Accusing the Portuguese Police for being incompetent because they haven't found the girl yet, it's just funny... Nobody knows if Diana was murdered, died accidentally or what exactly happen and it's already 10 years... and the portuguese police is not involved

I trust any european police much more than any newspaper or other media type. Whatever they come up with in the end will be the truth.

Anthony, London,

I decided to post here just to deny all that has been said in the previous post. The Portuguese Police is very competent and one of the best. Since this all begin they allways kept a very low profile, thats a the way they should act as the law says.
One think that you all should know is that the present situation of the Mcanns, could be chosen by them, in fact the 'Arguido' condition gives them the choice to not answer any more questions, also from no on they could be represented by a Lawyer. So at this point we dont realy know if they are 'Arguidos' - formal suspects - becouse they choose to be, or if that has been decided by the police.

Paulo, Cantanhede, Portugal

Facts:
The ratio of recovery of disapeared children by police is much higher in Portugal than in Great Britain. Enough said about police competence.
In Portugal parents would have trouble with autorities if they negleted children, leaving them alone at home just to go out and have drinks or diner with friends. There are parents like that in Portugal, don't get me wrong, but is a rare situation associated usualy to social misery.
The proofs that seem to involve the McCanns in the disapearence of their daughter were obtain with british means, The police dogs were british and the forensic analisis were perform in a british lab.
The McCanns fled from Portugal this morning. Does that tells you anything?

Francisco Monteiro, Porto, Portugal

I also think it's about time our police start their own investigation ... it's not acceptable to have to rely on another policeforce when they are clearly so incompetent when a British child is missing. It's time for someone in authority in the UK to make a stand and take over this investigation.

Josiblogs, Cardiff,

If blood was found in the hire car, as seems to be the case. I would like to know who had hired the car on the night of her disappearance!.
Surely the police have the sense to consider this?.
The McCanns hired this car 25 days after Madeleine disappeared.

Adam, Edinburgh, Scotland


Adam that is an excellent point, they should be checking who used that car on that night and on the following 25 nights until then. I personally find all of this unbelievable if not to say a complete farce, how could blood have appeared after 25 days in that car ??... I still believe the Mcanns are innocent ( I hope I'm not wrong) and my heart goes out to them,how they are managing to stay sane amazes me.

sarah, paris,

Blood found in the car that was hired 25 days after Madeleine disappeared.

So who else hired that car in those 25 days? Surely that should be the line of enquiry with every single person who hired it before the McCanns becoming a suspect.!!!

We all know what it's like hiring a car on holiday - we get a choice of what, 10 cars ???? and hire them for an average of 3 days? so 8 or 9 different people could have hired that car in those 25 days.

Kate McCann is a trained anaesthetist - Gerry is a heart surgeon - if there'd been any kind of accident, surely they'd have called an ambulance. I simply don't believe that either of them had any wrongdoing whatsoever other than initially leaving their children alone.

Josiblogs, Cardiff,

Jio, how can you say such thing, being a Portuguese? That's not how we feel and not what happens in Portugal. The PJ doesn't do what they want, thye do what has to be done. In this case the Mc Canns shouldn't have been alowed to leave Portugal at this stage. Maybe you should go and live in the UK. I am sure they would treat you right!

Tanya, you say the PJ should have found Maddie? And they are incompetent? So why do we have 8 children missing in Portugal and you have more than 600 in the UK?
And why hasn't the British police found the murderer of the young Rhys Jones? Are they also incompetent?

Teresa, Lisbon, Portugal

I think that the McCanns should voluntarily take lie detector tests. Whilst such tests may never be 100% conclusive they would be a strong indicator to their innocence or likely guilt.

Whilst at times their behaviour has seemed bizzare, who can tell what effect such a tradgedy can have upon a person.

If, as I hope and believe, they are innocent, then they should have no reservations in attemting to prove it by subjecting them selve to the most rigorous testing.

G Shaw, Shrewsbury, England

I cannot believe for a second that Mr and Mrs Mc Cann are guilty of this terrible crime of which they are accused. Every day since the child was missing the Portuguese police have shown themselves to be slow, dimwitted and downright incompetent. There hasn't been a clue for them to follow up, and like the police in every country in the world they were hoping for someone to tell them that a boyfriend, husband, neighbour, anyone, had committed the crime and then this would lead to an arrest.

Whatever clues had been there were lost completely by the fact that it took them half a day to begin their investigations. The whole of the village is said to have been checked thoroughly, except for those properties which were locked and unable to check ! A neighbour and his mother were taken apart as was their house and car and they still insisted he was a guilty suspect.

Having failed in that direction they then detect a speck of blood which was invisible to the naked eye and fail again.

Phil de Buquet, Newport, England

There are millions of privat investigators out there in Europe and US even and so far: no luck. i hope that the new evidence will prove who's done it.

