Fourniret trial: Elisabeth Brichet's mother addresses the accused.

Aveux filmés

La maman d'Elisabeth s'adresse aux accusés*

Incontestablement l'émotion et l'horreur ont mardi matin, atteint leur paroxysme. L'émotion, quand Marie Noëlle Bouzet a poursuivi la lecture des textes qu'elle avait préparés pour l'audience. Mardi matin, elle s'est certes encore adressée à sa fille, elle s'est surtout adressée aux accusés et avec une violence qui a glacé l'assistance : "Monsieur Fourniret, vous êtes un pitoyable bouffon, un imbécile malfaisant. Montrez-moi vos mains, montrez-moi vos mains qui ont écrasé le cou de ma fille. Dans son box, Michel Fourniret reste figé. Et vous, Madame, vous qui lui avez offert Elisabeth, c'est vous le monstre humain.

Undoubtedly, on Tuesday morning the emotion and the horror reached a climax. The emotion, when Marie Noëlle Bouzet continued the reading of the texts she had prepared for the hearing. On Tuesday morning, she indeed addressed her daughter once again, but mostly she addressed the accused and with a force which froze the audience: "M. Fourniret, you are a pitiable buffoon, an evil idiot. Show me your hands, show me your hands which gripped my daughter's neck." In his box, Michel Fourniret remains immobile. "And you Madame, you who offered Elisabeth to him, you are the human monster."

Pour le président, l'homme qui depuis le début de ce procès, se montre d'une très grande humanité, l'enchaînement avec le témoin suivant, paraît difficile. A la barre, André Carpentier, le policier namurois qui a auditionné et recueilli les explications des accusés entre juin et octobre 2004. A défaut d'entendre Fourniret parler à l'audience, ce sont des extraits vidéo de ses auditions, qui ont été présentés.

For the president, the man who, since the start of the trial has shown great compassion, the sequence with the next witness seems difficult. At the bar is André Carpentier, the policeman from Namur who heard and recorded the stories of the accused between June and October 2004. In the absence of hearing Fourniret speak at the hearing, these are the video extracts of the interviews, which were presented.

Première en France, la cour d'assises des Ardennes a fait projeter hier des extraits des aveux filmés du couple. On y voit puis on entend un Michel Fourniret froid puis détendu, fier de livrer aux policiers avec le souci du détail, la manière, les raisons pour lesquelles, il a tenté de violer et enfin étranglé Elisabeth Brichet.

For the first time in France, the Ardennes Court of Assizes yesterday showed extracts of the couple's filmed confessions. We see, then hear, Michel Fourniret, cold, then relaxed, proud to be handing over to the police, with attention to detail, the way, the reasons for which, he attempted to rape and finally strangled Elisabeth Brichet.

Sur ces images exceptionnelles tournées dans un coin du bureau de la police fédérale de Namur, face au policier interrogateur André Carpentier, la corpulente femme en pull bleu myosotis se tasse sur sa chaise, se passe la main sur le visage, baisse la tête, hésite à répondre sur sa complicité puis débite à toute allure : «Etant donné qu'il m'avait dit que j'étais sa complice, je pouvais plus reculer, j'étais obligée de suivre, j'ai suivi.» Elle fait des moulinets de son bras droit, chuinte : «Ça, ça l'agaçait de voir que j'étais d'accord.» Elle s'emballe : «Mais après, on va me considérer comme la femme de Dutroux si je dis que j'ai aidé à faire ce genre de choses.»

In these exceptional images, shot in a corner of the offices of Namur's Federal Police, facing the police interrogator André Carpentier, the overweight woman in a forget-me-not blue sweater, shrinks in her chair, runs her hand over her face, lowers her head, hesitates to respond about her complicity, then talks at full speed: "Since he had told me that I was his accomplice, I could no longer step back, I was obliged to follow, I followed." She waves her right arm, hisses: "That, that would annoy him to see that I agreed." She gets worked up: "But afterwards, people will come to consider me the wife of Dutroux if I say that I helped to do this kind of thing."

Le policier la calme «Chut, chut, on veut la vérité. Alors vous partez… Qui est dans la voiture ?» Au bout d'une heure de longs silences et de réticences, Monique Olivier finit par avouer la présence de leur fils de 15 mois : «Sélim était là avec nous.» Questionnée sur son rôle, la femme tremblante se déclare «complice forcée» : «Il m'a tenue avec une première affaire, il m'a piégée. C'est trop tard. J'aurais dû avoir le courage de le dénoncer, j'ai été lâche.» La petite blonde à l'allure de «danseuse classique» qu'il a embarquée sous prétexte de chercher un médecin pour son bébé empoignait les sièges et suppliait «Madame, aidez-moi». Monique Olivier n'a pas eu un geste : «J'ai été lâche, je ne l'ai pas aidée.»

The policeman calms her, "Hush, hush, we want the truth, Then you leave....who is in the car?" At the end of an hour of reticence and long silences, Monique Olivier finishes by admitting the presence of her 15 month-old son: "Sélim was there with us." Questioned about her role, the trembling woman declares herself, "forced accomplice.": "He drew me in with the first case, he trapped me. It is too late. I would have to have had courage to denounce him, I was a coward." The little blonde with the air of a, "classical dancer," whom she had taken into her car, under the pretext of looking for a doctor for her baby, gripped the seats and begged, "Madame, help me." Monique Olivier did not make a move: "I was a coward, I did not help her."

Ton détaché. Dans le même angle de pièce, sous le même angle de prise de vue, face au même policier, Michel Fourniret, en sweat à capuche bleu roi se tient les jambes allongées, bras croisés ou mains jointes, et raconte d'un ton détaché comment, au volant de sa Renault 9, il a «remarqué instinctivement une silhouette» de très jeune fille rentrer dans une maison, puis a planqué devant un potager plus de trois heures.

Detached tone. In the same position, with the same camera angle, facing the same policeman, Michel Fourniret, in a hooded blue sweatshirt, sits with legs stretched out, arms crossed or hands clasped, and recounts in a detached tone how, at the wheel of his Renault 9, he, "instinctively noticed a figure," of a very young girl going into a house, then he hid in front of a vegetable garden for more than three hours.

Monique Olivier patiente dans la voiture avec son bébé, «sans avoir droit au chapitre avec juste le droit de la boucler», dit Fourniret : «Tu restes là, tu attends, tu n'as pas d'autre choix.» Et si son épouse l'avait dénoncé avant ? «Si elle s'avisait de prendre une telle initiative, je lui avais fait comprendre : "Je tue Sélim, je te tue et je signale votre disparition."»

Monique Olivier, waiting in the car with her baby, "without the right to have a say, with just the right to stay put," says Fourniret: "You stay there, you wait, you have no other choice." And if his wife had denounced him before ? "If she would have decided to take such an initiative, I had made her understand: "I kill Sélim, I kill you and I notify your disappearance."

Le Michel Fourniret du box se regarde sur l'écran, impassible, conter sa «quête de la virginité» et sa déception lorsque la petite fille, transformée «en loque», se crispe : «Au Sautou [l'ancienne propriété de Fourniret, dans les Ardennes, ndlr], ce n'est pas le symbole de la virginité que j'ai devant moi mais un être humain d'aspect pathétique, ça m'a désarmé.» Le policier demande si «les petites filles doivent mourir pour ça ?» Fourniret répond, l'air sincère : «Monique Olivier a bien fait [de tout révéler] car je me demande s'il y aurait eu une fin. C'est un immense gâchis. Les gens ne sont pas de faïence et de porcelaine, on ne peut pas réparer.»

The Michel Fourniret in the box, watches himself on the screen, impassively relate his, "quest for virginity," and his deception while the little girl, transformed, "into a wreck," tenses up: "At Sautou [the former Fourniret property in the Ardennes] this is not the symbol of virginity which I have in front of me, but a pathetic-looking human being, that put me off." The policeman askes if, "little girls must die for that?" Fourniret replies, sincerely: "Monique Olivier was right [to reveal everything] because I wonder if there would have been an end to it. It was a huge mess. People are not earthenware or porcelain, they cannot be repaired."

