Getting Close To Madeleine McCann’s Parents
MADELEINE McCann is not on the Mirror’s front page. We are not looking for her today. We are looking at her mother Kate McCann.
“I AM COPING WITH THE GUILT,” says the headline. “Maddy mum pain as new DNA clues probed.”
Kate McCann is on the Mirror’s front page. Readers see her face. She is not talking to the world but to Mirror readers. That at least is the impression. The Mirror and the Express are locked in a fight to see which of them can be the official Madeleine McCann paper.
“MADEDLEINE,” says the Express’s front-page headline. “Police intercept parents’ phone calls and spy on their emails.”
Newspapers in Portugal says the local police have been watching the parents. We all have.
Dairio de Noticias says: “The police want to question the McCanns and their friends so that they can clarify the contradiction in their statements. They will put the telephone calls and emails which were intercepted to them.”
In the Mirror we see the “pain”. We are intruding into the mother’s grief, but then this is the story every parent can relate to. And there is a story to sell.
“I know the situation we were in that night. I have said all along that I didn’t think we were taking a risk,” says Kate McCann.
She is reliving the night of Madeleine’s disappearance. She is doing so on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. But the Mirror is up close. This is their story.
Does Kate feel guilty about leaving her children alone while she dined with friends? “I have actually come to terms with that a little bit,” says Kate McCann. And: “I do feel desperately sorry that I wasn’t with Madeleine when she was taken.”
But what of the whispering campaign against she and her husband? The McCanns’ friend Rachel Oldfield, who was with them in Portugal, is unimpressed. “It is very hurtful and all rather ludicrous,” says she.
She goes on: “Whether a journalist has had a bit of information and made the rest up, or the police are feeding some truth or untruths, I don’t know. I read a timetable of what was supposed to have happened in one paper and the timings are totally wrong.”
But the story is all. This is about keeping Madeleine McCann in the news, ensuring the disappearance of one child is the lead news story, above Iraq, floods and other missing persons.
What matter facts?
Posted: 9th, August 2007 | In: Madeleine McCann Comments (28) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments
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September 14th, 2007 at 9:56 am
said it from the start: it’s the parents
September 12th, 2007 at 12:02 pm
Its interesing reading comments regardsing this with the hind sight of whathas been in the news the last few days. Speculation as to whats in the Police file is pointless. I’m sure little snippets are being leaked from official sources for whatever reason but until or if it goes to ocurt we will never know for sure. What we do know however is that a little girl is still missing. We also know that her parents left her alone with two other younger children to go out to dinner. There are cases in the UK were mothers have accused fathers of abuse with no proof what so ever and fathers have been stopped seeing their children. Here we have hard concrete evidence that children were neglected yet we are still to see Social Services involvement. This case highlights a number of issues ranging from the police’s slow reaction in a missing child case to flawed British thinking that Johnny-foreigner can’t possible be capable of investigating a crime such as this. It also highlights the injustices and double standards of Social Servants and the Courts. An overhaul is much in need.
August 13th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
The Mcanns are far from ‘moping’ around. They have done amazing work for others since their own daughter went missing, i.e. Code Madeline, the push for faster response times when a child goes missing, the collaboration of multi teams working together, the push for boarder roads to be closed sooner…. all these things will not help Madeleine but they sure may help others. Not the type of actions of a couple who are concerned for themselves.
all these things you may one day thank the Mcanns for initiating!!!
If they had employed a baby listening service, their children would be checked every 30mins anyway. Which is what they were in effect doing.
August 12th, 2007 at 10:03 am
and how exactly do you know they didn’t hire private detectives? It was reported in the beginning that they had.
August 11th, 2007 at 11:45 pm
It has been well publicized that the McCanns have raised a healthy amount of money by campaigning. If I were Mr or Mrs McCann I would have hired at least one top notch private detective as fast as I could. That way, while local police are maybe bumbling about, there would be someone else out there looking in those crucial early days. I don’t understand why they overlooked this when they have been so savvy about using the media etc.
I fear for Madeleine too.
