Every day is incredibly hard without Madeleine
Algarve Resident – 03.07.2007
AR : How would you summarise the past 60 days?
Gerald MC : Every day is incredibly hard without Madeleine, but there have been a number of plusses as well. Everyday without Madeleine is incredibly difficult.
AR : What is your daily routine?
GMC : It starts off normally.
We get the kids up and ready. We check telephone calls and have a
look at emails etc. We have a few meetings during the day and, in the
evenings, things return to normal and are spent as a family. We have
frequent meetings and our family have been very supportive in helping
us find Madeleine. That's been very important to us.
AR : What kind of campaigns do you have planned for the future?
GMC : Can't give too many
specifics on the future, but it will be very much event-driven. The
important thing is to make as many people as possible aware of
Madeleine. The response to the campaign has been incredible. We want
to remind people from time to time that we are still looking and
Madeleine still has not been found.
Kate MC : To keep them
looking. (1) AR : Will you spend Christmas in Portugal if Madeleine is not found?
KMC : I think at the
moment we are just taking one day at a time. We are not looking that
far ahead. (2)
GMC : We are committed to staying and we feel closer
to Madeleine here. Also, as it has been such an active investigation,
with so much information coming through, for the time being, we would
like to stay here. It is more practical.
AR : What about your jobs?
GMC : Right now, we are not
capable of working as doctors. We still feel a lot can be done by
ourselves. What we don't want is to look back in another three or
four months and say we wish had done this. At the minute, the
decision is we will stay in Portugal, though we are regularly
reviewing our situation.
KMC : Our main job and our main priority
is to find Madeleine.
AR : Do you believe she might still be here in Portugal?
KMC : There is a
possibility, but we just don't know where she is. We have to say that
we don't know. But I do feel closer to Madeleine.
GMC : We definitely
don't want to set a certain focus with the trips that we've made. We
went to Spain because of its close proximity. We want people to come
forward with information, but we are not sure enough that she was
taken from here. She could be in this region and we don't want to
dismiss that.
AR : What did you tell Sean and Amelie when they ask about their older sister?
GMC : We have taken
professional advice to know how to deal with the twins, and I think
that how we deal emphasises on how we tell them about it, but it is
paramount that Sean and Amelie are fine now.
AR : Why do you think your ordeal has attracted more attention than possibly any other child abduction in history?
GMC : It is an interesting
question. There are a number of circumstances and I think that the
fact that the abduction was of foreign children in a foreign country
played a part. Another aspect of this is that we and our family and
friends have decided to campaign to maximise the media exposure, and
electronic media which started a chain, and that had a huge impact
over the first 24 hours. There is no doubt that the media has done a
huge amount and want us to find Madeleine. (3)
AR : How do you view
the support you have been receiving from the Portuguese people?
GMC : I could not have imagined
that we would get so much support and so quickly. It has been a great
help really and that has comforted us. It has been like being at
home. The first few days the Portuguese people gave us a lot of
strength when we were down.
AR :What should people tell
police about?
KMC : Lots of things. I
am totally reassured that the Portuguese police are 100 per cent
committed to finding Madeleine.
GMC : I think you have
seen it yourself that in the last two months a lot has changed and
the flood of information between us and police has improved and we
thank the Portuguese police. We have a very good working relationship
with them. Our determination to find Madeleine is matched by theirs.
AR : How do you perceive latest developments in Spain linking Madeleine's disappearance to an illegal child abduction network?
GMC : I haven't gone into that
too much in detail and I know the Spanish have a secrecy order, so I
cannot tell you if there has been an extortion attempt but the
Portuguese Police are keeping us informed.
AR : What has been your hardest moment since Madeleine's abduction?
GMC : Every day is hard, very,
very difficult. We have positive days as well when we have done big
events or some sort of coverage, campaigning. The only important
thing for us is getting Madeleine back, and we hope that what we are
doing increases the chances of that.
AR : Planning any other visits to other countries?
GMC : We haven't got any
specific plans but we are looking to have international dimension and
we are working with different organisations to help that. But right
at this minute we haven't got any planned. From time to time I will
go back to England to sort out some personal stuff.