Verna, Virginia, USA

I feel the police have so much pressure on them due to the huge global interest in this case. They must feel the need to show some progress with the investigation. What they fail to mention is their total failure with the cases of other missing children in Portugal. One of which involves a mother being accused when they did not find her missing child. Will they claim that the McCann's were somehow involved in all the other unsolved cases? I feel for Madeleine and her family, she is still missing and all this hype and sensation just distracts from the real story, one of a four year old child who should be with her family. I hope the police and public will keep looking for her and hopefully the whole mystery will at least have a conclusion.

Maxine, Gouda, Netherlands

Murder, manslaughter or negligence. Not pretty words, are they, but let's just remember that the only real vicim here is Madeleine.

As for those parents who say 'we've all done it', I would simply say "don't".

jane b, london, england

If the british lab is right and there is Madeleine blood in the hired car then how can they not be guilty?!

Ethan Ferguson, Bristol, UK

In all honesty and without any kind of irony, congratulations to the Portuguese police. They could have accused anyone of the disappearance of Madeleine and forget about the case. Instead, they are taking their time and not leaking information to the media until they have a solid case. This is called utmost professionalism.

John Spencer, London, UK

If (and it is a very big if, Madelein's dried blood has been found in the boot of the hire car the obvious question is who was hiring that car on May 3rd or shortly afterwards (it wasn't the McCanns). All the hire cars in Praia de Luz out on hire during the week of 3rd May should have been tested for Madeleine's DNA.

E Burke, Aylesbury, UK

Please explain me why a million pound campaign has not yet covered the land with private investigators, since apparently both the portuguese police and their british help are not competent enough to find the missing girl?

António Lacerda, CMB, Portugal

I live in the UK but have dealt with the tax audit of a US client in Portugal. From my experience of the Portuguese state, God help the McCanns if they are now at the mercy of the Portuguese legal system. They will now be guilty until proven guilty.

Tim, London,

not sure what is going on here. I just hope the child is alive and well.

Dinesh, london,

There are striking parallels with the Azaria Chamberlain case in Australia. In that case the mother was wrongly convicted and spent several years in gaol before evidence that proved her innocence accidentally came to light.
I've always suspected was that the authorities were desperate to protect the tourist industry and avoid the perception that the dingoes were dangerous.
Again people were ready to condemn her because she did not behave in the stereotypical way they thought was appropriate.

Glen, Melbourne, Australia

The article above makes it obvious why the McCanns kept such a high profile, they were led along by all the spin, they couldn't have done otherwise really.
We don't know what the forensics evidence is yet but if it does show that there was a trace of the dead child then the McCanns would be pushed to explain that.

The police are not at liberty in Portugal to make their case public so speculating about the way they are handling this is a little unfair, they are unable to answer the criticism.

Lj, York, UK

The police suspected them from day 1 and they made a trap for them. You arrogant -xenophobic English and your arrogant-xenophobic media will have to shut up. Here the police do their job and arent worried about how others see them, in anglo-saxon countries there is a "hollywood" mentality. You English did not invent the "Civilized World (tm)" contrary to what your education, media and "Encyclopedia Britannica" tell you. And "Scotland Yard Experts" and all that take note how things get done...

Southern European Spic, Porto, Portugal

I think the McCanns have also abused the media. How can they be surprised of the massive attention that the media has given to this case if they have tried EVERYTHING to remain in "people's minds" from releasing balloons to detailing their daily lives on their webpage, visiting the Pope and the White House and posing to the cameras with the twins (and making sure they look good)?

I see a lot of contradictions in their own words and acts. I think they have created this Media-monster themselves and have no right to be surpised or complain about it, or even ask now for their privacy to be respected.

Certainly all the "professional" campaign and branding of the case has brought no good to them, and what is worse, the poor girl has yet not been found.

Maria, London,

Next people like Tanya Mills will be telling us that the standard of Policing is far superior in the UK than abroad. There have been many times where the incompetence of the British Police can equally match, if not exceed their Portuguese colleagues. I suppose it was not incompetence that resulted in the tragic death of a Portuguese speaking electrician in Stockwell Tube station.

Marcus Walsh, london,

It seems logistifcally impossible that the McCann's - in the space of a few hours - dealt with the death of their daughter, were able to find somewhere to conceal her body - they did not even have a car then - so that it was not found although the locale was extensively searched in the days following Madeleine's disappearance, put their other children to bed, went to dinner, presumably as if nothing had happened, and then several weeks later were able to secretly move the body when their every move was being dogged by the media.

The investigation has been inept from the start when police failed to adequately seal off the crime scene for forensic analysis. Now they want - or are being pressurised -to achieve closure as soon as possible. The tourist trade in the Algarve is suffering, Portugal is in the spotlight for the wrong reasons - and the disappearance of a little girl must play second fiddle to these issues.

Liz, London,

Emotional claptrap from people like ''Tanya Mills, London, UK'' is what fuels the debate, feeds the press and sells the papers.

