Ouders van Madeleine McCann+Tapas 7 weigeren reconstructie..

quote:

"Documents given to McCanns without consultation with the PGR"
FILIPA AMBRÓSIO DE SOUSA
^{8th July 2008
Thanks to 'Luz' for translation}

The Attorney-General of the Republic, Pinto Monteiro, and the Judicial Police (PJ) have not been advised that the couple McCann would have access to documents concerning the investigation on the disappearance of their daughter, May 3, 2007, in Praia da Luz

"We have no official or unofficial confirmation of which documents were allegedly provided by the British police," explained the official source of the press office of Pinto Monteiro. The same happened with the PJ. "We have not had any contact with the English police and we do not know what documents will be made available to Kate and Gerry McCann," a source from the new direction of the national Judicial Police confirmed.

quote:

My own take on this is that the Mc's have actually gained nothing of any use nor real interest from yesterdays case ... 81 carefully chosen documents from 11 thousand are not realistically likely to contain ANYTHING that pertains to evidence against the McCanns themselves.

That point is being re-iterated again and again by the statement 'first few days following the disappearance' - at that point in time the investigation (particularly in respect of the Leicester Police) was not even looking towards the McCanns.

All it has gained them is an opportunity to spin about their 'victory', more opportunities to spin about the presumed contents, and yet more spinning about the 'leads' that M3 are following up - irritating yes, but likely to affect any overall outcome? I don't think so.

I do however find it very telling that, after months of comparative silence, the McCanns have gone into a spin frenzy - just at the point where the investigation files have been handed over to the Prosecutor .... distraction techniques? Surely not.

quote:

beachy wrote: If I understand correctly, part of what the McCanns received is information that their solicitors had initially and turned over to the police without making a copy, namely, the names and addresses or telephone numbers of people who called early on to report possible "sightings" of Madeleine. The only information they got that had not once been in their hands was whatever it was that those individuals told the police when they were contacted and questioned. Not much of a "victory," if you ask me.

Reactie van een ander:
More banner than parade. They take a krap request to their pet judge, deal down for a handful of sightings they already knew about and checked (who really believes they didn't make copies?), and proclaim victory. Secure in the knowledge that Leics police won't be letting anyone see the rest of those documents no matter what happens in Portugal.

What really galls, however, is seeing these two feted at every turn for being stupid enough to leave three young children unattended. M's disappearance was treated more as a public celebration than a serious crime. And now they can use this court case as effective proof that, according to British police, they're cleared. They can invent whatever nonsense they please and claim it came from Leics police files. It gives their whole "sightings" scam an aura of respectability.

I imagine they're loading up for when Amaral's book is published. RstJ

quote:

Gerry's blog - 27 June 2007

'Kate and I would like to emphasise that if anyone who thinks they have information relevant to Madeleine’s abduction, then please pass this on to your local police. It does not help us to receive such information directly- we will only pass it on to the police for it to be considered in context of the overall investigation. If people are unhappy to speak to the police directly information can be given to the international crimestoppers anonymously.'

- Gerry McCann, blogging in June last year, appeared less than happy to receive first-hand information relevant to Madeleine's 'abduction'. Presumably because, in those early days, they were swamped with psychic 'sightings' and 'dreams' from people claiming to know where Madeleine was. It would therefore appear likely that such 'leads' will account for a significant number of the 81 items of information released today, 27 June 2007

quote:

EU unable to agree child alert system, but boosts cooperation
^{08 July 2008, 11:02 CET}
(CANNES) - European nations agreed Tuesday to cooperate more closely in the hunt for lost children but could not endorse a Europe-wide alert system sought by the parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann.

EU justice ministers ministers, at informal talks in the French Riveria resort city of Cannes, decided to set up national police centres to coordinate any international search when it becomes necessary.

Germany argues that alerting all 27 nations as soon as a child disappears and launching a massive media campaign would be pointless as most are found in the area where they went missing quite quickly.

"We shouldn't send out a European alert when a child has been gone for just a few hours," said German Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries. "The great majority of children return home after two or three days."

But the parents of Madeleine, Kate and Gerry McCann said in April that a swift EU-wide alert system could have helped locate their daughter, who disappeared from a Portuguese resort in May 2007.

Since their daughter went missing, not far from the Spanish border just before her fourth birthday, there have been reported sightings from Belgium to North Africa. No-one has been charged or arrested over her apparent abduction.

"Please don't wait until another child and family suffer as we have before agreeing to support the implementation of an alert system in Europe," said Kate McCann, who along with her husband was a suspect in the case.

EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot urged the ministers to go further, saying that missing children were being found more quickly in European countries where a solid alert system is in place, like France and Greece.

"The ministers have to be more energetic and impose this alert service," he told reporters. "When a child has been abducted we have to move very, very quickly."

Luxembourg Justice Minister Luc Frieden supported the European-wide system, but said that, since agreement was not possible, small groups of countries could decide to forge ahead by themselves.

"We should try something European. We don't need very complicated legal texts. This is an aspect where police and legal authorities can work together," he said.

quote:

08/07/08
Murat's life rummaged within the case - Correio da Manhã

Cleared: PJ unsuccesfully rummaged the life of the Anglo-Portuguese

Murat's life rummaged within the case

He had all the conditions to be a suspect, but he was never near the child, after all

Robert Murat gathered all the conditions to be a suspect. Kate remembered his face from the first searches and even asserted that he had told her about the resemblance between Maddie and his daughter, that lives with her mother in England. Friends of the McCann couple also stated that Robert had always followed the investigators closely, revealing an excessive interest in a case that did not concern him directly.

When an English journalist alerted the authorities to Murat’s commitment and curiosity and compared him to another case that had happened in London, where the suspects had actively participated in the searches, the investigators didn’t hesitate. “Murat gathered the conditions to be pointed out as a suspect”, the investigators explain in the final report – which CM has been reporting about in an – advancing into searches and telephone surveillance.

In Robert Murat’s house, very advanced technological means were used. In the final report, it can be read that technicians from the Algarve University used sophisticated equipment to allow for a detailed scanning of the subsoil.

The telephones belonging to Murat and his friends were placed under surveillance but nothing was established. The computers were verified and the car and the house were examined by the English dogs, which are experts in the detection of cadaver or blood trace odours. To no avail. The Judiciária completely discarded the possibility that Murat was involved in an abduction.

Apart from that, members of the GNR and Ocean Club employees guaranteed that they never saw Murat on the first days of the searches, contradicting the English and Maddie’s parents.

source: Correio da Manhã, 08.07.08 - paper edition by astro

quote:

No Breakthrough For McCanns
^{Martin Brunt July 8, 2008 12:43 PM}
Not sure I share Clarence Mitchell's optimism over the McCanns’ victory in getting access to some of the Leicestershire police files on the Madeleine investigation.

Outside the High Court he talked of "80 potential new leads."

But they're not new. They've been in police hands for a year or more and haven't led to any breakthrough.

The McCanns are to get contact details of witnesses and only a summary of what they reported to police.

Will those witnesses want to be requestioned by the family's own investigators?

And how much of the vital detail will they be able to recall?

In court the McCanns’ barrister said it was "expected that Kate and Gerry's status as arguidos or suspects will be lifted soon."

Not sure they can rely completely on that happening, either.

quote:

Madeleine McCann: Kate and Gerry's fury at 'club' devoted to prosecuting them

Gerry and Kate McCann have expressed their anger at the establishment of a fee-paying "club" dedicated to seeing them prosecuted over the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine.

A retired British solicitor, Tony Bennett, has set up a fund called The Madeleine Foundation, which aims to bring a private prosecution against the McCanns for alleged child neglect. But Madeleine's parents fear members of the public will inadvertently donate money to it because they may mistake it for the McCanns' own Madeleine Fund, which pays for private investigations into her whereabouts.

Mr Bennett, 60, who has in the past worked with the family of Stuart Lubbock, the man found dead in Michael Barrymore's swimming pool in 2001, described his fund as a subscription-only members' club, charging a £10 annual fee. Last year he tried unsuccessfully to launch a private prosecution against the McCanns, only to be told by magistrates in Leicester that they had no jurisdiction over the case, because Madeleine disappeared in Portugal.

Mr Bennett said: "Some of the money immediately raised will be used to pay for a barrister to give his or her opinion on how best to proceed with a legal action against the McCanns. "We are a group of people, which is rapidly growing in number, who want to get to the truth of what happened to Madeleine. "We will also campaign for changes to the law about parents who leave children on their own.

"If you go on the internet and look at some of the forums and blogs about Madeleine, there is a large and significant number of people who feel powerless and who want to do something about it." Mr Bennett said the official website for the Madeleine Foundation, which will not have charitable status, is about to go live.