Fourniret pleure deux fois.... On le voit pleurer deux fois sur la vidéo, à propos de la mort de sa sœur et de la «Vierge Marie». Michel Fourniret explique aussi le «processus» immuable qui le conduit à capturer des petites filles pures qu'il ne parvient pas à prendre par la force. Il aimerait qu'elles soient soumises et se donnent à lui. Il avait ainsi sussuré à Elisabeth Brichet : «Avec moi, tu vas découvrir quelque chose de bien» ; «Je pensais parvenir par une douce persuasion à ce que cette petite m'offre sa virginité.»

Fourniret cries twice... We see him cry twice on the video, about the death of his sister and the, "Virgin Mary." Michel Fourniret explains the immutable, "process," which leads him to capturing young, pure girls, whom he he does not aim to take by force. He would like them to be submissive and to give themselves to him. He had thus whispered to Elisabeth Brichet: "With me, you are going to discover something good." ; "I was thinking I would succeed with gentle persuasion so that this little girl offers me her virginity."

Un combattant en mission Le policier lui demande : «Pour quelles raisons vous les tuez?» Long silence. Plongé dans le désarroi, Michel Fourniret tient son visage entre ses mains et finit par lâcher d'un souffle : «Pour des raisons qui m'échappent.» Il se ressaisit et analyse : «A partir du moment où la personne exprime sa désapprobation ou sa résistance, ça devient un combat, vous n'êtes plus vous-même mais un combattant qui a pour mission de prendre le dessus sur son partenaire. Et puis la nécessité apparaît de faire taire Elisabeth et de faire taire ce regard. Vos mains serrent.» Ensuite, il faut la cacher dans un congélateur et creuser la terre du château : «L'être qui me faisait face est parti. Je me retrouve donc seul face au technicien que je suis. C'est le côté rationnel qui s'exprime avec l'enchaînement de l'organisation.».

A fighter on a mission. The policeman asks him: "Why do you kill them?" Long silence. Plunged into disarray, Michel Fourniret holds his face in his hands and finishes by heaving a sigh: "For reasons which escape me." He pulls himself together and analyses: "From the moment a person expresses their disapproval of their resistance, it becomes a battle. you are not yourself but a fighter whose mission is to gain the upper hand over his partner. And then the need arises to silence Elisabeth and to silence that look. Your hands shake. Then we have to hide her in a freezer and excavate the soil of the chateau:" "The being who showed me her face is gone. I find myself alone then, facing the technician that I am. It is the rational side which expresses itself in the structure of organisation."

D'autres extraits vidéo* Auparavant, la cour a visionné trois extraits de cinq minutes, tirés d'une vidéo réalisée lors d'aveux de Monique Olivier recueillis par la police belge le 30 juin 2004. Sur cette vidéo, elle finit par avouer sa présence et celle de Sélim, alors âgé d'un an, dans la voiture lors de l'enlèvement de l'adolescente. D'une voix assurée, l'ancienne garde-malade reconnaît avoir été "complice, mais complice forcée" de son mari. "J'aurais dû avoir le courage d'aller le dénoncer (...) plutôt que de me taire", ajoute-t-elle. Les deux accusés sont restés impassibles pendant la diffusion de la vidéo. En Belgique, la loi du 2 août 2002 permet de filmer les interrogatoires de suspects sur autorisation du juge d'instruction. Les extraits diffusés mardi sont considérés comme élément du dossier et non pièce à conviction. Depuis l'ouverture du procès le 27 mars, Michel Fourniret, jugé pour sept meurtres aggravés et Monique Olivier pour complicité, refuse de s'exprimer sur les faits faute de huis clos.

Other video extracts. Previously, the court viewed three extracts of five minutes, taken from a video filmed during Monique Olivier's confessions, recorded by the Belgian police on June 30th 2004. On that video, she finished by admitting her presence and that of Sélim, then aged one year, in the car during the teenager's abduction. In a confident voice, the former nurse acknowledges having been, "an accomplice, but a forced accomplice," of her husband. "I should have had the courage to denounce him (....) rather than keep quiet," she added. The two accused remained impassive during the showing of the video. In Belgium, August 2nd 2002, the law allows the filming of interrogations of suspects on the authorisation of the presiding judge. The extracts shown on Tuesday are considered as evidence in the case and not exhibits. Since the opening of the case on March 27th, Michel Fourniret, on trial for seven aggravated murders and Monique Olivier for complicity, refuses to speak for himself about the facts without the proceedings being held in camera.

http://www.kidnapping.be/fourniret/index.html

SOS Madeleine McCann: Chilean psychic says Madeleine died accidentally.

SOS Madeleine McCann 15/04/08

15.04.2008

Maddie "est morte par accident"

15/04/08 SOS Madeleine McCann

Chilean psychic said Maddie had died accidentally.

"Maddie, "died accidentally."

Convinced that she can find Madeleine McCann, the Chilean psychic, Isabel Cristina Avila reaffirmed today in Santiago that the child never left Portugal, adding that Maddie died by accident, without the intervention of third parties.

According to the psychic, known for having collaborated with the Chilean police in the search for missing persons, the place where the body is to be found was not searched with the thoroughness required: "they searched but not carefully enough," stated Isabel Avila.

This is not the first time that the psychic has spoken about the Madeleine case. In October 2007, she sent a sketch to the Portuguese ambassador to Chile showing the place where the police should search for the body.

Since the disappearance of Madeleine Beth McCann, on May 3rd 2007, the PJ has received several hundred letters, emails and telephone calls from people saying they could find the little girl. In spite of all the checks, mostly out of sight of the media, no lead has, as yet, led to Madeleine's being found. "

Fourniret trial resumes: Elisabeth Brichet's mother criticises the judicial system.

http://www.kidnapping.be/fourniret/index.html

"La maman d'une victime critique l'institution judiciaire.*

"La cour d'assises des Ardennes poursuit ce lundi l'examen des meurtres et viols ou tentatives présumés de Michel Fourniret, avec le cas d'Elisabeth Brichet, 12 ans, disparue près de Namur (Belgique) le 20 décembre 1989 alors qu'elle rentrait chez elle.
Son corps a été retrouvé en 2004 au château du Sautou dans les Ardennes. La mère d'Elizabeth Brichet a critiqué lundi les institutions judiciaires belge et française."

The mother of a victim criticises the judicial system.

On Monday, the Ardennes Court of Assizes continued the examination of the Michel Fourniret murders, rapes or alleged attempted rapes, with the case of Elisabeth Brichet, aged 12, who disappeared near Namur (Belgium) on December 20th 1989, on her way home.
Her body was found in 2004 at the Chateau du Sautou in the Ardennes. On Monday, Elisabeth Brichet's mother criticised the Belgian and French judicial institutions.

"Elizabeth, (...) l'inconscience et l'incurie de la justice t'ont assassinée. (...) Quinze années d'erreurs d'un système judiciaire qui n'a que faire du viol et des tortures, sauf en temps de guerre", a déclaré à la barre Marie-Noëlle Bouzet, la mère d'Elizabeth, disparue à l'âge de 12 ans le 20 décembre 1989 près de Namur (Belgique) sur le chemin de son domicile."

"Elisabeth, (....) irresponsibility and negligence of the police have killed you. (...) Fifteen years of errors by a system of justice that only deals with rape and torture, except in times of war," stated Marie-Noelle Bouzet, mother of Elisabeth who disappeared at the age of 12 on December 20th 1989 near Namur (Belgium) on the way home.