I don't know what you do for a living, ''Tanya Mills, London, UK'' but, sadly, when you're safely tucked up in bed at night, some people actually go out and rob and kill and maim each other. And, guess what? Almost all of them deny it or cover it up. If there's little evidence to go on, or if it's been deliberately destroyed or covered up (sorry, Tanya, but it happens), what do you think the police should do?

The Portugese police may well be under-resourced and forensically challenged, but you say they're dimwitted and incompetent. Perhaps you have experience in this sort of investigation. From 2000 miles away, you can see they're overlooking the obvious. Give them a ring, tell them where they're going wrong. Or are you waiting for the next tabloid headline to guide your opinion?

In life, ''Tanya Mills, London, UK'', it pays to keep an open mind.

Bill Cowen, Perpignan, France

Why don't you, britsh people, do YOUR job in your own country and let the portuguese police do theirs? Why don't you try to solve your own problems (alcoholism, illiteracy, violence in schools) or for example, why don't you try to catch the person who killed the small 11 year old boy? Mr. Bean is really an english character!
It seems to me, you are much more concerned about the fact that the "suspects" could be british than to try to find out the truth! What an huge vanity and arrogance!

Isabel, Algarve,

The mother does not look guilty to me, but that doesn't mean she's not. On the other hand, the police seem a bit desperate, and I don't trust them either. Time will tell. Doesn't really do any good to speculate.

JD, Larkspur, CA, USA

I still do not understand why they were not charged for child neglect. How many parents leave their children in a strange room - especially three of them without a babysitter. They at least should have some reprimand for that neglect. Preposterous that they left their children for more than five minutes. And what is their financial support for over three months still being in Portugal? Something is not right here......

Rosemary Perez, Dublin, CA

Red herrings - whodunit etc. The McCanns ARE guilty - guilty of either leaving their little ones alone, or worse. Courting the media and being 'high profile" could be a diversion - look at Ian Huntley, he wanted the spotlight - and got it. Let's hope that there is a swift end to this, little Maddie deserves better. If someone else DID take her, why not come forward now and put an end to all of this? If it was the parents, face up to it.

Sally, Vancouver, Canada

While I feel terribly sorry for the McCanns and don't for one second believe they had anything to do with Maddie's disappearance, I do suspect the media's overt criticism of the Portuguese police has been counter-productive. Many, children disappear all over the world every year and, sadly, are never found. If the Portuguese police are hopeless because this child hasn't been found, this also implies that pretty much all police forces around the world are also hopeless, including our own here in the UK, who are unable to locate many missing persons. It's one thing to keep pressure up to achieve an outcome: it's another altogether to bully and harangue someone into it, especially when the outcome you're trying to achieve is extremely difficult and, to some extent, uncontrollable. Let's not forget that by Portuguese law, the McCanns had to be named as official suspects so that certain questions could be asked. It does not mean for the Portuguese authorities actually believe they did it.

JRA, Winchester, UK

This is horrendous, just a 21st century European witch hunt.

Luke, Kidlington,

Jio in Portugal says it all. Parents kill their children but in no way do I believe the McCanns had anything to do with the disappearance of their child .. no, not because they are young, beautiful, blonde and doctors; that has nothing to do with it. The Portuguese police fouled up in the beginning and now it is all too easy to blame the parents for the police's incompetency. No one, no one at all, would put themselves through this and it detracts from the main objective. This seems to have happened since the McCanns threatened to sue a newspaper over stories it printed with absolutely no evidence. It would be interesting to know who rented that car from the day the child went missing.

alice, quimper, france

You are a sad Little Englander, Ms Tanya Mills. On your reference to the standard of policing 'abroad', wherever that is - please note, first, that Scotland Yard detectives flew out to participate in the Madeleine investigation. There were no amazing results from this - indeed, no results. Second, was it in Portugal where the police shot dead an innocent and defenceless young man? Save your talk about 'incompetence', please.

Andrew May, De Panne, Belgium

"What became “brand Madeleine” arose from a combination of brilliant media-handling skills and, for the first time, interactive websites telling editors how much the public craved such a story. "

And a load of journalists finding they had an excellent excuse to get out of the miserable British summer and head for the Portuguese sun!

Ali, Liverpool,

I'm also Portuguese and could not let pass the latest comentary without a saying. Citizen Rights do exist. In reallity it should be clarified that the status of the McCann couple "arguido" in portuguese cannot be translated to english as suspects. In fact this Status means that they are given rights that witnesses do not have, like the right to have access to the complete process and bypass the secret of justice, the right to lie to defend themselves amongst other rights. On top of that this status can be aplied by request of the witness to guarantee these rights. Legal systems are diferent all over te E.U. and made according to the social realities of each country. On an era where incapacity to understand other realities has lead to so many dreadfull actions, people should not be so eager to make judgements. At this point, the MacCanns are inocent until proof of the contrary is made in a court of law.
That's fair enough...