He said all the money raised would be used "in an above board way" and would be openly accounted for. Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman, said: "It is a great shame that Mr Bennett feels the need to make money out of Madeleine McCann. "He did not seek permission from Gerry or Kate to use Madeleine's name. This so-called foundation is in no way doing anything to help find Madeleine.

"It purports to be a foundation helping the search for Madeleine but it does nothing at all to help that search and goes against Gerry and Kate. "Mr Bennett has already tried to take a private prosecution against Gerry and Kate but a court said it has no jurisdiction over something which allegedly happened in Portugal."

quote:

10.01.08, 9:00pm
: 81 Lies! They lied about the checks (every hour then when that wasn’t received well ever half hour) They lied that they were performing the checks themselves (then it became known other men in the group were also checking on the McCann kids) They lied even after that in the TV interview when Kate says she discovered Madeleine gone ‘on one of my checks’ – it was the only check she made that night. They lied about the distance from the apartment to the Tapas bar They lied that you can see the apartment from the Tapas Bar They lied about whether they actually saw Madeleine with their own eyes or just listened at the door (as did their friends) They lied about who checked and when (changing their stories) They lied about who remained at the table all evening and who was absent They lied that leaving 3 children all under four years old alone at night ‘at the time was not irresponsible’ Their friends lied about seeing Murat there that night (as incoming and outgoing phone records placed him consistently at home) They lied about Bundleman. Tanner lied about when she gave Bundlemans details to the Police (changing the date) Tanner lied about the description of Bundleman (changing the height and appearance) Wilkins & Gerry or Tanner lied about that check when they were all in the same place but never saw each other. They lied that the door was locked and changed it to unlocked when it was not well received. They lied that the door was closed, then it was open because of ‘danger of fire’ They lied about the shutters being jemmied or forced They lied to friends, family and media when the called them that night telling them of an abductor who had broken into their apartment Gerry lied when he said there was no way Madeleine could have gotten out of bed and then said she must have wandered off. Gerry later lied in his blog saying the twins must like their new cots because they were asleep by 7:30pm which was very unusual, and yet the twins were asleep by 7:30 on the night of May 3rd allegedly. They lied to friends, family and media in phone calls that night saying the Police had not shown up when they were already there. Kate lied to Mrs Fenn saying the Police had been called. They lied saying they had called the Police when it was in fact Mark Warner They lied when they said it felt so safe and then said they knew they were being watched. They lied to family, friends and media on the phone that night when they said nobody was doing anything wheen in fact locals, holidaymakers and staff were all helping search. They lied when they said they were all searching when Kate and Gerry were hitting phones until midnight and Tanner claims she knew nothing of the disappearance until another friend knocked on her door. Gerry lied when he asked for a priest claiming not to know where the church was. They lied as to what time the Police arrived They lied that Cuddlecat was Madeleine’s favourite toy and then that it was a present to be given to her on her fourth birthday. They lied saying they would cooperate fully with the investigation They lied saying they would not do anything to hinder the investigation They lied that the fund was going to be a charity. They lied that the fund would help other missing children and families of. They lied when they said they didn’t know Murat. They lied when they said they would stay in Portugal until their daughter was found. They lied when they said they were going to learn Portuguese. They lied that it could not possibly be Madeleine’s blood in the trunk of their hire car. And then they took the same vehicle out of circulation so no further tests could be carried out upon it. They lied about not discussing the case and met with the Tapas 9 secretly. Gerry lied about where his wallet was apparently stolen, Waterloo station and then near Downing Street. They lied when they said abductions like this (snatched sleeping from a hotel or apartment) happen a lot, they don’t. They lied about the fund not being used for personal matters and then it paid their mortgage. Kate lied about coming into contact with 6 dead people in her 1 day a week job as GP to explain the cadaver scent on her clothing. They lied about cuddlecat having the scent of Madeleine and being comforting and then as soon as they heard the dogs were coming Kate announced she had washed it because it smelled of sun tan lotion. Making forensic analysis of it much harder. They about the crime scene, about how many people came into the crime scene, walked around and contaminated it, again making investigation much harder and destroying much evidence according to detectives. Gerry lied about the existence of the tennis bag. They lied about going to sue media companies. They lied about the film deal. They lied about sacking Justine McGuinness and her subsequent departure. They lied about returning to Portugal for questioning voluntarily and now will only do if their Arguido status is lifted. They have also appointed General Pinochets extradition-fighting lawyers. Gerry lied about his faith. They lied to the local catholic priest (who now claims he was deceived by the McCanns) and then deserted him for the Anglican reverend instead and never, ever took confession apparently. They lied about the value of their home, initially £600,000 and now £1.2 million. They said a lie detector test would clear them and now refuse to take one. They lied for months saying they were not suspects in the disappearance of their daughter and were then both made formal Arguido / suspects under Portuguese law. They lied about the possibility of sedation and then claimed ridiculously that perhaps the Abductor had sedated all 3 of their children before making off with Madeleine. Gerry lied about Kate’s ability to cope with three children on her own when her own Parents and her own diary say different. They lied about the amount of alcohol consumed that night. In another lie about cooperating they refused to provide their mobile phone records to the pj. Kate explaining away the scent of death of cuddlecat because she took the childs 4th birthday present cuddly toy to work and exposed it to contact with 6 dead people. They lied how everything had been so normal up til May 3rd when it is now known that Mark Warner staff had received complaints from other holidaymakers because of their home alone children crying and seeming in distress. This also brought Mark Warner staff looking for the McCanns on the night of the 2nd and insisting they attend to their distressed children. They lied about 90 minute tennis lesson with several versions of the story being put out by official sources within the McCann Camp They and at least one friend lied about Madeleine’s last meal on May 3rd. They lied about the abductor entering through the window and then changed it to the patio doors. Matthew Oldfield lied about his check on the McCann children changing his story not once but twice. Kate lied about physically searching for her daughter but then admits to not have done so in a tv interview. McCanns claim they were the first to arrive to tapas on May 3rd, Rachel Oldfield claims they were the last to arrive. Despite being in Rome and Madrid and claiming to be spending the rest of the week quietly at home in PDL with the twins, the hire car in it’s first week clocked up over 500 miles. Gerry lied about his checks on the children in the apartment, at first having claimed to have entered several rooms later then claiming the abductor must have hiding in the apartment while he was there. Gerry and O Brien have lied about their locations when holding a mobile phone call together on June 10th as verified by phone records and pinpointing. Jane Tanner has changed her statements, arrival time at tapas, direction of travel, checking times for night of May 3rd. Najova Chekaya who joined the tapas 9 at the table at 9:30 states nobody left the table until Kate went to check. Putting Oldfields, O Briens, Tanners and Gerry McCanns statements into question
• Posted by: lizzyw1Bron