"Il y a l'émotion dans le prétoire, et après ? Il y a bien d'autres Fourniret. Les enfants sont leur trésor de guerre, ils font des émules en prison, ils se nourrissent de leurs meurtres et de leurs viols, vous le savez, vous les connaissez", a poursuivi Mme Bouzet, très émue, à l'attention du président de la cour, Gilles Latapie. La mère de l'adolescente avait été en octobre 1996 l'une des organisatrices de la Marche blanche en mémoire des enfants disparus qui avait rassemblé plus de 300.000 personnes dans les rues de Bruxelles, dans la foulée de la découverte des crimes du pédophile belge Marc Dutroux."

"There is emotion in the courtroom, and then? There are other Fournirets. Children are their spoils of war, they have followers in prison, they feed on their murders and their rapes, you know it, you understand it," continued Mme Bouzet, very moved, by the attention of the president of the court, Gilles Latapie. In October 1996, the teenager's mother had been one of the organisers of the White March in memory of missing children, which had gathered more than 300,000 people in the streets of Brussels, in the wake of the discovery of the crimes of the Belgian paedophile Marc Dutroux.

"Enlevée le 20 décembre 1989 *

"Elisabeth Brichet avait été enlevée par le couple Fourniret le 20 décembre 1989 alors qu'elle rentrait chez elle après avoir rendu visite à une amie. Ses ravisseurs l'avaient repérée et guettée plusieurs heures avant de la convaincre de monter dans leur voiture, utilisant pour la mettre en confiance la présence de leur fils Sélim, alors âgé de quelques mois. Ils l'avaient d'abord conduite à leur domicile à Floing, dans les Ardennes françaises. Michel Fourniret, aidé de Monique Olivier qui serait allé jusqu'à faire la toilette de la victime à la demande de son mari, aurait alors essayé de la violer sans y parvenir, selon des premières déclarations à l'instruction."

Abducted on December 20th 1989

Elisabeth Brichet had been abducted by the Fourniret couple on December 20th 1989 while she was on her way home after visiting a friend. Her abusers had marked her out and waited several hours before convincing her to get into their car, using the presence of their son Sélim, then a few months old, to instill trust in her. First of all they drove to their house in Floing, in the French Ardennes. Michel Fourniret, helped by Monique Olivier, who would have gone just to wash the victim at the request of her husband, who then would try to rape her without succeeding, according to the first statements in the investigation.

"Le corps retrouvé 15 ans après"

"Le lendemain, le couple avait emmené Elisabeth Brichet au château du Sautou. Michel Fourniret, selon de premières déclarations, avait à nouveau tenté de la violer, en vain, avant de l'étouffer avec un sac plastique et l'étrangler de ses mains. Le corps de la fillette avait été retrouvé en 2004 dans l'ancienne propriété de Fourniret, 15 ans après son enlèvement, à la suite des aveux de Monique Olivier en juin 2004."

"En début d'audience, Michel Fourniret a reconnu l'enlèvement, la séquestration et le meurtre de l'adolescente. En revanche, comme lors de l'instruction, il a contesté la tentative de viol. Dans ce dossier, son épouse Monique Olivier, qui a également reconnu les faits, est renvoyée pour complicité."

"Peu après, Me Paul Lombard, l'avocat de Francis Brichet, le père d'Elisabeth, a exhorté Michel Fourniret à réussir "sa sortie" et à répondre aux questions. "Vous qui avez tous les courages horribles, peut-être aurez-vous un dernier courage, celui que vous devez à des familles qui ont souffert", a déclaré Me Lombard à fixant des yeux l'accusé."

"Après un bref moment d'hésitation, Michel Fourniret a finalement réitéré son exigence de huis clos."

The body found 15 years later.

The next day the couple took Elisabeth Brichet to the Chateau du Sautou. Michel Fourniret, according to the first statements, again tried to rape her, but in vain, before suffocating her with a plastic bag and strangling her with his hands. The little girl's body had been found in 2004 at the former Fourniret property, 15 years after her abduction, following Monique Olivier's confessions in June 2004.

At the opening of the trial, Michel Fourniret admitted the abduction, the kidnapping and the murder of the teenager. However, as during the investigation, he challenged the attempted rape. In this case, his wife Monique Olivier, who has also admitted the facts, was remanded for complicity.

A little later, Me Paul Lombard, lawyer for Francis Brichet, Elisabeth's father, encouraged Micehl Fourniret to manage, "his opening up," and to respond to questions. "You who have all the horrendous courage, perhaps you have one last courage, that which you owe to the families who have suffered," stated Me Lombard, eyes fixed on the accused.

After a moment's hesitation, Michel Fourniret finally reiterated his wish to have the proceedings held in camera.

SOS Madeleine McCann: the McCanns' controversial visit to Brussels.

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

This report from Duarte Levy has been published rather late because Mr Levy was in Brussels while the McCanns were there and has since been doing radio and TV appearances.

10.04.2008

Visite polémique des McCann à Bruxelles

Majorité des députés avait décidé de bouder les McCann

Gerry et Kate McCann, les parents de la petite Madeleine disparue il y a près d'un an au Portugal, ont parlé aujourd’hui devant un petit groupe de parlementaires, pour la plupart des britanniques appartenant au Groupe du Parti populaire européen (PPE), dans le cadre de la présentation d’une déclaration écrite (une page A4 recto-verso, disponible en PDF) défendant la création d’un système d’alerte européen à utiliser lors de tout enlèvement d’enfant au sein des états membres.

The McCanns' controversial visit to Brussels.

The majority of the representatives had decided to stay away from the McCanns.

Gerry and Kate McCann, parents of little Madeleine McCann who disappeared nearly a year ago in Portugal, spoke today before a samll group of parliamentarians, mostly British, belonging to the group, the European People's Party (EPP) in the context of the presentation of a written statement (One A4, double-sided page, available in PDF) supporting the creation of a European Alert system to be used in cases of child abduction in any member state.

Kate et Gerry McCann, toujours accompagnés par leur responsable en communication, Clarence Mitchell, ont été introduits au Parlement Européen par le conservateur Edward McMillan-Scott, vice-présidente du parlement, l’homme choisi pour amener Gerry et Kate à Bruxelles.

Kate and Gerry McCann, accompanied at all times by their spokesperson, Clarnece Mitchell, were introduced to the European Paliament by the Conservative member, Edward McMillan-Scott, Vice-President of the parliament, the man chosen to bring Gerry and Kate to Brussels.

Leur statut d’arguidos dans l’enquête à la disparition de leur fille Madeleine ne les a pas empêchés d’être présents à l’hémicycle mais la majorité des députés avait décidé de ne pas participer jugeant inopportune la visite du couple. Une polémique qui a marqué leur visite à Bruxelles et qui risque d’embarrasser les institutions européennes si Kate et Gerry McCann viennent un jour à être inculpés par la Justice portugaise.

Their status as arguidos in their daughter's Madeleine's disappearance did not prevent them from attending the assembly, but the majority of the representatives had decided not to participate, considering the couple's visit untimely. A controversy which marked their visit to Brussels and which risks embarrassing the European institutions if Kate and Gerry are one day indicted by the Portuguese police.

C’est d’ailleurs une des questions qui à causé le plus de nervosisme aux McCann pendant la conférence de presse qui à suivi la réunion de présentation de la déclaration, obligeant Clarence Mitchell à intervenir brusquement auprés des journalistes : "Ils ne sont accusés de rien et ont parfaitement le droit d’être ici", à dit leur chargé en communication.

This is one of the issues which caused the most unease towards the McCanns during the press conference which followed the meeting for the presentation of the statement, obliging Clarence Mitchell to intervene brusquely with the journalists: "They have not been accused of anything and have the perfect right to be here," said their spokesperson.