Pedro, Porto, Portugal

Trust an American to think of money first.

John West, Ormskirk, UK

As a Portuguese woman and a mother I feel sorry for the missing of this child and I understand the grief of her parents. In what concerns the drastic change of the parents' situation we shouldn't forget that this happened because the Portuguese Police received the results from the Forensic Lab in Birmingham and these results brought new lights to the understanding of this case. It is impossible for the Portuguese Police to act according to the law in this particular case, because the whole world is watching them...
As a Portuguese citizen I believe in our Police and I know I can count on them to protect and to defend. Besides, We are living in an European Country, which belongs to EU!

Joana Silva, Lisboa,

Very interesting. I did not realsie the extent to which the McCanns had let themselves fall into the hands of the spin-masters or that this had been orchestrated by the holiday company and - incredibly - our own Government.

They would have been much better advised to go into hiding and say nothing.

For it is the immutable law of that jungle that if you start to feed the beast, its appetite grows and grows and in the end it will devour you - because you are the tastiest item around. Whereas if you go into total seclusion, they will trash you, yes, but eventually the lack of fresh blood will send them away,

I think of the McCanns, like Diana, as an awful warning to anyone who finds the media camping on their doorstep saying 'let me tell your side of the story'. DON'T!.

julian, lpndon,

I don't mind blaming the portuguese. How dare we look up to an Englishman? And suspect his wife?! Oh Ludicrous. I just hope little Eddie the sniffer spaniel doesn't get kick in his loins now that someone gotta pay for this ultraje. Cheers.

João Carlos, Coimbra, PT

How do we know that Maddie was in the apartment when the McCanns went out, we only have their word for it don't we? Why did Katie McCann scream 'they have taken her' as soon as she saw the little girl was missing? I think the first thought would be that having left the door unlockded Maddie had wandered off. At the end of the day a little girl is missing and the parents are to blame whatever as they should never ever have gone out and left those children alone. If it had been a single parent the twins would have been taken away and everyone would have been screaming for justice, but no these two are doctors aren't they?

Ann , Alicante, Spain

Tanya "Is this the standard of Policing one can expect whilst travelling abroad?" Mills--

Of course, the British police never bungle anything. Just ask the chap from Brazil who got shot dead on the Undeground. Still, full marks for pomposity.

Ian, Nottingham,

The British Press and the BBC have now been proved to be utterly useless. The only thing they are good at is repeating the same old things over and over again and utterly biased against the Portugese Police. Talk about flogging a dead horse.

Frederick, Dubai, Dubai

What does this say about police forensic evidence.

Fingerprint evidence has already been rubbished with the Shirley McKee case and now DNA testing looks anything but foolproof.

DM, GLASGOW,

Whilst this has become a media circus, lets stick to the fact that one is innocent until proven guilty. The McCanns were ill advised to place themselves at the mercy of the media in such an overt fashion, and unfortunately are now paying the price. I hope that they are not guilty on all counts. Lets remember the quiet dignity with which Ben Needhams family have kept for all these years !An example that the McCanns should have followed!

Christine Golding, Gosport, Hampshire

I have one question if your child was missing would you then put your two other children into the local creche? What were the McCanns doing during all this time? Were they everyday checking out the locality, walking the various routes where a possible abductor could have taken their child, checking the beaches and scrubland? What have the McCanns being doing during this time? The only two people who know the answer to this sorry mess are the McCanns! The window was open in the Apartment not forced but open. And the patio doors were unlocked. This just does not add up! Sorry but my feelings about this are look closer to home!

Siobhan, Germany, Munich,

Guilty or not,there is still a little girl out there to be found,whehter that be alive,lets hope so,or otherwise.As for the reader who wants us to fund a lottory for 7million Euros,havent we working class people gave enough already?!I personally think the fund should be frozen pending the outcome of the enquiry,althuogh i am in no way condeming the McCanns.
I sincerely hope and wish that everything is sorted out soon,alowing the family some peace and space.Yes,they courted the media,but there comes a time when everyone needs space.......

Janet, Glasgow,

Dear Mr. Jio,

The fact that you don't know your rights doesn't mean they don't exist.

Please don't mix your ignorance with lack of rights.

Regards

Mario, Brussels,

Unless Madeleine turns up - dead or alive - I don't think there'll ever be a conviction in this case.

Poppy, York, UK

Tanya Mills: The "standard of Policing one can expect whilst travelling abroad" is sometimes better than in UK. Remember the killing by the British police of an innocent Brazilian in a London Tube station? That's incompetence. Let the Portuguese police do their job.

Georgia, London, UK

Tanya,
Standard of Policing in Europe is not worse than in Great Britain. Remember the innocent Brasilian who was killed by the London police in a Tube station? That's incompetence. Let's the Portuguese do their job.

