PORTUGUESE PARENTS COMPLAIN ABOUT POLICE INACTION
PORTUGAL DENIES THE TRUTH
Almost everyone in Portugal is aware of the abduction of Madeleine McCann, but there are many other missing children in the country whose cases have received little attention.
Now their mothers are criticising the police for not making an effort to trace their young ones.
Filomena Teixeira's 11-year-old son Rui Pedro vanished while walking home from school in the northern town of Lousada in March, 1998. He has never been found.
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Speaking about the search for Madeleine, she said: "It is clear the police didn't do the same when Rui Pedro disappeared. The authorities' mobilisation was not as big."
Portugal has faced mounting criticism for its record on bringing child abusers to justice.
The founder of the Swiss-based group Innocence in Danger, which has offices across Europe and America, said it had tried but failed to work with Portuguese authorities. Its president, Homayra Sellier, said Portugal was a country where "the corruption has gone so high that there's nothing we can do".
The group tried to set up an office there between 2002 and 2004, but Miss Sellier said: "I stopped it because I thought I couldn't fight against a country where the people do not want to know the truth."
The Daily Telegraph
Comments
The input from the Portuguese police on the Madeleine McCann case has been truly extradordinary and I can fully understand why they get annoyed about suggestiosn that they have not been doing enough.
It must be remembered that, compared with the UK, Portugal is a poor country with a fraction of the tax revenue and, therefore, the resources that exist are proportinately less.
Many Portuguese people are critical of the level of commitment which is being shown to locating a missing foreign child when nothing similar happens when a Portuguese child goes missing.
Posted by: kev | May 25, 2007 9:21 AM
The input from the Portuguese police on the Madeleine McCann case has been truly extradordinary and I can fully understand why they get annoyed about suggestions that they have not been doing enough.
It must be remembered that, compared with the UK, Portugal is a very poor country with a fraction of the tax revenue and that, therefore, the resources that exist are proportinately less.
Many Portuguese people are critical of the level of commitment which is being shown to locating a missing foreign child when nothing similar happens when a Portuguese child goes missing.
Posted by: kev | May 25, 2007 9:22 AM
I think everyone has to put there thinking caps on ,if there are so many children going missing over Europe, Why has there been arian looking children go missing, in countries that are dark haired, they would be noticed straight away, So they must be taken to a country like Sweden Germany England or the USA or Russia
If they were going for adoption by force and money being exchanged
I do belief this is going on in Europe,and now that the Eastern counries of Europe have the right to roam we will see more of this from the very poor looking people I have seen at the docks in Dover England some people will do anything for money,even tread water from Africa or walk from Poland and Russia for money, so taking someones child and selling them would be easey money
You say Portugal is a poor country it could be that someone needed money there,ie to buy a house ie some EU member wants a house in Portugal, but why didnt they grab the twins instead they would never remember were they came from, but a 4year old would and she would remember her mother and fathers names and never forget them
So it boils down to her being taken for other things , , this man who has been questioned. he could have got her away qickly, he could have taken her to a place that he knew was quiet a farm or another town or village say 4/5 miles he could have done this in half an hour then moved her up country at a later date
I do beleive this child is still in Portugal,, you look in every wine barrell going on every farm 40 or 50 miles radious of were she was taken, you watch him get hot under the collar, and others
Posted by: Sandra Ybert | August 12, 2007 4:31 PM
since posting my comments, with no reaction
may I comment on the talk just lately about children being chipped at birth,so if they go missing they can be found
Most in that party of holiday makers were Doctors
Discounting the McCanns what were the others doing in there private lives, (in reserch)
Posted by: Sandra Ybert | October 13, 2007 12:50 PM