AR : What message do you have
for Madeleine's abductors?
KMC : It is not too late
to give her back.
(2) Pourtant début juin 2007, Gerald prévoyait un événement marquant avant le premier anniversaire, un propos maladroit qui avait été effacé..
(3) Gerald MC reconnaît quand même que, sans les médias, on ne parlerait plus guère de Madeleine. Il est douteux que les médias en auraient parlé tout court s'ils avaient appris immédiatement et non bien plus tard que les enfants non seulement étaient seuls dans l'appartement, mais qu'une des portes n'était pas fermée à clef et l'autre carrément ouverte.
On The Record avec Greta Van Susteren
Diffusé le 24.07.2007
Diffusé le 24.07.2007
(Rush transcript)
Jeanine Pirro : Little Madeleine McCann — she has been missing for more than two-and-a-half months. Police say the four-year-old British toddler was kidnapped in Portugal on May 3rd. Her parents are waging an international campaign to find Madeleine and to stop child trafficking. Madeleine's father, Dr. Gerry McCann, is in the United States now. And yesterday he went On The Record with Greta Van Susteren.
(vidéo clip)
Greta van Susteren : Welcome to the United States. I wish you were coming under different circumstances.
Gerald MC : Thank you.
GVS : When did you arrive?
GMC : I just got in late last night. So it's a short visit. I will be here until Wednesday evening, and then flying back to Portugal.
GVS : I suppose we should tell the viewers where we are.
GMC : Yes. We are at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children here in Alexandria, just in Virginia. The main reason for my visit was to come and see what is regarded as, I would say, the world leading center for missing and exploited children.
GVS : It is not exactly what you did your study in cardiology for, is it?
GMC : No, no. But with what's happened to us, we are trying to make the most of it, and do everything possible to try to get our daughter back. And both for my wife and I, our lives are on hold, at the minute, until we find out and, hopefully, get her back.
GVS : And obviously you are here at this organization. Anyone else you will be talking to in our government?
GMC : I'm very pleased to say that the Attorney General took time out of his incredibly busy schedule to meet with us today. And we had a 40 minute meeting, and we talked about these very issues, about how we can advance legislation. And I think importantly, Madeleine's disappearance has already created some discussion at the G-8 summit recently. So it's becoming more topical. At least the public will know consider the issues, and that's something that we need to capitalize. There is a window of opportunity here to affect change for the better. And, of course, Kate and I are both hopeful that the publicity surrounding this and our tie-ins with the National Center and International Center for Missing and Exploited Children keep Madeleine's profile high and increases the chances of us finding her.
GVS : Did the Attorney General Gonzales, did you get the sense that he knew about your daughter's disappearance before the meeting was set up?
GMC : Yes.
GVS : He knew about it.
GMC : He is, obviously, at the very least been briefed prior to the meeting, but he certainly gave the impression that he knew about Madeleine's disappearance. And we know that the publicity around Madeleine really has been global. It has touched almost every parent who has seen it in the news. And Kate and I have had tremendous empathy from all over the world. Everyone knows that feeling, that when you think your child is missing, even if it's for a few seconds, a few minutes.
GVS : Do you believe she is still alive, or is that just the survival mechanism in you, in a sense, that you want to believe she is?
GMC : Of course we want to believe it, but I will not accept that Madeleine is dead until I get concrete evidence that assures us that she is dead. There is no evidence of serious harm, and there has been a very extensive ground search from quite a large radius around Praia da Luz, from where she was abducted. I'm not saying it's impossible, but, actually, I think she is probably more likely to be alive than dead. We truly believe that.
GVS : Meeting with the Pope, did that help bring some sort of comfort to you?
Jeanine Pirro : Little Madeleine McCann — she has been missing for more than two-and-a-half months. Police say the four-year-old British toddler was kidnapped in Portugal on May 3rd. Her parents are waging an international campaign to find Madeleine and to stop child trafficking. Madeleine's father, Dr. Gerry McCann, is in the United States now. And yesterday he went On The Record with Greta Van Susteren.
(vidéo clip)
Greta van Susteren : Welcome to the United States. I wish you were coming under different circumstances.
Gerald MC : Thank you.