quote:

"This post is one of the best posts I have ever read. (Thanks to Zodiac for posting it and Lizzy for writing it.)

When the PJ say they have insufficient evidence to prosecute, it can't be true. They may not have a body, or forensics, accordingly, cannot prove how Madeleine died - but the cumulative effect of this kind of evidence (lies) should be sufficient to prove faking an abduction.

I have always however given them the benefit of the doubt on the basis that a lot of lies could come from the cover-up of the neglect and Madeleine could still have been abducted. They could have lied about the shutter so that they didn't have to admit the patio door was open. They could have lied about the checks so that they did not have to admit that their checks were infrequent, etc. But innocent people generally do not lie, and that is why barristers spend a lot of time in Court focussing on inconsistencies in evidence."

quote:

Brussels throws out McCann's appeal for European missing child alert system
^{By DAILY MAIL REPORTER Last Updated: 10:04 PM on 08th July 2008}
Kate and Gerry McCann's campaign for an alert system for missing children across Europe will not be adopted by the EU, ministers said yesterday.

Instead, member states will set up their own systems and work together to alert border officials and foreign police forces more quickly following child abductions. It follows criticism that Portuguese authorities took up to 12 hours to warn police and border officials in Spain after three-year-old Madeleine McCann vanished in the Algarve last May.

The announcement was welcomed by her parents. The McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell said the couple would back any measure which could help to find missing children and reunite families.

He added: 'Whether it is a centralised system or individual national alerts, all Kate and Gerry want to see is better and quicker cooperation between countries. 'When a child goes missing, every minute counts. Kate and Gerry will continue to push for the best possible alert system for children. How that happens is something for ministers to agree on.

'This announcement is very encouraging as it underlines the fact that there is a Europe-wide desire for things to improve.' The McCanns, both 40, lobbied MEPs to act in April. Their declaration attracted 308 signatures, but needs almost 90 more for the European Parliament to adopt it.

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Maddie case has to be decided until the 2nd of August

The Republic’s Attorney General orders that until that date, it is defined whether more diligences are necessary or the process is archived

Until the upcoming 2nd of August, the prosecutor who directs the investigation in the process of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has to decide whether he finds it necessary to carry out any other diligence and to extend the judicial secrecy, or the process is archived. The deadline was given by the Republic’s Attorney General, Pinto Monteiro, who is analyzing the report that was presented by the Polícia Judiciária’s team that has been investigating the case.