Georgia, London, UK

I am reminded of the Azaria Chamberlain case. In the absence of a body the finger will be pointed, and the doubt will linger in some peoples minds for ever. I feel very sorry for the McCann family.

MHR, London, UK

If they are innocent they have nothing to fear, and will welcome the opportunity to clear their name.

hearadh, glasgow, UK

There are so many glosses in the world. I don't begin to know what is the truth.

Susan, Shenzhen, PRC

I think Portuguese police are desperate for being unable to solve the case, Portuguese authorities dont want the McCanns there any more, no more cameras showing us as inefficient people , world newspapers talking about what they dont know just about what they have heard, found out, or whatever, and in between common people like me, without knowing what to think right now. Its is better to do things as we do here in Spain, no talking at all, no problem at all.

Nuria , León, Spain

I would just like to point out to Tanya Mills that the Portuguese police have been working in conjunction with the British police right from day one, so is she suggesting that the British police are also incompetent! Such xenophobic bigotry and comments are based solely on speculation and let us not forget that it was British sniffer dogs and British labs that found and analised results. The help of British police was requested right from the start because crimes of this nature, while commonplace in Britain are extremely rare in Portugal. If Britain have everything so right and perfect how come so many innocent people are shot or knifed on their streets. I know where I would prefer to be!

Ann Bate, Pera, Portugal

The truth shall be known ....

Francis Kakinga, Lusaka, Zambia

Yes Tanya, thats exactly the standard of policing to expect abroad.. maybe you should just stay home and never leave your country

Jack Ferris, Brighton,

Over 95% of homicide cases are committed by relatives or people well known to the victim. Why should this case be any different? Is it because they are articulate and middle class that they have had so much sympathy. Would it have been the same if they had been "Chavs" and had left their chidren alone and unattended in their apartment while they were out eating at a Burger Bar - I suspect not. I also suspect the media hype took this pair by surprise, and they had no choice but to play along with it. At one time the husband said he was surprised the publicity got beyond Portugal!!

Nigel, Gloucestershire, England

Perhaps if spin doctors had not been employed in the first place, this whole sorry saga may now be at an end. I just fear there is more to come.

Surely if something is spun to excess, it will eventually turn back on itself and spin out of control, as can clearly be seen in this instance.

R. P. Dixon, London,

Regardless of the guilt or innocence of the McCanns this makes me realise we actually have a very good, and generally very honest Police Force here in the UK.

This has certainly not been my experience from my trips to Portugal, or Spain.

The UK Police would have done a far better job.

David, St Albans, UK

I lived in Portugal for 20 years, near Praia de Luz. I love Portugal and the Portuguese but in all my time in Portugal I found the Portuguese Police totally inept. There were four deaths in my village which should have been investigated and none were. One poor child of 9 was killed on the road walking back from the beach. The driver was not interrogated or breathalised - it was likely he was drunk -and no skid marks were taken. When I made enquiries, I was told the child should not have been on the road. This was ludicrous as there were no footpaths, only steep overgrown hedges. Whenever someone died suddenly, it was always, 'Heart Attack'. The Portuguese Police need to send staff abroad to France, Germany, Britain or USA to learn how to run a police force. This latest accusation is typical of their amatuer ineptitude - it is pure guesswork. The Shame of the world is on them. John Stanbridge.

john stanbridge, baldock, herts

" Is this the standard of Policing one can expect whilst travelling abroad?"

ha! this is pretty mild. In hungary the police beat the young men with telephone directories because it doesnt leave a mark , but they class it as a good way of keeping teenagers in line.

Most police in eastern europe are on very ave wages, so bribery is a problem.

As for the ukraine.....makes hungary look like a tea party! if the police dont get ya, the mafia will !

madbob, marsport,

The standard of portuguese policing one can expect whilst travelling to portugual or buying property there is frightening. Simply, do not travel to Portugual anymore. Luckily Mcans had high profile, otherwise confession would have been obtained by these tactics. A person is innocent until proved guilty does not apply in portugual. Innocent until confession obtained by all means.

Ash, Coventry, UK

Shouldn't we be worried about the child?
Are you interested in protecting the parents or to find out what really happened to the little girl??? Let the portuguese and english Police work and we'll se. Of course there's a risk of finding out a hard truth to believe. I've learned not to be surprised with anything in this world.
Everything is possible in this world. Believe me!

Rosa Branca, Braga, Portugal

Lindy Chamberling Case Australia (A Dingo took my baby)
The mcann case has all the hallmarks of the events that took place 27 years ago in the northern terrotory Australia.
Blood in the family car.
Police mistakes.
Accusations-counter accusations.
Lindy Chamberling arrested
Lindy Chamberling jailed
Lindy Chamberling freed
A film was made (Meryl Streep)
Both parents became millionaires
The baby was never found.
The culprit/s was never caught.
Unless rock solid evidence is produced, no arrest should be made.
The person/s that took or killed this baby were well organised, when you consider the police are clutching at straws.