Même si Gerry ou Kate McCann n’ont eu aucun rôle dans la rédaction de la déclaration – une initiative de cinq parlementaires – c’est le couple qui à effectué sa présentation, devenant, le temps de quelques heures, des "experts" en disparition d’enfants, appelant aux représentants des 27 états membres à signer le document. Un sujet qui n’est pas nouveau car déjà en septembre de l’année passée un appel semblable avait été lancé par l’épouse du président de la Commission, Durão Barroso.

Even if Gerry and Kate had nothing to do with the drafting of the statement - an initiative of five parliamentarians - it is the couple who presented it, becoming for a few hours, experts on missing children, calling on the representatives of the 27 member states to sign the document. A topic which is not new because in September last year a similar appeal was launched by the wife of the Commission's president, Durao Barroso.

Pour que le document soit approuvé il va falloir qu’un minimum de 393 députés, la moitié du parlement, le signe au cours des trois prochains mois.
Selon leur porte-parole, les McCann ont conclu leur visite à Bruxelles par plusieurs rencontres avec des parlementaires mais aussi avec l’ambassadeur du Royaume-Uni.

For the document to be approved, it must be signed by a minimum of 393 representatives, half of the parliament, in the course of the next three months.
According to their spokesperson, the mcCanns concluded their visit to Brussels with several meetings with parliamentarians but also with the UK Ambassador.

Qu’en est’ il en Europe ?

Au Royaume-Uni, McMillan-Scott travaille, avec l’aide de "Parents and Abducted Children Together" (PACT), pour la création d’un centre national destinée à faire face à une véritable avalanche de disparitions dans le pays: ont compte un enfant disparue chaque cinq minutes.
Selon le vice-président du Parlement, seulement quatre pays européens (Belgique, Danemark, France et Portugal) ont un centre national pour les cas d’enfants disparues, proches du système américain mais adaptés à la réalité européenne.

What is he in Europe?

In the UK, McMillan-Scoot works, with the help of, "Parents and Abducted Children Together," (PACT) for the creation of a national centre designed to deal with a veritable avalanche of disappearances in the country: a child is reported missing every five minutes.
According to the Vice-President of the Parliament, only four European countries, (Belgium, Denmark, France and Portugal) have a national centre for cases of missing children, close to the American system, but adapted to the European experience.

En 2007, une décision de la Commission avait déjà réservé le numéro 116000 comme numéro de téléphone unique et gratuit pour les appels d’urgence concernant les enfants disparus mais à ce jour uniquement quatre pays ont commencé à l’utiliser : la Belgique, le Danemark, la Grèce et le Portugal (ce dernier est d’ailleurs parmi les pays qui le plus rapidement se sont adaptés aux demandes et recommandations de la Commission).

In 2007, a decision by the Commission had already reserved the number 116000 as the dedicated and free number for urgent calls about missing children, but to this day, only four countries have started to use it: Belgium, Denmark, Greece and Portugal (thr latter is also amongst the countries which have most speedily adapted to requests and recommendations of the Commission)

Plusieurs systèmes existent déjà au niveau national, comme le dispositif "alerte enlèvement" instauré avec succès en France, que plusieurs pays voudraient promouvoir pour une utilisation au niveau transfrontalier, lorsqu’une affaire dépasse le cadre national.

Several systems already exist at national level, as the, "abduction alert," introduced successfully in France, which several countries would like to promote for use at a cross-border level, when a case goes over a national border.

Que sont venus faire les McCann au Parlement Européen ?

Dans la pratique rien, du moins pour ce que concerne la création d’un future systéme d’alerte européen. Kate et Gerry McCann n’ont eu aucune participation ou responsabilité dans l’élaboration de la déclaration écrite qui à été présentée et leur présence passerais presque inaperçue s’il n’y aurait autant de médias, plus intéressés par la situation d’arguidos du couple dans l’enquête à la disparition de Maddie, que par l’actualité du parlement. Ils ont demandé la création d’un numéro de téléphone unique pour signaler une disparition. Un numero qui existe déjà depuis l’année passée : 116000.

What did the McCanns go to do at the European Parliament?

In practice nothing, at least as far as the creation of a future European alert system. Kate and Gerry had no involvement or responsibility for the drawing up of the written statement which was presented and their presence would have passed almost unnoticed if there hadn't been a strong media presence, more interested in the couple's situation as arguidos in the enquiry into Maddie's disappearance than in the business of the parliament. They requested the creation of a dedicated telephone number to notify a disappearance. A number which has existed since last year: 116000

Faute d’avoir convaincu les membres du parlement, les McCann ont réussi celui qui semblait être leur objectif principal, revenir en force sur les pages des journaux grâce à une conférence de presse ou Clarence Mitchell (voir vidéo) à une fois de plus démontré ses énormes qualités de maître dans l’art de la communication (lire l’envers du décor).

Having failed to convince the members of the parliament, the McCanns succeeded in what seemed to be their main objective, a strong return to the pages of newspapers thanks to the press conference or Clarence Mitchell (see the video) once again showing his significant qualities as master in the art of communication. (read behind the scenes)

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

UK law on minimum age for leaving children alone

Home Alone UK.

I notice that a few people have arrived at this blog from using Google search engine to find the minimum age at which children can be left alone, legally, in the UK.

Here is what the NSPCC says on the subject:

NSPCC Help and Advice Pages

"Leaving children at home alone

What the law says

The law does not set a minimum age at which children can be left alone. However, it is an offence to leave a child alone when doing so puts him or her at risk.

How do you decide if you can safely leave a child alone?

There are many important things to consider before you decide to leave a child alone. These include:

• the age of the child
• the child's level of maturity and understanding
• the place where child will be left
• how long the child will be left alone, and how often
• whether or not there are any other children alone with the child."

And from Professor Carolyn Hamilton, Times Online:

Times Online

"Scenario 1: You have three children under 5. You go shopping at the supermarket for 20 minutes, leaving them asleep in their car seats with the doors unlocked to avoid their movements triggering the car alarm.

This scenario is not advisable. It is an offence under section 1 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 to neglect or abandon a child under the age of 16 for whom a parent or carer has responsibility, but the law gives no detail of what amounts to neglect or abandonment. Prosecution and/or conviction depend largely on the circumstances. The punishment can range from a fine to ten years’ imprisonment.

The court is to likely to take into account the age and maturity of the child, for how long he or she was left alone and the arrangements to ensure his or her safety. Here, the children might get out of the car and wander on to the road – or anybody could remove a child from the car."

"Scenario 4:You go out for dinner in a hotel complex on holiday abroad, leaving a child aged 3 and twins aged 18 months in a locked room. You return to check on them every half hour.

If the parents have taken all the risks into account and decided that it is safe to leave the children, this would probably be reasonable. If the children were awake or a bit older and able to wander around, or potentially even to open the door to an intruder, perhaps not. But asleep, with the door locked and people constantly checking up on them, it is likely to be reasonable.

You should be checking on them very regularly. I don’t think it’s any less safe in Continental Europe than it is here. Leaving children alone in this manner is not desirable, but parents have to balance the demands of life and will probably have to consider such issues regularly.

A parent needs to ensure that children are safe if they are left alone. Leaving them for a short while, asleep, in a locked room with regular checks is acceptable. Leaving them for two hours, or with unlocked doors, is not."

So, in effect, the answer is that there is no minimum age set by UK law for when children can be left alone. However, if the children should come to significant harm as a result, those responsible are likely to be prosecuted.

PJ: the interrogations have reinforced the convictions of the inspectors. (Updated)

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

"Entre pertes de mémoire et changements de témoignages

Depuis leur arrivée sur le sol britannique, Paulo Rebelo à gardé exactement la même attitude vis-à-vis des journalistes qu’il avait au Portugal : dés que le sujet de conversation touche à l’affaire McCann c’est le silence. A la sortie des installations de la police britannique, après les interrogatoires, le silence de l’inspecteur, même pour les journalistes portugais, n’est trahi que par un léger sourire et son air fatigué. Ceux qui connaissent l’inspecteur d’autres dossiers savent que ceci ne peux que signifier une chose : ca à l’air d’avancer comme il le souhaite.