This reports describes all the diligences that were developed by the PJ’s investigators since Madeleine disappeared from the apartment in Praia da Luz, Algarve, where she was spending holidays with her parents and siblings. The details of the case may be known very soon, if finally the process is made public on the 14th of August, as foreseen. The McCann family may then have access to the entire information that was collected and worked upon by the police, collected in approximately 11 thousand documents.

For about the same time, the release of a book by the former head of the Criminal Investigation Department in Portimão, Gonçalo Amaral, who coordinated the investigation, is being prepared. Removed from the case, after having directed hard criticism towards the actions of the British police and press during this process, this inspector ended up retiring from the police. He promises the revelation of new data about the investigation which he was removed from.

The thesis that he defends, of the involvement of Madeleine’s parents in her disappearance, was questioned by the new team of investigators that moved into the Algarve to support his successor, Paulo Rebelo. The possibility of an abduction, which had initially been explored, was under strong consideration again, occupying tens of inspectors from various departments within the PJ. But their worked was fruitless. The analyses that were performed upon the elements that were collected in the apartment and in the car that had been used by the family were inconclusive. No indicium, no lead, no piece of evidence that pointed into one or another direction.

The opening of the process will also allow for the reasons that led the PJ to decide to constitute Maddie’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, as arguidos in the process, to be known.

source: Público, dated 09.07.2008, paper edition, page 11 by astro

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Op woensdag 9 juli 2008 12:53 schreef kahaarin het volgende:
Natuurlijk, CM is een meesterspinner, hij draait alles naar team McCann toe, zelfs een nederlaag is positief, als je al in winnen of verliezen wil spreken.

Heb je dit al gezien trouwens?
[..]

http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=132935&command=displayContent&sourceNode=132702&contentPK=21047413&folderPk=77465&pNodeId=132393
En natuurlijk niet vergeten dat ze arguido af wensen te worden, vooral op geld hameren en op het Maddy-alert, toch mis ik nog steeds iemand in de berichtgeving, resultaten van het onderzoek naar, hoe heet ze ook weer.....?

quote:

Street of Shame Private Eye (this article appears in paper version only)
^{Issue No. 1214 11 July - 24 July 2008 Published: 09 July 2008}
"If the Portuguese police had a shred of decency they would now make a public apology to Kate and Gerry," Allison Pearson thundered in the Daily Mail last week as she recalled the appalling smear campaign to which the McCanns had been subjected by Inspector Knackeros.

"Remember the fluid from a dead body, matching Maddy's DNA, that was supposedly found in the boot of her parents' hire car? Remember the (false) rumour that Kate had previously suffered with depression? Remember the well-thumbed page of the Bible, with a text about a dead child, which was taken as evidence that Kate had a guilty conscience?"

Yup, Pearson's readers probably do remember headlines such as "DNA 'does prove Madeleine's body was in hire car'" (3/11/07), and reports suggesting that Kate McCann had "sleeping pills or medication for depression" which could have been accidentally taken by her daughter (14/9/07), and other stories wondering "Why did Kate McCann, who is Catholic, mark a passage in the Bible which talks about the death of a child?" (25/10/07) - not least because they all appeared in the Daily Mail.

quote:

Philomena McCann informed the Telegraph (17th September 2007) that “her family are willing to sell their homes to pay for the legal fees run up by the missing girl's parents."

Considering Mr Mitchell’s new appeal to the public to continue digging deep into their pockets, it would seem that Philomena McCanns’ words were an empty gesture.

I've managed to sidetrack again... back to the article at hand...

...If the McCanns are not overly eager to offer an audit yet continue to request donations from the public, then isn’t it about time that someone looked into the accounts of their 'fund' to find out exactly where the previous money has been spent and on what?

Incidentally, I came across an old article by the Telegraph (17th September 2007) Tycoons withdraw support which reported that “Two millionaire businessmen who gave money to help find Madeleine McCann refused today to contribute to the legal fight to clear her parents' name.” Makes a person wonder why they decided to opt out and distance themselves from the McCanns.

quote:

"Publico is regarded as a 'serious' newspaper; it can be counted among the 5 or 6 mainstream dailies, but it is probably one of the least sold ones. It has a reputation of being rather 'intellectual' (meaning: boring for most people) and not sensationalistic.

