's highest caseloads, and the disease is the country's number one killer according to the Medical Research Council.

Letlape said counselling was also vital because of the "many issues, misconceptions and confusion surrounding HIV/AIDS in South Africa."

"There is the issue of stigmatisation of course, but also misrepresentation about facts including the idea that proper nutrition is curative and a substitute for therapeutic medication," he said.

Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang has attracted controversy for insisting that good nutrition -- including her much-touted and somewhat quirky diet of raw garlic, lemon, olive oil and beetroot -- is key to combating HIV.

Letlape said the sale of the kits could be open to abuse by employers, insurance companies and even immigration officials.

"In South Africa, we have a history of employers trying to exploit domestic workers to test against their will. Women here are disempowered and could be forced to undergo by their male partners," he said.

"And globally, we have seen immigration officials, especially at ports, trying to test people," he added.

Letlape said a crucial aspect of counselling was "lifestyle management.

"If one feels the need for testing, it is because he or she feels at risk. What is imperative therefore is counselling for responsible sexual behaviour and lifestyle management."

"We therefore appeal to the manufacturers to keep aside profits and take these products away from the shelves," he said, adding: "The laws of the country stipulate that testing should be accompanied by pre- and post-counselling and that should be respected."