Detailing the suffering of a late Durban Westville prisoner, Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) chairperson Zackie Achmat on Wednesday called for homicide charges to be instituted against two Cabinet ministers.
Achmat, supported by a group of TAC activists, made the call after occupying the offices of the South African Human Rights Commission (HRC) in central Cape Town.
”We hold the government, in particular the Minister of Correctional Services [Ngconde Balfour] and the Minister of Health [Manto Tshabalala-Msimang] responsible for this unnecessary death and suffering of this inmate,” read part of a memorandum handed over to Western Cape HRC representative Ashraf Mohamed.
The prisoner, only identified as ”MM” and the seventh applicant in a case involving 15 prisoners at Westville correctional centre and the government, died on August 6.
However, the TAC only learnt of the death on Tuesday.
Achmat said there was uncontested evidence that since November 2004 prison officials knew that ”MM” had a CD4 count of 87.
A CD4 cell count is a medical test reflecting the strength of the body’s immune system, and if the CD4 count falls below 250 to 200 treatment with anti-HIV drugs is recommended.
The provision of these ARVs formed the basis of the prisoners’ application to court.
According to Achmat, MM’s CD4 count dropped to 86 in March this year, with him suffering from numerous afflictions, such as bleeding piles, TB, lesions, penile sores, septic sores on his knees and painful feet.
MM’s health declined rapidly and he was admitted to King Edward hospital on June 13 and was discharged two days later.
He was readmitted to hospital a few days later with disseminated TB and renal impairment, and was assessed for medical parole on June 22.
”He started antiretrovirals on July 12 2006. This is someone whose kidneys, whose whole body, whose whole immune system had been destroyed and waited for more than two years to be put on an antiretroviral programme by government,” said Achmat at the HRC offices.
He said the TAC wanted the HRC and the Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons to ensure charges of culpable homicide be opened against the two ministers.
”Because they’ve known about this, they’ve known what the outcome would be. This man is dead because of them. In 1996 he entered the prison a healthy man. He’s now dead,” said Achmat, indicating the TAC activists would stay in the HRC offices until they received a response from the HRC.
He said they wanted to see action from government because those HIV-positive prisoners at Durban’s Westville centre are not the only ones.
”There are many others in the same conditions,” said Achmat.
In the memorandum the TAC demanded that government withdraw what it called its ”latest criminally delaying tactic”, to appeal the interim order to provide Westville prisoners with ARVs.
The memorandum mentions at least another eight prisoners desperately sick and asked how many more deaths it would take before government took its constitutional duties seriously. — Sapa