EU offers Libya better ties in bid to end HIV row
Source: Reuters
(Updates with EU statement) By David Brunnstrom BRUSSELS, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The European Union on Monday held out the prospect of better ties with Libya if six foreign medical workers, condemned to death in the country for infecting hundreds of children with HIV, were released quickly. Foreign ministers from the 27 EU states expressed "grave concern" about a verdict by Libya's criminal court last month that they described as unacceptable, saying it ignored strong evidence from world renowned experts. In a statement released after talks in Brussels, ministers called for a fair and prompt resolution to the case leading to an early release of the five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor. "In this context, the relations between the European Union and Libya can further develop." The six were found guilty in December of deliberately starting an HIV outbreak at a hospital in Benghazi in eastern Libya. More than 430 children were infected and at least 50 have died. The death sentences have been condemned by Western governments and rights groups, with Bulgaria, which joined the EU only this month, among the harshest critics. Some Western scientists blame negligence and poor hospital hygiene for the HIV outbreak and say the medical workers are scapegoats. Diplomats in Brussels said the ministers had to tread a delicate path to avoid aggravating the situation after Libya expressed anger over a resolution passed by the European Parliament last week urging EU states to review ties with the oil-rich north African country unless the six were freed. Libyan Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdel-Rahman Shalgam said on Saturday Tripoli would not agree to "unfair" European demands as this would mean interfering in the judiciary. But he noted the sentences were not the last word, with a decision by the Supreme Court still to come, then another by the High Judicial Council. The Supreme Court ruling is expected in the next few weeks. EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner told a news briefing she had also written to Libya to stress the need to take into account new scientific evidence. "The Libyan authorities have promised that the case will now go to the Supreme Court. I think it is very important that this next step is there," she said. Ferrero-Waldner said the European Commission had contributed 2.4 million euros ($3.11 million) to a fund to help ensure the victims of the infection received the treatment they needed. Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos told reporters Spain had offered to take in some of the infected children for treatment, but no numbers had been mentioned.
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