Little Madeleine seen in Medugorje?
by Zdenko Jurilj

The following article arrived too late for inclusion in the third edition of the Medugorje Tribune. Because of its importance, our editor has decided to publish it on our webpage.

British newspapers claim that missing Madeleine was seen in pilgrimage town by Irishman

According to British tabloids, the Daily Star and Daily Mail, an un-named Irishman has alleged that he saw Madeleine McCann in Međugorje. This latest story about the four-year-old girl, who went missing six months ago in Portugal, and whose parents have been named as suspects by the Portuguese police, has caused quite a high level of interest among local Medugorje taxi drivers who tend towards autumn lethargy due to the time of the year, the slow business and the lack of tourists.

“That Irishman has seen the girl just like I've seen Our Lady,” said one taxi driver cynically while waiting in front of the church. The traffic was slow and customers few due to rain and cold weather.

“That is nonsense, because we would be the first to know if anything happened. This isn't New York ,” other taxi drivers assured us through half-opened car windows.

International problem

In the nearby police station in Međugorje the officer on duty, whose conversation with us was frequently interrupted by phone calls from reporters from other regions, swore that none of his colleagues had taken a statement from an Irishman.

“I have the file in front of me. It contains everything that happened and when it happened,” he said, turning the pages of a notebook. “The newspapers say that nobody here speaks English, so the report could not be filed. How is it possible then that when Irish or English pilgrims lose wallets or cell phones or something else, that we speak English?”

The policeman assures us that the man probably made up the whole story or simply thought he saw the missing British girl whose disappearance has become an international problem.

Members of the Franciscan order in the parish office in Međugorje, have also no knowledge of the missing girl, apart from statements published in the British tabloids and reported by the Croatian media.

“Believe us,” said Fr Miljenko Šteko, vicar of Međugorje, “We know nothing except what we have read in the newspapers.”

Nobody has contacted the priests, according to Fr Šteko, neither the missing girl's family, the police or the private agencies from Barcelona who have been looking for little Madeleine for months.

Chartered flights

The largest travel agency in Međugorje, that organises group tours for Irish pilgrims, also says that no one has contacted them either.

“The last group from Ireland left on November 4th. There have been no chartered flights since and the next organised arrivals from Ireland are scheduled for next Easter. Maybe the unidentified pilgrim arrived in Međugorje alone, but it is illogical that nobody took his statement,” claims Marinko Ostojić, owner of the travel agency.

The British Embassy in Sarajevo said: “After we contacted our diplomatic and consular network we can only say that Bosnian and Croatian police officers are conducting an inquiry and checking information from the media. None of Madeleine's family members, as far as we know, have requested any additional information at this moment.”