Mumia Abu-Jamal with attorney Rachel Wolkenstein and by his wife, Wadiya
Jamal. (photo: San Francisco Bay View)
Mumia Abu Jamal to Begin Receiving Hepatitis C Treatment
By teleSUR
02 April 17
The jailed former Black Panther Party leader has been demanding treatment
since 2015, when he suffered from a renal failure.
U.S. revolutionary activist Mumia Abu Jamal will begin receiving treatment
for hepatitis C next week, Philly Voice reports, citing recently-released
court papers.
Jamal, who is serving a life sentence at the Mahanoy State Correctional
Institution in Philadelphia, has been demanding treatment since 2015, when
he suffered from a renal failure.
Now, he will receive antiviral medication that consists of one pill per day
for 12 to 24 weeks, Philly Voice adds. The medication has an estimated
90-percent cure rate.
The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, DOC, was ordered on Monday to
begin providing medication after it lost its appeal to withhold treatment in
the state's Third Circuit court.
"For the last 53 days, the DOC, prison medical staff, and Legal Department
have stood in contempt of court following the order to treat Mumia," Jamal's
legal representatives wrote in a statement.
"The DOC in defiance of the Injunction filed a stay, hoping the 3rd Circuit
Court of Appeals would bail them out and block Mumia's treatment."
The ruling marks a major victory for Mumia and others in similar
circumstances. Now, thousands of prisoners who suffer from hepatitis C will
be able to receive treatment because the federal court order sets a
precedent, Prison Radio reports.
The treatment, however, will not solve all of his medical problems. Mumia,
who suffers from cirrhosis of the liver, is now at greater risk for other
health complications and potential liver cancer. This is a direct
consequence of being denied treatment for two years, according to his legal
representatives.
"We must stay vigilant," they wrote in a statement.
"We must insist that the treatment be given and completed in full, and we
need to support the lawsuits Abu-Jamal vs. Kerestes and Abu-Jamal vs. Wetzel
as they continue to hold the Pennsylvania DOC accountable."
Jamal, a former member of the Black Panther Party, was arrested and charged
with killing white police Officer Daniel Faulkner in Philadelphia in
December 1981. One year later, he was tried, convicted and sentenced to
death.
In 2011, the United States Supreme Court declared the death penalty
unconstitutional in his case, and he was re-sentenced to life in prison
without parole. He and many activists have maintained that he is innocent.
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