GVS : When did you arrive?
GMC : I just got in late last night. So it's a short visit. I will be here until Wednesday evening, and then flying back to Portugal.
GVS : I suppose we should tell the viewers where we are.
GMC : Yes. We are at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children here in Alexandria, just in Virginia. The main reason for my visit was to come and see what is regarded as, I would say, the world leading center for missing and exploited children.
GVS : It is not exactly what you did your study in cardiology for, is it?
GMC : No, no. But with what's happened to us, we are trying to make the most of it, and do everything possible to try to get our daughter back. And both for my wife and I, our lives are on hold, at the minute, until we find out and, hopefully, get her back.
GVS : And obviously you are here at this organization. Anyone else you will be talking to in our government?
GMC : I'm very pleased to say that the Attorney General took time out of his incredibly busy schedule to meet with us today. And we had a 40 minute meeting, and we talked about these very issues, about how we can advance legislation. And I think importantly, Madeleine's disappearance has already created some discussion at the G-8 summit recently. So it's becoming more topical. At least the public will know consider the issues, and that's something that we need to capitalize. There is a window of opportunity here to affect change for the better. And, of course, Kate and I are both hopeful that the publicity surrounding this and our tie-ins with the National Center and International Center for Missing and Exploited Children keep Madeleine's profile high and increases the chances of us finding her.
GVS : Did the Attorney General Gonzales, did you get the sense that he knew about your daughter's disappearance before the meeting was set up?
GMC : Yes.
GVS : He knew about it.
GMC : He is, obviously, at the very least been briefed prior to the meeting, but he certainly gave the impression that he knew about Madeleine's disappearance. And we know that the publicity around Madeleine really has been global. It has touched almost every parent who has seen it in the news. And Kate and I have had tremendous empathy from all over the world. Everyone knows that feeling, that when you think your child is missing, even if it's for a few seconds, a few minutes.
GVS : Do you believe she is still alive, or is that just the survival mechanism in you, in a sense, that you want to believe she is?
GMC : Of course we want to believe it, but I will not accept that Madeleine is dead until I get concrete evidence that assures us that she is dead. There is no evidence of serious harm, and there has been a very extensive ground search from quite a large radius around Praia da Luz, from where she was abducted. I'm not saying it's impossible, but, actually, I think she is probably more likely to be alive than dead. We truly believe that.
GVS : Meeting with the Pope, did that help bring some sort of comfort to you?
GMC : Yes. I mean that meeting was incredibly important to Kate and I for two reasons. Spiritually, and that was the reason we were there, and it was organized through the Archbishop of Westminster. Despite the publicity we have had, he has assured us that the would have organized a meeting like that for anyone in our situation. So, spiritually, it was very, very important. He blessed Madeleine. It was nice to know that many people in the Vatican and the world order are praying for Madeleine. And, of course, it did generate a huge amount of awareness of Madeleine's disappearance, which has had an knock on effect. And I hope that we can use the goodwill that has come from thousands, and, probably, hundreds-of- thousands of people in response to one very bad act, and use that in a positive way to help other missing children and make the world a little bit safer for all kids if possible.
GVS : Any theory why Madeleine's case got publicity? You are very unfortunate that your child is missing, but fortunate that at least some of the spotlight might help.
GVS : Any theory why Madeleine's case got publicity? You are very unfortunate that your child is missing, but fortunate that at least some of the spotlight might help.
GMC : There has obviously been a mixture of circumstances for us. I don't doubt that Madeleine's image itself is playing a huge part in that.
GVS : She is cute, very cute. But all these missing children are all adorable. We want to help them all.
GVS : She is cute, very cute. But all these missing children are all adorable. We want to help them all.
GMC : The circumstances of having a foreign child abducted in another country when you are on holiday — I think most people want to go on holiday and relax, and that's created a lot of empathy as well. We have had huge numbers of support, and the Media supported us. Everyone wants to find her. And we just want to continue now.
GVS : We certainly hope we can find her. We hope we can find every child. Good luck, sir. Thank you. Welcome to the United States.
GVS : We certainly hope we can find her. We hope we can find every child. Good luck, sir. Thank you. Welcome to the United States.