Personally, I found it completely out of character when Público published, I think late last year or at the beginning of this year, an article that had been written out of the perspective of the abductor. A lurid, absolutely disgusting piece that I think everyone failed to see the point of, except to shock and to support the abduction storyline. I should maybe add that Público is, by far, among the mainstream daily newspapers, the one that gave the M case less coverage. By very far."

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Op woensdag 9 juli 2008 22:55 schreef Tmaatje het volgende:
nog maar een TVP, wie weet wat er nog boven water komt...

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McCanns' Oprah windfall
^{By Jerry Lawton 10th July 2008}
MADELEINE McCann's parents are planning a big bucks interview with US chatshow queen Oprah Winfrey to boost their search fund. It is understood Oprah, 54, would be willing to break the bank for a cosy chat with Kate and Gerry. Up to now the couple have resisted offers to appear on celebrity chatshows but they are considering Oprah after the fund set up to find Madeleine plunged to £500,000 – less than half the original amount donated by the public.

Along with private eyes' bills, the cash has been spent on poster and advertising campaigns appealing for information about Madeleine and running an website. The McCanns, who still haven't been officially cleared, sparked controversy when they dipped into the fund twice last year to fund mortgage payments on their home in Rothley, Leics.

The couple's spokesman Clarence Mitchell has admitted the couple need to top it up to maintain the hunt for their five-year-old daughter. Earlier this week police agreed to let the McCanns, both 40, see 81 witness statements taken after Madeleine vanished from their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007.

quote:

Kate and Gerry McCann have been approached to appear on the Oprah Winfrey show and for an interview with American network ABC.

The couple's spokesman confirmed that they had been approached by US TV executives. t had been reported that missing Madeleine McCanns' parents were at the centre of a bidding war worth £1m between Winfrey and ABC star Barbara Walters. Both are said to want an exclusive interview with the couple.

However, the McCanns and Winfrey's camp were quick to play down talk of a bidding war. The McCanns' spokesman, Clarence Mitchell, said they had been approached by both chat show programmes but said no money had been discussed.

He also categorically ruled out any interview while Madeleine's parents remained arguidos - suspects - and distanced them from talk of any sort of price war between networks. He said: "There is categorically no truth to the suggestion that any sort of bidding war is currently taking place between American networks or American programmes.

"Gerry and Kate will not be doing any sit-down interviews whilst they remain arguidos because of their legal position and this has been communicated clearly to any media, international or domestic, who are continuing to bid for interviews with them."

Mr Mitchell added: "Initial contact with both Oprah and ABC has taken place as it has with many other media outlets around the world but nothing has been agreed nor are we aware of any of these programmes being in any sort of competition with each other." He said a bidding war "is not something we would encourage".

The McCanns are already thought to be considering whether to give the go-ahead to a film about their daughter, who went missing last May on a holiday in the Algarve in Portugal. It has been confirmed that they were approached by entertainment company IMG but neither Gerry or Kate McCann attended the meeting.

Mr Mitchell said then that a film would be considered only if the McCanns believed it would help raise awareness of the case or if it could help fund the search for their daughter. A spokeswoman for Harpo Productions, which produces the Oprah Winfrey show in the US, said: "While we've been in contact with the McCann family representatives, we are in no way involved in a bidding war.

"The Oprah Winfrey Show does not pay for news interviews."

quote:

Op donderdag 10 juli 2008 11:48 schreef kahaarin het volgende:

[..]

Ja inderdaad Suko, het lijkt me niet positief voor hen om interviews te geven in de USA, daar zijn ze nogal van de nannies en babysitters, en dan die argumenten dat ze geen vreemden voor de kinderen wilden laten zorgen is natuurlijk bullocks, diezelfde vreemden van de kidsclub waar ze de hele dag gedropt werden zeker?
[..]

http://www.brunei-online.com/bb/wed/jul9w12.htm
Ik denk dat in die 2 dikgedrukte gedeeltes de kern van de zaak staat, een vermist kind is het meest gebaat bij intensieve grenscontroles in het land waar ze zijn ontvoerd, bovendien weet je nog dat Amber alert, uit een eerdere post? Er moet een beschrijving zijn van de kidnappers, bewijs zijn dat het kind daadwerkelijk is ontvoerd een beschrijving van de auto van de dader(s), hoe nou Amber alert in de zaak van Maddy? Zelfs in de US zou er geen Amberalert uitgevaardigd zijn want er is helemaal geen bewijs van ontvoering.....

