For Bulgarian nurses, freedom isn't easy

[SpikeTss]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1119/p07s03-wogn.html

Sofia, Bulgaria - For eight years, five Bulgarian nurses were locked in a Libyan prison, accused of intentionally infecting 426 Libyan children with HIV, and dreaming of the day they would get released and expose the charges as fraudulent.

But that day came and went more than a year ago, and now the nurses find themselves facing an increasingly stark reality as they adjust to life back in Bulgaria.

While they're working with the producers of the Oscar-nominated "Hotel Rwanda" to make a film based on their story, the real life version has had anything but a Hollywood ending.

Although prominent Libyan authorities admitted that the nurses were tortured into confessing, some Bulgarians still believe that the nurses are guilty. Others view them as opportunistic, and trying to exploit their situation for unreasonable compensation. In reality, many of the nurses now say they're struggling to make ends meet.

"I'm very disappointed in humankind," says Valentina Siropulo, one of the nurses who has returned to the hospital she worked in before traveling to Libya.

...

The nurses were released in July 2007 after the European Union paid $400 million in compensation to the AIDS victims' families as part of a French-brokered deal. Within an hour of touching down in Sofia, the nurses were pardoned.

Less than a month later, Muammar Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, appeared on Al Jazeera and admitted that the nurses were indeed innocent.

Nevertheless, life remains challenging for the nurses.

Kristiyana Vulcheva was highly outspoken about their case when she returned, but after more than a year of legal battles and public skepticism, she's reluctant to even speak with reporters over the phone.

"It's not too much to ask for: just healthcare after spending eight years in prison," says Ms. Vulcheva. Within minutes of speaking, though, she cut the conversation short, explaining, "I'll get very angry. And I want to keep my health."

[valerief]

1. Vulcheva just wants health care? She sounds like an American. nt