Death demanded for Bulgaria nurses

[Mephisto]

Death demanded for Bulgaria nurses

August 29, 2006

TRIPOLI, Libya (Reuters) -- A Libyan prosecutor demanded the death penalty on Tuesday for five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor on trial for infecting more than 400 children with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

"The act was cruel, criminal and inhuman. It's a human catastrophe," prosecutor Omar Abdulkhaleq told the Tripoli court. "We demand the death penalty for the accused."

A previous trial of the six ended with their conviction on charges of intentionally infecting 426 children with HIV when they worked in a hospital in Benghazi in the late 1990s. They were sentenced to death by firing squad.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/29/libya.hiv.reut/index.html
______________

And here's something from the link for those who point at the fact that Moammar Gadhafi is now our ally:

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, who initially accused them of carrying out a CIA and Israeli Mossad plot to destabilize his government by spreading HIV, has said that if the confessions were the result of torture then the convictions should be voided.

"This does not mean the case is over," Gadhafi said. "Four hundred children, half of them dead, the other half of them on the way."

Independent reports put the number of children's deaths at 48.

The World Health Organization and respected AIDS experts said poor hygiene practices in Libya's hospitals were to blame, not the nurses.

A doctor who first discovered the HIV infections testified they started before the nurses arrived in Libya.

 

[JamesDillon]

Not to be insensitive, but why does the media persist in identifying HIV in every reference as "the virus that causes AIDS." Do they think we don't know what HIV is? Surely it's as common a term these days as AIDS is, so if we know one we must know the other.

That aside, what a tragedy.

 

[WildCat]

And here's something from the link for those who point at the fact that Moammar Gadhafi is now our ally:

Another non-sequitor brought to you by Mephisto...

 

[Charlie Monoxide]

I didn't realize De Nile flowed through Libya .....

Charlie (waiting for Ernesto) Monoxide

 

[Mephisto]

I didn't realize De Nile flowed through Libya .....

Charlie (waiting for Ernesto) Monoxide

EXACTLY!

I didn't realize "allies" were in the habit of blaming CIA or Moussad plots on their lack of sanitation.

 

[WildCat]

EXACTLY!

I didn't realize "allies" were in the habit of blaming CIA or Moussad plots on their lack of sanitation.

I'm sure you have a cite for your claim that Khadaffi is an ally?

 

[Mephisto]

I'm sure you have a cite for your claim that Khadaffi is an ally?

Well you've got me there. Perhaps ally was a bit of a strong word. Maybe we just scared them into submission by promising them a western-style Democracy:

"I've just had a close look at some of the dangerous equipment secured in this place. Eight months ago, the centrifuge parts and processing equipment for uranium were 5,000 miles away in the nation of Libya. They were part of a secret nuclear weapons program. Today, Libya, America and the world are better off because these components are safely in your care.

These materials are the sobering evidence of a great danger. Certain regimes, often with ties to terrorist groups, seek the ultimate weapons as a shortcut to influence. These materials, voluntarily turned over by the Libyan government, are also encouraging evidence that nations can abandon those ambitions and choose a better way.

Libya is dismantling its weapons of mass destruction and long-range missile programs. This progress came about through quiet diplomacy between America, Britain and the Libyan government. This progress was set in motion, however, by policies declared in public to all the world."

http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/rm/2004/34309.htm
____________

"As Iraqis make progress toward a free society, the effects are being felt beyond Iraq's borders. Before our coalition liberated Iraq, Libya was secretly pursuing nuclear weapons. Today the leader of Libya has given up his chemical and nuclear weapons programs. Across the broader Middle East, people are claiming their freedom. In the last few months, we've witnessed elections in the Palestinian Territories and Lebanon. These elections are inspiring democratic reformers in places like Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Our strategy to defend ourselves and spread freedom is working."

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/06/20050628-7.html
____________

Three years ago, the nation of Libya, a longtime supporter of terror, was spending millions to acquire chemical and nuclear weapons. Today, thousands of Libya's chemical munitions have been destroyed. And nuclear processing equipment that could ultimately have threatened the lives of hundreds of thousands is stored away right here in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Today, because the Libyan government saw the seriousness of the civilized world, and correctly judged its own interests, the American people are safer."

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/07/20040712-5.html
___________

You're right, maybe "ally" is too strong a term to use for our relations with Libya - maybe "Butt Buddy," would be better?

 

[timhau]

Not to be insensitive, but why does the media persist in identifying HIV in every reference as "the virus that causes AIDS." Do they think we don't know what HIV is? Surely it's as common a term these days as AIDS is, so if we know one we must know the other.

Maybe because of idiots like these?

 

[Mephisto]

Maybe because of idiots like these?

Interesting link, Tim. I didn't realize that someone was questioning the link between HIV and AIDS. But then, people in the U.S. are questioning science and claiming Creationism is on equal par.

Hope that answers James Dillon's question. It's certainly something I hadn't considered, thanks again.

 

[Beerina]

Maybe because of idiots like these?

There's no shortage of charlatans running around Africa touting the falsehood that Aids is not caused by HIV. And, sadly, no shortage of politicians using the deluded mass' outrage to gain political power.

And, of course, the only reason Libya is touting HIV is because, at the moment, those in power can gain more power by using the HIV-Aids link than they can get using the HIV does not cause Aids link.

 

[Beerina]

He did admit that if the confessions were the result of torture, the convictions should be voided. I suppose that's some progress.

 

[marksman]

Moammar Gadhafi is now our ally

Ah, the catch-22 of international politics. If you try to ostracize and alienate a cruel dictator, such as Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, you are accused of ignoring world problems and eschewing diplomacy. If you engage them and come to agreement on some issues... such as Libya's pledge to stop any pursuit of nuclear arms, suddenly you are in bed with the dictator and anything he does can be attributed to you through association.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

 

[Mephisto]

Ah, the catch-22 of international politics. If you try to ostracize and alienate a cruel dictator, such as Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, you are accused of ignoring world problems and eschewing diplomacy. If you engage them and come to agreement on some issues... such as Libya's pledge to stop any pursuit of nuclear arms, suddenly you are in bed with the dictator and anything he does can be attributed to you through association.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Either way, I'm not sure politicans of any ilk deserve the trust it takes to believe they care about their citizens.

 

[marksman]

How is what you wrote responsive to my statement that you quoted?

 

[Beerina]

How is what you wrote responsive to my statement that you quoted?

Uhh, he clicked the "Quote" button, then typed the response in?

 

[marksman]

Ahh. Thanks for the translation!

 

[Ladewig]

http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061104/API/611041466

Libya AIDS Verdict to Be Issued Dec. 19

By KHALED EL-DEEB
Associated Press Writer
TRIPOLI, Libya
Five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of infecting hundreds of Libyan children with AIDS addressed a court hearing their retrial for the first time on Saturday, reiterating their innocence.

The judge set a verdict date for Dec. 19 in the case, which has drawn international protests and accusations that Libya concocted the charges to cover up poor hygiene conditions at its hospitals.

I am both sad and angry that something like this could happen in the 21st century.

 

[NoZed Avenger]

I should have known better.

I clicked on this topic with the silly notion "Hey, a thread from Mephisto that isn't about villifying America or Israel, that will be nice. Surely there's no way that Bulgarian nurses infecting people with the AIDS virus could possibly be . . . . "

Nevermind.

 

[Darth Rotor]

I am both sad and angry that something like this could happen in the 21st century.

Lybia is hardly a 21st century nation.

I note that the charge was "over 400 dead" and the independent sources estimated "48 dead." Too bad Johns Hopkins lads weren't available for this, they'd have estimaged between 20 and 4000 dead.

DR