Ted, newport, Wales Uk

Do all the geniuses who believe that the Portuguese police should have found Maddie by now not know how many missing kids the British police don't find?
Such short-sighted jingoism does nothing to foster Britain's image abroad. It says much about UK education that so many people seem able to believe what they read in the red top press.
My understanding is that the latest developments spring from forensic evidence supplied by a British laboratory accredited by the British police.
Which bit have I missed reading?
Praia da Luz is a seaside town, with lots of boats and not far from North Africa. Why would anyone think the little girl would still be in Portugal?

Paula, Newcastle,

The campaign around the McCann family with the help from PR experts and even the British Government alongside with no official information from the police forces of both countries made this a huge mess. Some notes:

- in Portuguese judicial system a confession does not have any value unless it's made and registered in front of a judge. I doubt very much any Portuguese police officer would make such a proposal.

- since when are people involved in a police investigation considered as anything else than part of an ongoing investigation?

- it took almost two months for the forensic evidence to arrive from "the best lab in the world". The new evidence that made the last twist in this twisted case was presented by the British forensic experts.

Not one official information in the media! Appawling! Let's be calm, wait and believe both police forces aren't a bunch of pinhheads as some media would like us to believe.

Paulo Lourenço, Corroios, Portugal

Children disappear all over the world and some of them don't return...
The police does the job by taking all hypothesis in account. I would be very troubled if they don't consider the chance of implication of the parents because of the media attention.
Unfortunately some children never come back again... In any country.

Ricardo Baptista, Coimbra, Portugal

Tourism is important to the Portugese economy. If foreign holidaymakers decide to stay away from the Algarve because they fear their children will not be safe, this would damage the local tourist industry for years. Without doubt, there are influential local business people and politicians who would prefer to think that Madeleine's parents caused her diappearance, as this would mean that other holidaymakers were safe. It is certainly possible that the PJ have been put under pressure to suggestthat this is what happened.

Rob Jones, Loughborough,

I think that the McCanns should voluntarily take lie detector tests. Whilst such tests may never be 100% conclusive they would be a strong indicator to their innocence or likely guilt.

Whilst at times their behaviour has seemed bizzare, who can tell what effect such a tradgedy can have upon a person.

If, as I hope and believe, they are innocent, then they should have no reservations in attemting to prove it by subjecting themselves to the most rigorous testing.

G Shaw, Shrewsbury, England

Xenophobia! Those still capable of criticizing the portuguese police, sole responsible for maintaining the options open concerning what happened in May, while the media (and the idiots who follow it blindly) forgot terrible things sometimes occur, please answer this: how efficient is the scotland yard in these matters? Can you remind us all of the number of missing children never found (or found dead) in uk? Do that and then use your "mr Bean" comparisons choosing other targets...

Peter C, England,

Are we being seriously asked to beleive that these parents accidentally killed their child? That they then went to dinner with their friends. Then they launched the biggest world wide search ever, drawing attention to Madeleine's abduction. Five weeks later they are supposed to have moved her body in their hired car to another place? In the full glare of the media? Their beloved child, born after 5 years by IVF. Imagine how that could be possible. How about the conduct of the Portugese police. A precious child is missing, there is no procedure in place, nothing is done or taken seriously. No borders closed, no T.V appeals . The anguish , the frustration of the parents. It is worse than your worst nightmare. Then we have the reputation of Portugal and its police force. Business is suffering, we have heard how some want "those bloody McCanns to go home" . How convenient, neatly get rid rid of the problem .Who would go to such a country now? Shame on you PORTUGAL.

Una Gordon, Guildford, England

The portuguese have a "saying" which states that the truth is like olive oil, it will always surface!

Kidnapping, accidental death, etc are at present just all theories mostly derived from the press (Portuguese and British in equal measures...) just let the investigators do their jobs properly without media encirclement and pressure of quick results.

Sooner or later conclusive evidence to justify one theory or the other coming from reputabale and unquestionable sources will be known, and then the media and the public at large will be made aware of what really happened to the unfortunate little Maddie!

Manuel Costa, Lagos, Portugal

This is the first case on missing child that has received tremendous media support.It is a deserving case for a helpless four year old girl who disappeared under mysterious circumstances.Time will tell us the truth and I sincerely hope that God helps her .

R Balloo, Sutton, Surrey

By accusing Mr and Mrs McCann the Portuguese police appear to be clutching at straws in an attempt to prove that they are doing their job. Their apparent ineptitude is frightening. Good luck to the McCanns.

Mrs J A Kellett, Sarajevo,

why is it that there are all these speculations going around but there has not been any official confirmations from the police only from their family over here, why do they insist on telling the media about every conversations that they have had with parents. if one thing i think this is making things worse for them.

roni, london,

As in the USA, The police will try to put the blame on the victim when they can’t find the real criminal.
As in this country, never call 911 because if you do they will come out and shoot you

Terry Rose, Slidell, Louisana

You Tanya Mills of London, think before you say. The forensic tests in your evolute England, took a MONTH to come back to the police's hands. What were the laboratories waiting for? Did you ever had the thought that all the time the police might have been tracing them? Daydreamers of a perfect world....

