Saturday 15 August 2009

Madeleine McCann: The Truth Of The Lie - Foreword.




The following translation is totally my own work, the result of hundreds of hours of unpaid work, intended to make this book available in English.
The only person who has my permission to copy it eslewhere is Jill Havern, who has produced this lovely site.
Someone else has reproduced my work, without permission. When confronted about this some time ago, that person had the bare-faced cheek to say that he had 'changed it for American readers.' Yes, he had taken my work and changed a word here and there, e.g., car boot became car trunk. 
Changing a word here and there of someone's creative endeavour does not produce an original work. I'd like to see him change one of the Harry Potter books by a word here and there and claim it as his own! That is what the scumbag has done with my work. 
My translation is not an it to be taken without permission. It's not something that dropped out of the ether onto my blog. It's the result of many hours of unpaid work. As such it is my intellectual property.
When I assess students' coursework, I am always vigilant to look out for plagiarism. Articles copied from the internet and changed by a few words are still plagiarism and so is taking my work and changing a word or two. It's plagiarism and as such is absolutely despicable. 
The person who has stolen my work does not even have the decency to credit its provenance. Still, he has also copied my mistakes in translation, which I also claim as my own! 






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The French title of Gonçalo Amaral's book, "A Verdade da Mentira," is, "Maddie: L'Enquête Interdite," The Forbidden Investigation.

This is the Foreword from the French version.

"Certainly, this book responds to the need I felt to defend myself, having been discredited by the institution for which I worked for more than twenty-six years, without being given any chance to explain myself, publicly or within the institution itself. I made the request several times, but it was never heard. I, therefore, scrupulously respected the rules of the judiciary police and I refrained from making any comment. But this goes without saying: I experienced that silence to which I was constrained as an attack on my dignity. Later, I was removed from the investigation. It was then that I understood that it was time to speak. To do that, I requested early retirement in order to be able to express myself freely.

However, the purpose of this work is more important: to contribute to finding the truth so that justice can finally be done in the investigation known as the "Maddie case." Truth and justice are two values strongly anchored within me, which reflect my profound beliefs: they always guided the work I did for the institution to which I am proud to have belonged. Even in retirement, they continue to inspire me and to be present in my life.

In no way does this text seek to challenge the work of my colleagues in the judiciary police or to compromise the ongoing investigation. I am convinced that the disclosure of all the facts may, in the present case, result in harming the investigation. However, the reader will have access to unpublished information, to new interpretations of events - always with respect for the law - and, of course, to relevant enquiries.

The only objective of a criminal investigation is the search for truth. There is no place for the "politically correct."

19 comments:

Joana Morais said...

Happy readings Anne :)

AnnaEsse said...

Thank you, Joana. I'm working my way into the book, translating into a Word document as I go. I'm not very far into it, though, having just got as far as the story about the princess and the almond trees.

Anna

Anonymous said...

That's a monumental task you've set yourself there!

This will be worth waiting for x

AnnaEsse said...

Phew! It does feel like it, but I'm gonna do it, and thank you, anonymous, for your kind words.

Anna

Anonymous said...

This book was translated by Sandy Queiroz!!

AnnaEsse said...

Anonymous, I don't know who that person is, but the translation on this blog is entirely my own work, every word of it!

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for sharing your hard work with the world! I look forward to reading.

AnnaEsse said...

Thanks Clara. I enjoyed doing the translation. I was working as a supply teacher at the time and every day I looked forward to getting home and doing something rather more rewarding than working in an inner-city school!

mandy said...

Is this book now available to buy in the UK if so where can I get a copy thank you xx

Unknown said...

Can I download this for offline reading been looking for this book forever! Well done

AnnaEsse said...

Feel free to download it, Deborah. Thanks for asking me. xxx

MoccaMomma666 said...

Hi Anna, I can't thank you enough for your patience & commitment in translating Mr Amaral's hard work.
I, like so many others, have tried in vain to get a copy of this book in any language and any format, since it was first published.
I would be really grateful if you could give me permission to download your work, so that I can do the same as Deborah, for offline reading.
Kind regards, Karen x

AnnaEsse said...

Thank you, MoccaMomma666, for your kind words. You are quite welcome to download these pages of Gonçalo's work for your own reading. I hope you enjoy it.

Anonymous said...

The story and the truth need yo be told
Time and money have been spent one msn lost his job through just foing his job
How unjust is that..people must be brought to justice..no.matter ehobyhry are Q put to the McCanns need answers

Unknown said...

Can I download please? How do I do it?

Sonia Alv said...

Thanks so much for the hard work and sharing!

Unknown said...

Bless your heart Anna.
Well done & Congratulations on all your hard work. What an amazing achievement!
I have book marked the page so that I can come back and finish reading.
You should have this published because you deserve the recognition for your hard work and making this book accessible to everyone.
Well done & Best Wishes xxx

Debi said...

Thank you so much for all of your very hard work I greatly appreciate it as do many others.
Bless You xx

AnnaEsse said...

Thanks Debi. xxx