Co-authored by William Fisher, WilmerHale Professor of Intellectual Property Law Faculty Director, Berkman Center for Internet and Society
In 1976, Yambuku village school headmaster Mabalo Lokela felt sick when he returned from a trip to northern Zaire near the Central African Republic border. He had a high fever, diarrhea, and bleeding. Because he was initially believed to have malaria, Lokela was given quinine, but his symptoms got worse and he soon died. Shortly afterwards, those who had been in contact with Lokela also died. People in Yambuku began to panic. Zaire's President, the notorious Mobutu Sese Seko, declared the region around Yambuku and the capital Kinshasa a quarantine zone. Before the outbreak could be contained, 318 people were infected and 280 people died. The virus that killed Lokela and those around him became known as Ebola, after the river where Lokela was believed to have contracted the disease – possibly through contact with a fruit bat or monkey.
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The above guest post featured on Intellectual Property Watch, written by Special Counsel Quentin Palfrey and Harvard Professor William Fisher.
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