Pedro V, Breda, the Netherlands

Both Mr & Mrs McCann are in the medical profession. I don't want to be prejudicial, but I can't see them killing their own daughter, whether by accident or not.
Mary Harris appears to be on the right track with her comments above about the Police and Mr Bean.
Only God knows what happened, but one thing is certain, the Portuguese have certainly had a taste of British Spin. This is something we are really good at. The 'Madeleine Story' has been headline news for months.
It's unfortunate that there has been no real breakthrough to find her.

Abid B, Shipley, United Kingdom

The McCanns made a deliberate effort to court the media, and can hardly now complain that that decision has rebounded on them. Hopefully the truth will out, and any lies told by anyone involved will be exposed.The campaign fund was set up to find a missing child, not pay their legal costs, and should not be used to secure a press officer and a high profile legal team.

Chris Allen, Keighley, England

I suggest the reward should be raised to 7 Million Euros for information leading to Madeleine's Recovery, and i am confident someone or someones will start talking.
I assume the Portuguese have decided this line of attack and investigation , so those that are guilty , relax , and so expose their identity. Sadly Paedophile activities have always been protected by the Judiciary and higher echelons of the Police.
so i hope the crusadering Times and Sky will continue to assist the search for the truth. Let's initiate a 7 Million Euro Fund !

David , Monte Carlo, Monaco

"Me thinks the lady do prosteteth too much"....ever heard that saying? It may just be the McCanns have pulled off the biggest fraud you will ever see. How insulting of the british institution to be so critical of the Portugese police and not forgetting the UK police who are assisting.
If the McCanns want to end this speculation and get back on the hunt for Madeleine, take a lie detector test.

David, London, UK

I don't think you can assume the campaign proves their innocence. It cd. be a very useful distraction to throw off the scent and an absorption and distraction for them to escape guilty feelings. which has now taken them over, possibly enabling them to forget an accidental death.

Fiona, London,

We are not privy to all the facts of this case and to cast an opinion without access to all the available data, is to act from a position of great unwiseness.

My concern has only ever been for Madeline. My wish is for the truth to out, whatever that may be, and however difficult it may be to accept, understand or bear.

Madeline deserves to be freed in every sense of the word.

My only thoughts are for her. They remain for her.

Satya, London, UK

If blood was found in the hire car, as seems to be the case. I would like to know who had hired the car on the night of her disappearance!.
Surely the police have the sense to consider this?.
The McCanns hired this car 25 days after Madeleine disappeared.

Adam, Edinburgh, Scotland

It is some time since a little girl disappeared in Australia. Her name was Azaria Chamberlain. Her mother was imprisoned for years until it came to light that she had been truthful all along, claiming a wild dog had taken the child. The northern Territory police were as incompetent as imaginable, and displayed sheer bloody mindedness bout prosecuting Lindy Chamberlain. This must not happen again, for the sake of face saving by the Portuguese police.
As for lauren in the USA, I guess you see money as the great priority in life. Give it a rest.

Frank Carroll, Jindabyne, Australia

I hope you can do an article on the racism inherent in the coverage of the Portugues police. The comment on this article from Ms Mills is truly extraordinary... after all of the scandals, the miscarriages of justice, the innocent Brazilian shot in the London Tube, etc, she worries about "abroad".

Joe, brussels, belgium

MK, SLC is wrong. The innocent do little talking. Remember the old saying: Madam, thou doth protest too much.

Bernad Lawson, London, UK

just look at the situation dispassionately and give objective judgement(if possible). that is the problem with us, being bias and judgemental. let the police do their work and the truth will surface soon(i hope). do not be decieved by what you read from the media coz most of the time they're always the most culpable. trying to milk the max out of any situation to sell papers. what exactly happened at this point in time, only the mccaan and the portugal police know.

shane, singapore,

Clara, Porto - excellent comment regarding British Police involvement. Too many Brits prefer to blame "Johnny Foreigner" for everything rather than keep an open mind.

Ali, Liverpool,

I'm disappointed that the british media and also McCann's relatives were trashing the police. It is extremely unfair and unpolite. Fortunately it's not that nonsense that will divert it from the job ahead. I think the british media at least owe an apology to the PJ since they have been most insulting.

Carlos Martins, Lisbon, Portugal

Tany Mills, I would tone down your critisism as you ought to realise the forensics were carried out by British laboratories and there may wel be some evidence now that does not prove to be too palatable. Stop critisising the Portuguese police and remember the injustices that happen all too often in the UK as well.