Between loss of memory and changing witness statements.

Since their arrival on British soil, Paulo Rebelo has maintained exactly the same attitude towards journalists, which he had in Portugal: as soon as the subject touches on the McCann case, there is silence. On leaving the British police building, after the interrogations, the inspector's silence, even for the Portuguese journalists, was only betrayed by a slight smile and by his air of exhaustion. Those who know the inspector from other cases, know that this can only signify one thing: that things as progressing as he would wish.

"Et on fini par comprendre le sourire de l’inspecteur. Selon plusieurs officiers britanniques de la police du Leicestershire, la thèse d’un enlèvement, ne tiens pas la route et la cohésion du groupe connu comme les Tapas 9 (incluant Kate et Gerry McCann) commence à s’effriter."

And we come to understand the inspector's smile. According to several British officers of the Leicestershire police, the abduction theory does not last the distance and the cohesion of the group, known as the Tapas 9 (including Kate and Gerry McCann) begins to crumble.

"S’il y avait un pacte de silence il à été rompu et je suis certain que les collègues portugais vont y arriver", affirmait un responsable de la police britannique à Enderby, où un certain "ras-le-bol" commence à se faire remarquer vis-à-vis des pressions de que la police du Leicestershire à été la cible."

"If there was a pact of silence, it has been broken and I am certain that the Portuguese colleagues will get there," stated a spokesperson for the British British police at enderby, where a certain, "enough is enough," has been noticed faced with the pressure, of which the Leicestershire police has been the target.

"Selon la même source, le témoignage de Jane Tanner et Russell O’Brien, mettant directement en cause Kate et Gerry McCann, à permis aux enquêteurs de comprendre pourquoi la maman de Madeleine avait refusé de répondre à un grand nombre de questions. Au mois de septembre, le jour ou elle à été constitué arguida, avant le départ du couple au Royaume-Uni, Kate avait refusé de coopérer avec la Police Judiciaire, refusant notamment d’expliquer pourquoi elle avait changé de vêtements ou pourquoi Madeleine, depuis leur arrivée à l’Océan Club, pleurait souvent quand elle restais avec sa maman, jamais avec Gerry."

According to the same source, the witness statements of Jane Tanner and Russell O'Brien, directly implicating Kate and Gerry, have allowed the investigators to understand why Madeleine's mother had refused to respond to a large number of questions. In September, on the day she was constituted arguida, before they left for the UK, Kate had refused to co-operate with the PJ, notably refusing to explain why she had changed her clothes or why Madeleine, since their arrival at the Ocean Club, often cried when she was with her mother, never with Gerry.

Prochainement :

• En Espagne, nous avons rencontré l’équipage d’un bateau qui étais sur la cote la nuit de la disparition.
• Des experts européens en communication, marketing et analyse politique ont décortiqué la campagne McCann.

Coming next:

• In Spain we have met the crew of a boat which was on the coats on the night of the disappearacne.
• European experts in communication, marketing and political analysis have analysed the McCann campaign.

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

Observer 13/04/08: Madeleine 'suspect' in massive libel claim

Observer Sunday 13th April

"British media face record payout as family of Robert Murat demand apology and damages."

The best news I have read in a long time is that Robert Murat has engaged a firm of solicitors to take legal action on his behalf against a list of UK newspapers and one TV channel. Robert Murat's life has been blighted since the award-winning Mirror group journalist, Lori Campbell, decided that Mr Murat, far from being just someone trying to help, was an object of suspicion.

"Murat, 34, who lived close to the Praia da Luz apartment in Portugal where Madeleine went missing, was made an arguido, or formal suspect, after a British tabloid reporter voiced her concerns to Portuguese police shortly after the child disappeared. The Sunday Mirror journalist claimed that Murat's behaviour was reminiscent of Soham murderer Ian Huntley."

Sunday Mirror, day 18, "WHY I SHOPPED MADDY SUSPECT"

"He added with pride: "I helped the McCanns communicate what had happened the night before to the police. They were frantic with worry and frustrated that they were not being understood.

"I have also been translating witness statements for the last few days from Mark Warner workers and holidaymakers."

Much of that, we now suspect, was not true. But at the time, he made it sound like the police knew him very well and he was trusted enough to assist them."

"Like so much else about him, it just didn't add up. Later, as we drove past I deliberately glanced at him and waved goodbye.

He was holding court as usual at the centre of a dozen film crews. He stood, hands on hips, just yards from the police tape which cordoned off the crime scene. But as he caught my eye, he appeared to freeze for just a moment and his expression changed to one of a man exposed."

The Observer again:

"On 14 May 2007, Murat was questioned by Portuguese police and became the first person to be declared an official suspect. On the same day Campbell told Sky News: 'It was just very reminiscent of the Soham murders, that was my first thought. He was hanging around, asking us questions and maybe trying to find out what we knew."

So, I send my very best regards to Robert Murat and his mother, Jenny. Robert's business has gone straight down the pan since those early days of the investigation, and in my opinion, he deserves to get as much as his specialist legal team can extract from those UK news media who probably made quite a substantial sum while publishing their totally unsubstantiated stories.

Go get'em Robert! And don't spare that award-winning journalist, who acted on her, "gut instinct," when she thought she saw a comparison to the Soham murders!

(I have made at least a dozen attempts to download an interesting video from YouTube this morning, but my NThell cable is on the blink...yet again! One of these days I really will get my act together and swap to a more reliable ISP! I shall post the video when the cable is stable enough to allow the download!)

PJ: the interrogations have reinforced the convictions of the inspectors. (Updated)

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

"Pendant que l’inspecteur-chef Paulo Rebelo, coordinateur du Département d’Investigation Criminelle de la Police Judiciaire se trouve à Enderby, au Portugal la police à commencé à exploiter les nouveaux données que la rencontre d’hier avec la police de Leicestershire à pu révéler. Pendant la réunion, qui a duré toute l'après-midi, les deux forces de police ont pu affiner la forme dans laquelle les interrogatoires vont se dérouler. Paulo Rebelo, responsable de l’enquête, est accompagné au Royaume-Uni par les inspecteurs João Carlos et Ricardo Paiva.

While chief Inspector Paulo Rebelo, co-ordinator of the Criminal Investigation Department of the PJ is in Enderby, in Portugal the police have started to exploit the new data that yesterday's meeting with the Leicestershire police was able to reveal. During the meeting which lasted all afternoon, the two police forces were able to finalise the form the interrogations would take. Paulo Rebelo, who is in charge of the investigation, is accompanied in the UK by the inspectors Joao Carlos and Ricardo Paiva.

Tanner incapable de décrire le prétendu kidnappeur

Les interrogatoires n’ont pas permit d’élucider certaines contradictions mais, en contrepartie, ont servi même à renforcer les convictions des enquêteurs et même à mettre en cause la véracité des précédentes déclarations de plusieurs témoins et arguidos. Ils sont devenues plus précis sur certains détails mais "ils ont oublié les plus importants", affirme un officier de la police britannique à Enderby.

Tanner incapable of describing the alleged abductor.

The interrogations have not allowed the clarifying of contradictions, but by way of compensation, have served to reinforce the convictions of the investigators and even to call into question the veracity of previous statements of several witnesses and arguidos. They have become more precise on certain details, but, "they have forgotten the most important," stated a British police officer at Enderby.

"Cible privilégié des interrogatoires, Jane Tanner et son compagnon Russell O’Brien. La première avait affirmé à la police et en public avoir vu un homme emportant un enfant dans ses bras mais ces déclarations n’ont pas cessé de changer au cours des temps. Deux témoins extérieurs au groupe, qui se trouvaient au même endroit, ont nié à la police avoir vu le personnage décrit par Tanner. Un personnage décrit différemment par Tanner à plusieurs reprises."