August 11th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
Bill-What a piece of work you are! This is certainly NO holiday for them. And what if their so-called “holiday” is financed by someone else? What a stupid thing to say! What business is it of your’s anyway? And Richard-you and many, many others have made your point, so knock it off! Ad nauseam!
August 10th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
They will not come home with or without poor madeleine. They cannot face the people they lived with as, irrespective of the outcome of the investigation, they cannot explain their actions and are incapable of admitting they were at fault. They will face the same reaction everywhere in the UK, where - contrary to what you may have heard - leaving your children alone and unprotected is not considered acceptable behaviour and responsible parenting.
August 10th, 2007 at 5:32 pm
Bill i hope what the family are going through you never will have too.
I wouldnt say it was a hoilday.
Of course they want to come home as a family as we al hope.
August 10th, 2007 at 4:33 pm
I read that the regional chief of the PJ has said that because Robert Murat is an official suspect, or “arguido”, he must remain an arguido until the case is closed. That, apparently, is their law. Don’t know how true it is. I hope it isn’t true, because I had been hoping to see him officially cleared any time now. I don’t believe he is guilty of anything, except of being an over-helpful chap, enthusiastically trying to be of assistance immediately after Madeleine went missing. That is not a crime - except to certain tabloid journalists.
August 10th, 2007 at 3:00 pm
They’ll go home when the weather gets colder - nice holiday for them, no doubt funded by some tacky tabloid.
August 10th, 2007 at 12:40 pm
Pagarete is only voicing the beliefs of many people. You can sense the frustration the locals are feeling at having the McCanns continually moping around. It’s not as if they realistically have any hope of finding Madeleine after all this time. Perhaps it is time for them to go home and concentrate on the well being of their remaining children.
The possibility of Murat being involved was probably nothing more than a media fantasy which helped to keep the show on the road. The PJ are slow to act on anything so there is probably no significance in their tardiness in releasing him from suspect status. It must be hard for them to do, since there is no one else around to put in the frame. Apart from the parents, which risks howls of outrage.
August 10th, 2007 at 11:34 am
they must think Murrat is involved some where along the line to keep him as a suspect as he has not yet been given the all clear.
Which ever way this turns out the parents will have to live with the “one” mistake.
Until anything concrete is found we must continue to support them.
I am hoping that if the blood is Maddies they wont just say she has been murdered. It could have been in the struggle.
We must carry on with our support.
August 10th, 2007 at 11:00 am
Marian, you seem to contradict yourself in your own posting:
“Liars each and every one of them.
To tell lies you need a good memory. And if you were out on the lash every night, facts could be a bit hazy.”
August 10th, 2007 at 7:20 am
why does Murat lawyer want the mccanns out, is the heat getting too hot for him now, I think they are right in staying in Portugal until they have concrete evidence that she is no longer there or she is found, personally I think that Murat, the PJ and Murat’s lawyer and freinds all Pee in the same pot
August 10th, 2007 at 7:03 am
Liars each and every one of them.
To tell lies you need a good memory. And if you were out on the lash every night, facts could be a bit hazy.
August 9th, 2007 at 10:48 pm
“The group gave statements saying sleeping Maddie was checked every 15 minutes.”
Truth or untruth?
August 9th, 2007 at 10:43 pm
colette, “psychic” is a bit too close to “psycho” for my liking but yr comment about the police being involved is interesting. I have often wondered about the slow response time and in particular, notifying the borders to be on the lookout. there was a huge delay, was it by design? i dont think the fate of Madeleine will ever be known.
August 9th, 2007 at 9:29 pm
I think the Portuguese police are inept and have been from day one. If I were the McCann’s, I wouldn’t trust them as far as I could throw a grand piano! For the moment, I guess they have to say they trust them but where is all this info from the P police coming from that’s being leaked to the media? Perhaps from within? If they have anything definite on anyone, let’s hear it-either put up or shut up! This story is really a tragedy! This innocent,helpless child is the victim here and the parents are desperate to find her no matter what it takes.