Bovendien zorgt zo'n alert in de 1e uren ervoor dat er een heleboel mensen denken dat ze zo'n kind hebben gezien, er staat in het artikel: "there have been reported sightings from Belgium to North Africa. No one has been charged or arrested over her apparent abduction."
Iedereen die graag even in de spotlights wil of enigzins in de war is gaat natuurlijk bellen, dat zorgt toch alleen maar voor meer verwarring en onnodig werk? Ik denk dat zo'n alert alleen zin heeft als zeker weten blijkt dat de ontvoerder met het kind naar het buitenland is vertrokken, dus niet in de 1e uren maar als er bewijs is dat ze op een luchthaven of treinstation zijn geweest.

Ik denk dat dit hele gezeur over interviews alleen maar lawaai maken is om inkomsten te genereren, die grote geldschieters zijn er al weken geleden mee opgehouden hadden we gelezen toch?

quote:

THE Portuguese police are to close down their inconclusive investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

The three year-old’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, are now demanding that their status as official suspects in the case should be removed. They have let it be known that they regard the prospect of spending the rest of their lives as arguidos is “immoral and inhumane”.

Which is quite right if they are guilty of no crime.

But they will forever remain guilty of leaving their daughter along with their two even younger children, Sean and Amelie, alone in a holiday apartment while they went out boozing. So which tag do the McCann’s wish to carry with them into the future? Careless or irresponsible or just downright neglectful?

quote:

EU says governments failing to implement lost children hotlines
BRUSSELS (AFP) - Thu Jul 10, 8:21 AM ET EU nations are failing to do enough to protect missing children, the European Commission said on Thursday, accusing member states of dragging their feet on setting up hotlines.

Of the European Union's 27 member states, only Hungary has taken all the necessary action to implement the hotlines. "Alarm bells should be ringing in the other 26 member states," said EU Telecommunications Commissioner Viviane Reding said.

"It is a pity that in many countries action doesn't seem to follow words when it comes to implementing numbers that can provide precious help to parents and children. Six-digit numbers starting with 116 have been reserved across the EU for missing children hotlines and helplines which children can call.

However, a recent EU survey found that very few member states had implemented the numbers, and little effort had been made by governments to get the numbers known, as required by EU law. "The commission has done its part of the job and hopes that it won't be necessary to start legal proceedings on a matter where there should be broad consensus," Reding said.

The commission's warning came after EU nations agreed on Tuesday to cooperate more closely in the hunt for lost children but could not endorse a Europe-wide alert system sought by the parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann. Germany argues that alerting all 27 nations as soon as a child disappears and launching a massive media campaign would be pointless as most are found in the area where they went missing quite quickly." Bron Dit bericht is eerder gepubliceerd op eubusiness.com

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Irish Star 10/7/08 Ireland stalling kidnap alert

Missing Madeleine McCanns parents bid to have a Europe wide abduction alert system is being held up by Ireland, says EU officials.

Kate and her husband Gerry who is originally from Co. Donegal, have lobbied the European parliament to back a cross border scheme since Maddie[5] vanished in Portugal in May 07. EU commissioner Jacques Barrot said that the EU's 27 nations need a compatible system.

French Justice Minister Rachida Dati who chaired talks held with Barrot on Tuesday added:You have to react quicklywhen a child goes missing'. But, while other EU country have differing alerts,Ireland has no official system at all. The Justice Department yesterday said it is aware of the EU developementand is reviewing it on an ongoing basis. 'Kate and Gerry are optimistic' said their spokeman Clarence Mitchell.

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McCann: Judges have three weeks for conclusions
^{Duarte Levy & Paulo Reis}
The Attorney General of the Republic (PGR), Pinto Monteiro, has asked the magistrates of the Public Ministry to send him the final report of the Madeleine McCann case, the whole lot, within three weeks.

Pinto Monteiro aims to decide on the follow-up to the PJ's investigations after the inspectors have sent to the Public Ministry a report about the investigation work carried out since Madeleine's disappearance. A report more than damning in the facts, but in which the inspectors, voluntarily, have not wanted to draw conclusions or accusations, leaving to the magistrates the responsibility for deciding what follows.

According to a senior PJ office in the Algarve region, "the absence of conclusions or accusations in the report sent to the Public Ministry should be interpreted as the magistrates being given the responsibility and political power in this case."

"The PJ have not had the possibilty of conducting the investigation in a calm way....there was interferance and pressure, in particular from the British authorities and their representatives in Portugal," the same officer accused, stressing that in the United Kingdom, the police officers who had gone to Portugal, "admitted having been under the same pressure."