Favoured target for the interrogations, Jane Tanner and her partner Russell O'Brien. The former had stated to the police and in public that she saw a man carrying a child in his arms, but her statements have continued to change over time. Two witnesses outside the group, who were in the same area, have denied to the police that they saw the person described by Tanner. A person described differently by Tanner on several occasions.

"Cette fois ci, Tanner à été incapable de dire aux enquêteurs quand, comment et où elle avait vu le prétendu kidnappeur, contrariant tout ce qu’elle avait dit précédemment, notamment au programme Panorama transmis sur la télévision britannique. "

This time, Tanner was incapable of telling the investigators when, how and where she had seen the alleged kidnapper, contradicting everything that she had previously said, notably on the Panorama programme transmitted on British television.

"L’interrogatoire de Jane Tanner, avance notre source, à été le plus minutieux de tous, ou les officiers britanniques sont intervenus à plusieurs reprises croisant ses questions avec celle des enquêteurs portugais : "elle est arrivé souriante pour repartir au bord de la crise de nerfs".

Jane Tanner's interrogation, as put forward by our source, was the most thorough of all, where the British officers intervened on several occasions crossing their questions with those of the Portuguese investigators: "she arrived smiling and left on the edge of a nervous breakdown."

"Les interrogatoires ont permis de démontrer que le Dr. O’Brien s’est absenté du Tapas Bar et de la table du diner plus longtemps que ce qu’il avait déclaré à la police, justifiant son emploi du temps disant que sa fille était malade : "le Dr O’Brien affirme qu’il a du changer les draps du lit à cause des vomissements de l’enfant mais cette version est contredite par le personnel de l’Océan Club"

The interrogations showed that Dr O'Brien was absent from the Tapas Bar and from the dinner table for longer than he had stated to the police, justifying how he had used his time saying that his daughter was sick: "Doctor O'Brien stated that he had had to change the bed sheets because of the child's vomiting, but that version is contradicted by the Ocean Club's staff."

"L’interrogatoire du couple à toutefois confirmé que les enfants restaient seules pendant que les parents allaient diner ou sortir, sans aucune sorte de sécurité."

However, the interrogation of the couple, confirmed that the children were alone while the parents went to dinner or went out, without any kind of security.

"Détail intéressant que la police à pu déterminer pendant les interrogatoires, l’homme du portrait-robot révélé à la presse par Clarence Mitchell – le monstre sanguinaire comme un tabloïde britannique l'à décrit – à été pour la première fois indiqué aux témoins d’après un article publié par le Correio da Manhã décrivant, dans les premières semaines de l’enquête, la scène d’un homme rodant le balcon d’un appartement ailleurs qu’à l’Océan Club. L’article du Correio da Manhã spécifiait notamment que la police avait vérifié et écarté cette piste. Selon nôtre source, ce sont les détectives entourant les McCann qui ont ressuscité ce suspect, "l’adaptant au portrait décrit en dernier lieu par Jane Tanner".

(à suivre)

An interesting detail, which the police were able to determine during the interrogations, the man in the sketch revealed by Clarence Mitchell - the bloodthirsty monster as a British tabloid described him - was shown to witnesses for the first time, after an article published by Correio da Manha describing, in the first weeks of the investigation, the scene of a man loitering on the balcony of an apartment at a place away from the Ocean Club. The Correio da Manha article specifically noted that the police had verified and ruled out that lead. According to our source, it is the detectives surrounding the McCanns who have revived this suspect, "adapting him to the portrait described the last time by Jane Tanner."

(To be continued)

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

Fourniret Trial: Monique Olivier would like her husband to speak

10 avril 2008

"Monique Olivier "aimerait bien" que son mari parle* "Monique Olivier, épouse et complice présumée de Michel Fourniret, jugé devant la cour d'assises des Ardennes pour sept homicides aggravés, a déclaré jeudi qu'elle "aimerait bien" que son mari parle pour que les faits soient plus "clairs". "J'aimerais bien qu'il parle. Ca serait plus clair. Pour les familles, ça serait plus humain", a répondu Monique Olivier à Me Didier Seban, un avocat des parties civiles, qui l'interrogeait sur le mutisme de son mari depuis le début du procès. "Il raconte mieux que moi. Il a plus de mémoire que moi. J'aimerais bien qu'il prenne la parole", a-t-elle ajouté au deuxième jour d'audience consacré à l'examen des faits concernant le meurtre de Jeanne-Marie Desramault, une étudiante de 21 ans, disparue à Charleville-Mézières en 1989."

Monique Olivier, "would like very much," for her husband to speak. Monique Olivier, wife and alleged accomplice of Michel Fourniret, who is on trial before the Ardennes Court of Assizes for seven murders, declared on Thursday that she, "would like very much," for her husband to speak so that the facts were, "clearer." "I would like very much for him to speak. Things would be clearer. For the families, that would be more human," Monique Olivier replied to Me Didier Seban, a lawyer for the civil parties, who was questioning her about her husband's mutism since the start of the trial. "He tells it better than I do. He has a better memory than me. I would like very much for him to take the floor," she added on the second of hearings dedicated to examining the facts concerning the murder of Jeanne-Marie Desramault, a student, aged 21, who disappeared in Charleville-Mézièresin 1989.

"Son corps avait été retrouvé en juillet 2004 lors de fouilles au château du Sautou à Donchery (Ardennes), l'ancienne propriété du couple. Dès l'ouverture du procès le 27 mars, Michel Fourniret avait brandi un écriteau: "Sans huis clos, bouche cousue".

Her body had been found in July 2004, during searches at the Chateau du Sautou in Donchery (Ardenns), a former property of the couple. Since the start of the trial on March 27th, Michel Fourniret had brandished a written sign: "Without the proceedings being held in camera, lips sewn."

"En trois semaines de procès et en dehors de quelques laconiques "je reconnais les faits", il a néanmoins rompu sa résolution de participation passive au procès à trois reprises. Lundi, il avait pris spontanément la parole pour défendre Monique Olivier mise en difficulté sur son implication dans le meurtre de Fabienne Leroy, une étudiante de 20 ans tuée par balle dans la Marne en 1988. Le même jour, il avait perdu son sang-froid lors de deux vifs échanges avec Me Seban qui avait souligné deux erreurs du principal accusé, qui avait répondu en confondant deux victimes. Depuis, il a systématiquement opposé un silence haineux aux questions de l'avocat. "Monique Olivier commence à se lâcher. Pas sur les faits, mais sur Michel Fourniret (...) L'attitude de son mari peut contribuer à faire lâcher Monique Olivier", a estimé Me Seban à la suspension d'audience de la mi-journée. (AFP)"

In three weeks of the trial and apart from a few laconic, "I acknowledge the facts," he has, nonetheless, broken his resolution of passive participation in the trial on three occasions. On Monday, he spontaneously took the floor to defend Monique Olivier, who was placed in difficulty by her implication in the murder of Fabienne Leroy, a 20 year-old student who was shot in Marne in 1988. On the same day, he had lost his cool during the two lively exchanges with Me Seban, who had stressed two errors for the principal accused, who had responded, confusing two victims. Since then he has systematically opposed the lawyer's questions with a hateful silence. "Monique Olivier started to let herself go. Not about the facts, but about Michel Fourniret (....) Her husband's attitude could contribute to allowing Monique Olivier to open up," Me Seban suggested, at the end of the half-day hearing. (AFP)

http://www.kidnapping.be/fourniret/index.html

The Leicester Mercury. Now you see it, now you don't! Whooosh cluck!

The Leicester Mercury does it again, posts an article about the McCanns, allows comments, finds they are mostly critical and....whoooosh...cluck! Gone!

Saved for posterity, here is today's article and the messages that were whooshed!


POLICE INTERVIEW LEAKS 'ARE SMEAR CAMPAIGN'

And the comments that didn't last very long!