William, Grange-over-Sands, UK

I believe on portuguese police . it´s not time to think that the english are a superior race... the portuguese police are very competent. It´s amazing : Don´t you understand that the spotlights can distracted all the commun people?! Don´t forget that the first victm is the young child. Iam very happy to be portuguese, to born in a portuguese family!
The only time that my young children have been insulted it was in Portugal, by a english tourist couple, saying that " we don´t bring children to the restaurants, we left them at home! poor people! monsters without feelings. I bring my children every were, but...never to England! Try to work better to the normal family feelings and deal more with them. Remember: that´s your english cultural problems. Don´t blame other countries or cultures.

sofia carvalho, lisboa,

Only a truly brainless fool could believe the McCanns are responsible for the abduction or murder of their daughter. It is time that people withheld judgement based on 'facts' they read in the papers or online. For God's sake people - use some intelligence and common sense.

Sian, NSW, Australia

The campaign around the McCann family with the help from PR experts and even the British Government alongside with no official information from the police forces of both countries made this a huge mess. Some notes:

- in Portuguese judicial system a confession does not have any value unless it's made and registered in front of a judge. I doubt very much any Portuguese police officer would make such a proposal.

- since when are people involved in a police investigation considered as anything else than part of an ongoing investigation?

- it took almost two months for the forensic evidence to arrive from "the best lab in the world". The new evidence that made the last twist in this twisted case was presented by the British forensic experts.

Not one official information in the media! Appawling! Let's be calm, wait and believe both police forces aren't a bunch of pinhheads as some media would like us to believe.

Paulo Lourenço, Corroios, Portugal

My only experience of the Portuguese police is having my Madrid registered hire car towed away. After I'd paid the 80 euro fine the one out five cops it took (!) who spoke English said. " If we'd known you were English it would have been ok".

This may not be a first world police force but don't misunderstand, Portugal, the country, is western Europe's last big secret. I love it.

Clive S, East Sussex, UK

I am sick of this whole story. It's Diana Mark 2. Cynical, heart-tugging manipulation by the media and PR 'industry' at a time when 'real news' is thin on the ground. The McCanns were extremely ill-judged to involve the PR/media parasites in this. It's likely to rebound badly on them whatever the result of investigations. When WILL people learn?

Chris Thomas, Oxford, England

Jio, I'm Portuguese too but apparently you don't live in the same Portugal as I do. The PJ is doing a good job. The only problem with the PJ is that they don't have PR professionals, as the McCann’s do, to deal with the media. I am in favour of the secrecy law but I am also sure it is possible to disclose pieces of information that don't harm the investigation. This would feed the 'monster' thus avoiding speculation, ridiculous criticism and leaks to the press.

Tanya
What is amazing is that for weeks we've seen British people here demanding that the PJ requests help from the UK police experts and their highly trained expensive dogs. The PJ does just that (a clever move btw since the UK would never accept any results coming out of Portuguese own means) and what the dogs and the UK lab do is confirm what the PJ already suspected. British people can no longer criticise the PJ and be taken serious.

Clara, Porto, Portugal

I don't begin to know what the truth is here. The fact is the Portuguese police seemed to have learned their investigative skills from Mr. Bean.

Mary Margaret harris, Chattanooga, Tennessee

What a mess. And still the McCanns are on the loose

John Dedman, Greenwich , England

IF the parents were guilty, I doubt they would have kept such a high profile, and such an intense spotlight on the search. This strikes me as a desperate move by the Portuguese police to prove they're doing their job.

MK, SLC,

Whilst not suggesting for one moment that the McCanns are guilty I do hope that if it is found that they are implicated, that anyone who donated money to find Madeleine, gets their money back.

lauren, delray beach, usa

I think the media have been completely biased in the presentation of the McCanns as the perfect family who could not possibly do wrong.... this might just come back to haunt them.

Ella Smith, Blackpool, UK

I’m Portuguese and I live in Portugal,but I would like to tell everyone that I do not believe that Maddie’s mum is guilty.(everybody have secrets and this doesn't make someone a murder)
Unfortunately I live in a country where Citizien ’s rights do not exist.Here Police can do what they want.(most of the time they do not do anything).You can be a suspect only because you watch a crime or if you are a friend or a relative of someone involved in a crime.When you try to help Police or answer Police questions many times they try to force you to confess a crime that you did not do. If you have a good lawyer and lots of money is very easy to be declared not guilty;The problem of many innocent people in Portugal is no money to have a good defence in Court.
If The McCann were Portugueses the Police Treatment was not a “VIP treatment”.
During many time I have believed that I was living in Europe but unfortunately I live in South America or in Africa.

jio, Portugal,

The sheer incompetence of the Portuguese Police is staggering. They should have found that poor girl by now, instead the dimwits try to draw attention away from their glaring failures, pinning the blame on the parents. This is a very very sad case, and in all honesty ‘scares the living daylights’ out of me! Is this the standard of Policing one can expect whilst travelling abroad?

Tanya Mills, London, UK