The Attorney General Pinto Monteiro has analysed dozens of pages of the PJ's report and is only waiting for the magistrates' decision: carry out more work, wait for more evidence or clues, knowing that the investigation cannot purely and simply be archived, contrary to what certain media have claimed.

"Now, the magistrates must have the courage to read, understand and analyse our report. It is up to them to decide on what follows and to find out if they have the courage to face the British." the senior PJ officer concluded.

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/ 10/07/08 Vertaling > Bron

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Couple criticized over campaign for the alert about missing children

McCanns already have signatures

Maddie’s parents managed to collect 417 signatures for their petition. But it only comes to reinforce a project that was already in movement

The McCanns congratulated themselves yesterday, in a communiqué, about the “excellent news” that they received from Brussels. What made Maddie’s parents so happy was to know that 417 MEPs have already signed the petition that they promoted for the creation of an European alert system for missing children.

The collected signatures – 417 out of a total of 785 – are those necessary for a resolution to be appreciated within the European Commission. But, in Brussels, the McCanns’ prominence within this project has already created antibodies. “What use will this petition be? There is already a European law proposal for the creation of that alert system, which will have to be approved by each member state”, a source at the European Commission criticized to 24Horas. “The McCanns associated themselves with an initiative that belongs to the European Commission, in a media maneuver”, the source pointed out.

It doesn’t change anything

Another source that knows the dossier well has an opinion that “the McCanns’ petition doesn’t change anything”. And explains: “The project, which already existed, has taken time to be approved because the 27 member states have different legislation”.

The pressure on the EU was started by Paris. “In late 2007, towards the end of the Portuguese presidency of the European Union, France, which wanted to broaden its alert mechanism to the countries with a common border, raised the issues at the level of the European Commission”, the source clarified.

“The McCanns went directly to the European Parliament, in April2007, giving the idea that they were starting a project that had, in reality, already been started within the European Commission”.

But the McCanns’ spokesman considers that any criticism against an alleged appropriation of the European proposal by the couple is mere “viewpoints”. “If the project was going to advance anyway, without the petition that was promoted by the McCanns, then how does one explain that 417 MEPs signed it?”, Clarence Mitchell questions.

The McCanns’ spokesman advanced that the resolution will now move into the European Commission, which will request a report on how to create an alert within the 27 countries.

Facts

Judiciária. In Portugal, in mid-June, the PJ’s joint national director, Pedro do Carmo, was given the task by the Justice Minister to present a proposal for a swift alert system against child abduction. It was Portugal’s presidency of the EU, in 2007, that introduced the issue into the Informal Council for Justice and Internal Affairs.

Obstacle. According to what Clarence Mitchell told 24Horas, it will be difficult to create a European alert system with a centre in Brussels because “Germany does not want the system to be centralized”. The alternative may include the creation of alert systems that are common to neighbouring countries, he explained. There is still a long way to go…

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EU unable to agree child alert system, boosts cooperation 2 days ago CANNES, France (AFP) — European nations agreed Tuesday to cooperate more closely in the hunt for lost children but could not endorse a Europe-wide alert system sought by the parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann.

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Gerry's blog - Day 434, 10 July 2008

We have recently managed to have a break visiting family. Sean and Amelie have had a brilliant time and it has been great for me to spend so much time with them. Although this has been a relaxing break, it has been incredibly difficult for Kate and me to have been on holiday without Madeleine- it is all too apparent what is missing.

We were very pleased to learn today that the written declaration calling for the introduction of an EU wide Amber alert system has been successful. More than half of the 786 Members of the European Parliament (MEP’s) were required to sign the declaration for it to be adopted as a full resolution of the European Parliament and as of today 417 had signed. This is a small step in the right direction and a lot of work will be needed to get National Amber alert systems implemented. The idea already has the support of the European Commission and this additional political impetus should speed up the implementation process.

We would like to thank Edward McMillan-Scott and the other 4 sponsors of the declaration, all those MEP’s who signed the declaration and all the members of the public who lobbied their MEP’s.
There has been a lot of speculation in the press over the last 10 days that the investigation in to Madeleine’s disappearance has closed. We have not heard anything officially other than we know the files are with the prosecutor and the period of secrecy has been extended to 14th August. Our independent investigation continues and we urge people going on holiday to remain vigilant and consider taking one of our posters with them- downloadable from the how to help section of the website.