**********Comments to the above article*********

Leave theMcCann's alone. They have done nothing wrong, who doesn't go out and leave their kids when they go out on the lash??

Pinnochio, Edinburgh

Kate McCann is quoted as saying that she and Gerry discussed Madeleine's comment for several minutes. That long, eh? Obviously an important subject! Then today, Clarence Mitchell is quoted as saying that in response, the Tapas Crew decided to increase the frequency of checks on the children, from every half hour the night before to, emmm, every half hour. Clarence also says that the Tapas Crew had their own listening plan instead of that provided by the Mark Warner company. I am sure I read that MW did not provide such a service at the Ocean Club because the apartments were so spread out and also because the McCanns' apartment, in particular, was actually outside the secure area of the complex, overlooking a public path on one side and a public car park on the other.

Muzzy, Warwickshire

What a sad senario. Madeleine told her mother that she was upset and they still left her and the twins the next night.....

chrissie, UK

I wonder what else we don't know about these "perfect parents". If they are not prosecuted for child neglect at lease then there is no justice.

Sherry, Newton

How on earth can the truth be a smear? I just don't get it.

Loz, UK

Smears and leaks have been coming from "Team Mccann" from the start when they lied about the circumstances, so what's new?

Sally, Europe

That's interesting for a newspaper site. You ask us to "have our say" but remove any comments that may be "unhelpful" to the Team McCann PR effort? You're not acting for Madeleine by doing that. The poor child

Mel, East Mids

I find this latest news very distressing indeed. As a mother with two young children I find myself repeating those qouted distressing words. It is heartbreaking. Those parents will have to live with this torture for the rest of their lives. I really don't know where I stand any more on the parents behaviour. Part of me says what they did was despicable and the other part grieves so heavily. A shocking story. M

Margaret, Rothley

********************Comments end********************

Now, this is an interesting quote from Clarence:

"The McCanns said the leak was an attempt to smear them as they launched their bid for a Europe-wide missing child alert system."

I wonder what he means by, "..launched their bid." I ask this because Missing Children Europe has been campaigning for a Europe-wide response to child abduction since 2001, and that organisation is, in fact, the European representative of the one which Gerry visited in the USA.

http://www.missingchildreneurope.eu/

"Faced with the absence in Europe of operational centres working at a professional level on a complementary basis with police and judicial bodies and victim support organisations, Child Focus (Belgium), La Mouette (France) and Aurora (Italy), decided to establish the European Federation for Missing and Sexually Exploited Children, renamed "Missing Children Europe" in 2007."

"The solemn creation took place in 2001 at the European Parliament in the presence of EP-President Nicole Fontaine and European Commission Vice-President Vittorino. From the start thse two EU-institutions acknowledged the added value of a European wide umbrella organisation representing civil society organisations which work on a national or regional scale against child disappearance and sexual exploitation in all its forms."

"Missing Children Europe is the regional representative of the global movement of the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Washington."

So, Gerry needn't have gone to the US. He could simply have visited the European representative of ICMEC in Brussels.

The McCanns will have no effect on whether this goes through the European Parliament or not....and especially since they have nothing whatsoever to do with its introduction. Missing Children Europe has been working on this for years. The McCanns have only attempted to hijack it.

So, Clarence, to me, the McCanns, "...launched their bid," simply says that the McCanns sought to hijack this project as their own idea, purely for the purposes of publicity.

Jeanne-Marie Desramault: her father seeks justice.

The Fourniret trial.

I am trying to keep up with the transcripts provided by Enfants Kidnappés, because I think it is important that this information is available in English, for the sake of Fourniret's victims and the victims' families. Reading the details each day has mostly left me with a feeling of numbness, of almost total incomprehension about how someone who looks like a human being, sounds like a human being, and no doubt carries out all of the bodily functions of a human being, can be so far removed from any sense of humanity, as Michel Fourniret clearly is. That is, until I read the transcript of the hearing in which the case of Jeanne-Marie Desramault was presented and Jeanne-Marie's father spoke at the bar; that sense of numbness evaporated and today, I cried, for Jeanne-Marie, her father, and all of the other victims of Michel Fourniret.

Here is the transcript from Enfants Kidnappés.

http://www.kidnapping.be/fourniret/index.html

"09 avril 2008

"Le père de Jeanne-Marie demande justice"

"Le père de Jeanne-Marie Desramault, victime présumée de Michel Fourniret jugé en assises aux côtés de son épouse Monique Olivier, a demandé mercredi à la cour que justice soit faite.
"Que la justice les punisse" a déclaré d'une voix faible Henri Desramault, veuf de 87 ans, en faisant référence aux époux Fourniret. Le vieil homme, cheminot à la retraite, amaigri et diminué, s'est exprimé péniblement quelques minutes à la barre sur son fauteuil roulant avant de fondre en larmes. Jeanne-Marie Desramault était une jeune étudiante de 22 ans lorsqu'elle disparut le 18 mars 1989 à Charleville-Mézières. Son corps a été découvert, sur les indications de ce dernier, le 3 juillet 2004 dans le parc du château du Sautou, l'ancienne propriété du couple Fourniret-Olivier."

Jeanne-Marie's father demands justice.

The father of Jeanne-Marie Desramault, alleged victim of Michel Fourniret, on trial at the assizes alongside his wife Monique Olivier, demanded on Wednesday at the court that justice is done.
"That justice punishes them," Henri Desramault, a widower aged 87 years, stated in a quiet voice, making reference to the Fourniret couple. The old man, a retired railway worker, thin and diminished, expressed himself painfully at the bar for a few minutes, in his wheelchair, before dissolving in tears. Jeanne-Marie Desramault was a young student, aged 22, when she disappeared on March 18th 1989 in Charleville-Mézières. Her body was discovered, on the instructions of the accused, on July 3rd 2004, in the grounds of the Chateau du Sautou, former property of the Fourniret-Olivier couple.

"Michel Fourniret avoue un troisième meurtre à son procès"

"Le tueur en série présumé Michel Fourniret est à nouveau sorti de son silence mercredi à la cour d'assises des Ardennes pour avouer un troisième meurtre sur les sept dont il répond, mais il a refusé de répondre aux questions et de parler au père de la victime.

L'affaire concerne Jeanne-Marie Desramault, une jeune fille de 21 ans disparue le 18 mars 1989 et dont le corps a été retrouvé en 2004, après l'arrestation de Michel Fourniret en 2003. C'est le seul des sept dossiers dont il répond où sa femme est co-accusée d'avoir non seulement enlevé mais aussi tué. A la neuvième audience du procès, après la lecture des charges d'enlèvement, séquestration, tentative de viol et meurtre concernant , l'accusé, prié de préciser sa position, a dit : "Vous venez de lire les faits qui me sont reprochés. Je reconnais ces faits".

Michel Fourniret confesses to a third murder at his trial.

The alleged serial killer, Michel Fourniret, once again came out of his silence on Wednesday, at the Ardennes Court of Assizes, to confess to a third murder of the seven for which he is accused, but he refused to respond to questions and to speak to the victim's father.

The case is about Jeanne-Marie Desramault, a young woman, aged 21, who disappeared on March 18th 1989 and whose body was found in 2004, after Michel Fourniret's arrest in 2003. It is the only one of the seven murders to which he has responded, in which his wife is co-accused of having not only abducted but also killed. On the ninth day of the trial, after the reading of the charges of abduction, kidnapping, attempted rape and murder involved, the accused, asked to clarify his position, said: "You have just read the facts with which I am charged. I acknowledge these facts."

"Il refuse normalement de parler, en prétextant le refus du huis clos qu'il souhaite."

