Maddie's father, yesterday, on his return to Praia da Luz

Praia da Luz: Ocean Club will dismiss employees

Animated re-enactment
On the day when Gerry McCann came to Portugal to record the private re-enactment about what happened to her daughter Maddie on May 3rd, 2007, 21 employees from the Ocean Club, the resort from where the four year old girl disappeared, were fired. Justification, apart from the effects of global crisis: "As a result of the Maddie McCann unfortunate event" that affected forever the image of the resort of Praia da Luz and departed from there to tourism.

Alongside these issues, and although officially both he and the group of friends have not cooperated with police in a reconstruction of what happened that night, it was a smiling Gerry who presented yesterday in Praia da Luz - the recording of a documentary about the day when her daughter mysteriously disappeared.

In the day on which this media spectacle occurred, the company Greentrust, which manages the resort, put forward a claim for collective dismissal, which initially includes 21 of the 48 workers. The note of dismissal states that the company's financial problems are serious and "the forecast for the year 2009 make the company unviable." The main fault is attributed to the bad publicity caused by the Maddie case. According to the company, "the bad results of 2007 originated in the McCann case."

In May 2007, the company had 130 employees. The following year several were released and only 60 remained. This year there were 48 and, with this collective dismissal, only 27 remain, but according with the same source they "are also at risk."

"I have family and children to feed and I am now out of work. We ask the couple McCann to leave us alone, please," said one of the CM staff.

DAUGHTER OF COUPLE OF FRIENDS ‘PLAYS’ MADELEINE MCCANN
The re-enactment, produced for the British channel 'Channel 4', is being recorded with 15 actors. One is Maddie, whose role is played by a child daughter of a couple friend of Gerry and Kate, "revealed to journalists the spokesman of the couple, Clarence Mitchell.

In addition to Maddie, the other actors give life to nine friends of the couple, known as' Tapas 9 ', the suspect in an alleged kidnapping, tourists and residents in Praia da Luz and employees of the Ocean Club.

"LET US LIVE IN PEACE"
"Go home" and "let us live in peace" were some of the phrases that some residents in Praia da Luz yelled at Gerry and the remaining team that is producing the documentary, which will be broadcast around the world. "What are they doing here? When they should assist the police they did not and now they are doing this show to further ruin our lives," said to CM an angry resident who did not want to be identified, for fear of reprisals because it believes that the couple "has much power."

"POLICE DID NOT ACCEPT THE RE-ENACTMENT ON TV"
The Policia Judiciaria wanted to do a reconstitution of the night of the disappearance twice, but in no time the couple and friends were available. Clarence Mitchell, the spokesman of the couple, explained that the re-enactment was not made sooner because "the police did not accept it to be broadcasted."

Now, after the investigation has been terminated, the couple believes: "This documentary could generate new information that will help us find Madeleine," Mitchell said.

The re-enactment will be available on the site http://www.findmadeleine, and the transmission of the Channel 4 documentary to be negotiated with several European countries, including Portugal.

"THEY WANT TO TRANSMIT LIES TO THE WORLD" (Gonçalo Amaral, former coordinator of the POLICIA JUDICIARIA)

CdM - The PJ want to make a re-enactment of the disappearance of Maddie. The McCann couple and their friends did not accept. What importance does it have now this mediatic re-enactment?

Gonçalo Amaral - None. It may only be interesting because the lies they want to convey to the world will be registered. It’s just another marketing operation.

CdM- Is the Policia Judiciaria and Public Prosecution Service being ‘taken / made fools’?

GA- In my opinion, yes. It is regrettable that the Portuguese authorities have been unable to compel these gentlemen to come to Portugal to make a re-enactment in order to discover the truth.

CdM- Only two of the friends are taking part on the re-enactment. The others are not important to discover the truth?

GA- It would be interesting to know why Mr. David Payne is not part of re-enactment. He could explain how much he took to bath the children and at what time. They are not interested in explaining that.

NOTES

GNR SECURITY
The production of the documentary contracted the security services of four officers of GNR. Yesterday two officers were in place until 18:00. They were replaced by a new team, which accompanied the recordings until midnight.

Two days of filming
The filming will take place over two days. Gerry McCann was interviewed yesterday and scenes were filmed in the Tapas restaurant where the couple dined on the night of the disappearance of her daughter. Today, filming will take place in the church in Praia da Luz

SCENE WITH SUSPECT
One of the scenes recorded yesterday involved a man who a friend of the couple, Jane Turner, says it has seen the passing of a child placed in the night that Maddie disappeared from the apartment.

NOTES

MURAT: NO ROLE IN THE MOVIE
The Portuguese, British Robert Murat, who was one of the arguidos in the case on suspicions of connection to a kidnapping, the film does not enter the re-enactment, said the spokesman Clarence Mitchell.

GERRY: TEAM CONSULTANT
Maddie's father, Gerry McCann, did not take part in the filming, but was a team consultant, along with Jane Tanner and Matthew Oldfield, friends who vacationed with the couple.

KATE: "NOT READY"
Kate McCann, the mother of the missing girl, "is not yet ready to return to Portugal", according to what Clarence Mitchell, the spokesman of the couple said to journalists.

Rui Pando Gomes