August 9th, 2007 at 5:26 pm
Whether you believe in psychic predictions or not, here’s an interesting possibility to consider, which I haven’t yet read on any forum so far: how many children have gone missing from the same region over the last few years? Could - shock horror - the police be involved in them?!
http://www.briansprediction.com/dd/5441page5.htm
(scroll down to end).
August 9th, 2007 at 5:10 pm
come on everyone give the Macanns a break put yourself in there postion. They have two other children so why werent they taken. The blood could have been from any one. Maddie might have cut her finger for all we know.
If some one thinks they see Maddie then take a picture of her, maybe the police will get somewhere then.
Come on people show the family we are behind them!!
August 9th, 2007 at 4:10 pm
I think that the antics of the Portugeses press is dispicable!
The investigation is a farce. A sacrifical lamb is right! So many useless people trying to justify their meaningless existance!
What ever shred of strength the Mcanns must have left after having Madeleine taken must surely be weakening under all this torment.
There are so many paedos and criminals who must be rubbing their sick hands together in glee that the heat has turned off them yet again.
How did Murats defense lawyer have so much info on the Mcanns activities during the week prior to Madeleine going missing to compile the SOL report???
Did her client supply it I wonder? and if so how did he acquire so much detail?
I believe Madeleine is still alive. I believe that everyone can play a role in looking for her.
August 9th, 2007 at 3:16 pm
@sandra
How to you know for a FACT that she has been kidnapped? Huh!?? Or are you and the British media just as guilty as the Portugal media for wildly speculating.
August 9th, 2007 at 2:22 pm
I’d much rather they “didn’t cope” without the need for telling us about it. They let their kids down, and now they most likely will never see one of them again.
August 9th, 2007 at 12:35 pm
Mods and Admin
Libel, speculation and conjecture
Thus far no one has been arrested and charged.
Individual posters are wholly responsible for what they say.
We shall be checking carefully that users names do tally, and deleting any that are in any other users name, and keeping a record.
Until the Portuguese and/or UK Police make any announcements of any arrests, please take care with what you write.
In addition please, despite asking people on several occasions also, could you keep just one link per post
June
August 9th, 2007 at 11:53 am
DOGSTAR you have hit the nail on the head. The tabloids must have their sacrificial lamb. There is absolutely no movement on this case that we know about, just speculation, and the press are getting desperate for a story. My career needs a lift, should I “sight” Madeleine with suspicious looking ARABS at the beach?
SANDRA it upsets me too. I’m hoping for closure for the family, the alternative to her not being alive (unlikely) and “cared” for (no chance) is horrific.
If it takes a high profile case like this to propel the disgust we feel for crimes against children into a public forum and action, then so be it.
August 9th, 2007 at 11:27 am
“…“Whether a journalist has had a bit of information and made the rest up, or the police are feeding some truth or untruths, I don’t know…”
Meh. Just like nobody knew anything about Mr Murat. Didn’t stop the filthy tabloids speculating he might be a paedo and responsible for the girl’s disappearance. How the wheel turns…what goes around comes around.
This time it is the turn of the parents and friends. The tabloids are determined to have their sacrificial lambs. They couldn’t get an apparently innocent man fitted-up for the crime (to suit their lurid, vouyeristic headlines), so now it’s time to close in the McCanns - but stealth, but insinuation, by speculation. First you sew the seeds of doubt, then you undermind the credibility of your quarry, then you go for the jugular. They tried it with Mr Murat, but the Portugese Police managed to top them.
Will the McCanns be even half as ‘lucky’?
August 9th, 2007 at 10:00 am
I have to return the mccanns favourite quote back to them, and that is, “this statement is unhelpful to the investigation”
August 9th, 2007 at 9:53 am
I feel sorry for Kate. She is probably walking around in a foggy nightmare that she can not wake up from. Imagine your child being kidnapped by a stranger. Imagine the fear you would have thinking about what the pervert is doing to your baby. It scares the hell out of me and Madeleine is not even my child. I pray she is found very soon whether she is dead or alive. We need some closure.