"L'émotion a étranglé plusieurs jurés lorsque le père de Jeanne-Marie, Henri, 87 ans, est venu en fauteuil roulant à la barre, soutenu à distance par deux religieuses et les autres familles de victimes, qui lui ont offert des roses blanches avant l'audience. Le témoin a regardé en silence l'accusé, qui a soutenu son regard sans ciller. Tandis qu'étaient projetées sur un écran les photos de sa fille, qui était son seul enfant, Henri Desramault, avant de fondre en larmes, n'a eu que ces mots : "Je demande justice pour Jeanne-Marie".

He normally refuses to speak, blaming the refusal for the proceedings to be held in camera.

The emotion choked several jurors when Jeanne-Marie's father, Henri, aged 87, came to the bar in his wheelchair, supported at a distance by two nuns and the other victims' families, who offered him white roses before the hearing. The witness looked in silence at the accused, who held his gaze without blinking. While photos of his daughter, who was his only child, were being projected onto a screen, Henri Desramault, before dissolving in tears, had only these words: "I demand justice for Jeanne-Marie."

"L'IMAGE DE LA VIERGE MARIE"

"L'avocat de la famille Desramault, Didier Seban, a interpellé l'accusé, lui rappelant une déposition antérieure où il disait avoir vu en Jeanne-Marie "l'image de la Vierge Marie". "C'est parce qu'elle évoquait la Vierge Marie que vous l'avez choisie ? Vous n'avez rien à dire à M. Desramault ? c'est peut-être la dernière fois que vous le verrez", a dit l'avocat. Debout à quelques mètres, visage dur et figé, Michel Fourniret a répondu : "Vous connaissez ma position, permettez moi de vous la rappeler". Et il est resté debout, les yeux dans ceux de l'avocat, sans bouger, durant une vingtaine de secondes. Interrogée, son épouse Monique Olivier a dit reconnaitre les faits, mais son avocat a aussitôt précisé qu'elle niait la co-action dans le meurtre qui est retenue par l'accusation. Jeanne-Marie Desramault a été présentée par un témoin comme "fleur bleue, gentille, douce et naïve aussi". Très croyante, le jeune fille "cherchait à faire connaissance avec les gens qu'elle rencontrait et avait toujours un a priori positif, avait le coeur ouvert", a-t-on expliqué à la barre."

The image of the Virgin Mary.

Didier Seban, lawyer for the Desramault family, called out to the accused, reminding him of a previous statement where he spoke of having seen in Jeanne-Marie, "the image of the Virgin Mary." "it was because she evoked the Virgin Mary that you chose her? You have nothing to say to M. Desramault? This may be the last time you see him," said the lawyer. Standing a few metres away, face hard and motionless, Michel Fourniret responded: "You know my position, allow me to remind you." And he remained standing, eyes meeting those of the lawyer, without moving, for about 20 seconds. When questioned, his wife Monique Olivier said that she acknowledged the facts, but her lawyer also said that she denies the co-action in the murder which is contained in the charge. Jeanne-Marie Desramault was described by a witness as, "a blue flower, kind, gentle and also naive," Very believing, a young woman who, "sought to get to know the people she met and always had a positive attitude, an open heart," was explained at the bar.

"Le déroulement des évènements:"

"Etudiante à Charleville-Mézières, où elle logeait dans une institution religieuse, elle prenait le train tous les samedis pour rentrer chez ses parents à Béthune. Elle a rencontré fortuitement Michel Fourniret lors d'un de ces voyages, a dit Monique Olivier. Le tueur a engagé la conversation et fait mine de partager sa ferveur religieuse. A la gare, Monique Olivier attendait son mari et le trio a fait connaissance. Il a alors été convenu de se revoir. Pour la mettre en confiance, Michel Fourniret a imaginé lui proposer une sortie en Belgique et le couple Fourniret est venu un jour la retrouver à la sortie des cours, avec leur fils Selim, âgé de quelques mois. "Michel Fourniret avait voulu lui faire une surprise", a raconté l'accusée. Après un repas dans une pâtisserie, Jeanne-Marie a été raccompagnée à Charleville. Plus tard, Monique Olivier reconnait avoir appelé au téléphone son institution religieuse en se présentant sous un faux nom, pour relancer la jeune fille. Le 18 mars 1989, Michel Fourniret a provoqué une rencontre à la gare de Charleville et a persuadé Jeanne-Marie de venir chez lui, où il l'a tuée. Il a enterré son corps dans sa propriété de Sautou. Des mois durant, le père de Jeanne-Marie a pris le train qu'elle devait prendre ce jour-là, montrant sa photo à tous les voyageurs. La mère de Jeanne-Marie est morte en 1993. (Reuters)"

The unfolding of events.

Student in Charleville-Mézières, where she was lodging in a religious institution, she took the train every Saturday to return to her parents house in Béthune. She met Michel Fourniret casually during one of these journeys, said Monique Olivier. The killer initiated the conversation and pretended to share her religious fervour. At the station, Monique Olivier was waiting for her husband and the trio were introduced. It was then agreed to meet again. To instil trust in her, Michel Fourniret thought up suggesting to her an outing to Belgium and the Fourniret couple went to find her one day, at the end of classes, with their son Selim, who was a few months old. "Michel Fourniret had wanted to give her a surprise," recounted the accused. (Monique Olivier) After a meal at a patisserie, Jeanne-Marie was accompanied back to Charleville. Later, Monique Olivier admitted having made a telephone call to the religious institution, presenting herself under a false name, to chase up the young woman. On March 18th 1989, Michel Fourniret engineered a meeting at Charleville station and he persuaded Jeanne-Marie to come with him to his house, where he killed her. He buried her body on his property in Sautou. For months, Jeanne-Marie's father took the train that she should have taken that day, showing her photo to all the travellers. Jeanne-Marie's mother died in 1993. (Reuters)

End of transcript.

Jeanne-Marie Desramault was a student, an only child of whom her parents were no doubt very proud. She was kind, gentle and trusting and close to her family, whom she visited every weekend. Michel Fourniret took all that was good and decent about that young woman and defiled her in the most gross way imaginable. Jeanne-Marie's father faced that epitome of evil in the courtroom and the arrogant inhuman scum of a man did not even have the courage to explain why he took Henri's only child. Henri Desramault is a man of courage. Michel Fourniret is a coward, who could only prey on the powerless and trusting.

I know that the Bible says, "Vengeance is mine, sayeth the Lord," but I cannot help but hope that some kind of vengeance is wreaked on Michel Fourniret when he is spending the rest of his life in prison. May he spend his time in fear of coming into contact with ordinary criminals, who are not averse to inflicting their own kind of punishment on rapists and murders of young girls and young women.

PJ: the interrogations have reinforced the convictions of the inspectors.

"Pendant que les McCann sont en Belgique et la PJ au Royaume-Uni"

"Interrogatoires ont renforcé la conviction des inspecteurs : "il y a en a qui ont menti "

Vu comme une dernière tentative pour faire avancer l’enquête à la disparition de Madeleine McCann, l’interrogatoire des sept amis de Kate et Gerry McCann, les Tapas 7, à renforcé la conviction des inspecteurs de la Police Judiciaire et de ses collègues britanniques de que la clé du mystère réside au sein du groupe : "il y a en qui ont menti", à confirmé une source de la police du Leicestershire soulignant que "face à ce que nous avons entendu ces derniers jours, il devient incompréhensible que les parents continuent à leur accorder une total confiance".

(à suivre)

While the McCanns are in Belgium and the PJ in the UK.

Interrogations have reinforced the convictions of the inspectors: there are those who have lied.

See as a last opportunity to make progress with the enquiry into Madeleine McCann's disappearance, the interrogation of the seven friends of Kate and Gerry McCann, the Tapas 7, has reinforced the conviction of the PJ inspectors and their British colleagues that the key to the mystery lies with the group: "there are those who have lied," a source from the Leicestershire police confirmed, stressing that, "faced with what we have heard these last days, it is becoming incomprehensible that the parents continue to place total confidence in them."

(to be continued)

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