Madam, - The recent turn of events in the Madeleine McCann case, with both Kate and Gerry McCann being declared official suspects, has taken many people by surprise.
Many British newspapers, together with their Irish offshoots, have on occasion called for a "re-balancing" of the criminal justice system, with the rights of suspects to be curtailed to ensure a "more level playing pitch". To my surprise, within the past week, many of these publications have become stalwarts of the fundamental right to be presumed innocence, a right whose very existence these publications have campaigned for so long to undermine. They have questioned police tactics, cast a sceptical eye at supposed forensic evidence, and expressed outrage at the undignified way in which they feel the McCanns have been treated by the Portuguese police.
I certainly hope this new-found editorial slant on the McCann cases will result in similar scepticism about investigative procedures by police authorities in relation to all those suspected of crime, at home or abroad. However, I doubt very much that this will be the case.
In the meantime, let us just hope that little Madeleine McCann will be found safe and well. - Is mise,
LIAM THORNTON, Pouladuff Road, Togher, Cork.