Libya Commutes Death Sentences
A doctor and six nurses are spared by Libya's High Judicial Court
Six Bulgarian medics are accused of intentionally infecting 438 children with HIV-tainted blood. Libyan families have accepted $1 million but the case is far from over.
A week after upholding death sentences for five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor, Libya's High Judicial Council has commuted the decision to life in prison. The six foreign medics were found guilty of intentionally infecting 438 children with HIV-tainted blood in the Mediterranean town of Benghazi. 56 of the children have since died and, according to Reuters, the epidemic has touched virtually every family in Benghazi, who has either a relative or close friend that has been infected.
Blood Money
The families of the victims recently accepted payments of $1 million each in compensation. The BBC reports that this payment will come from an international fund to which Libya, the European Union and other organizations contribute.
Under Islamic law, the acceptance of financial compensation usually cancels the death penalty but the fate of the medics is, at the moment, is unclear. Talks regarding their legal transfer are expected to commence on July 18. The Palestinian doctor has been granted Bulgarian citizenship to allow him to benefit from any agreement.
Diplomatic tension
The medics are currently in Libyan custody, and have been in prison since 1999. Bulgarian authorities, backed by the EU and United States, have sought the transfer of the medical workers to Bulgaria and have vowed the case will not be over until the accused are returned to Bulgaria. Bulgaria and its allies have also hinted that refusing to release the workers could have heavy diplomatic repercussions for Muammar Gaddafi, who has sought to restore Libyan ties after decades of poor international relations.
In 1999, the doctor and five nurses were among 19 medical staff members arrested after an outbreak of HIV among children at the Benghazi hospital. 13 of the workers were later freed. Foreign HIV experts who testified during the trial said the HIV problem existed before the workers arrived at the hospital and that infections were probably due to poor hygiene.
Bulgaria, the EU and US have suggested that Libya has used the medics to divert attention from its deficient healthcare while the victims' families involved have said the case was a Western plot to undermine Muslims and Libya.
Torture
The doctor and nurses maintain their innocence and claim that their confessions were extracted under torture. Nasya Nenova, one of the nurses, said she was tortured in jail with electric shocks, after which she tried to kill herself. Another nurse, Valentina Siropoulo, says she was also tortured and beaten, leaving her face partially paralyzed and incapable of speaking for six months.
Note: The BBC places the number of infected children at 438 while Reuters' total is 460. This is a difference of 22 children or $22 million, depending upon your vantage point.
