'We are never going to give up trying to find her': Madeleine McCann's parents issue birthday statement
12 May 2023, 09:44 | Updated: 12 May 2023, 16:09
Madeleine McCann's family has vowed to keep hunting for her in an emotional message to mark her 20th birthday.
In a haunting new video posted on the official FindMadeleine YouTube channel, the family vowed to never give up trying to find the British girl who vanished on a family holiday to Portugal in 2007.
In a caption accompanying the video they said: "Happy birthday Madeleine. Madeleine McCann is 20 years-old today. She's still missing, still missed and we are never going to give up trying to find her."
Happy birthday Madeleine
The new video comes a week after Madeleine's sister Amelie spoke for the first time at a local prayer meeting in the Leicestershire village where the family live.
At a vigil marking the tragic anniversary, Amelie McCann, now 18, spoke about her missing sister Madeleine McCann said: "It's nice that everyone is here together but it's a sad occasion."
Madeleine disappeared from a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal on the evening of May 3 2007.
Sixteen years on, the parents of Madeleine, who would now be 19 years old, posted a message for her on the official Find Madeleine website.
They wrote: “Today marks the 16th anniversary of Madeleine’s abduction. “Still missing…….still very much missed. It is hard to find the words to convey how we feel.”
They also shared a poem titled The Contradiction by Clare Pollard which they said “resonates strongly” with them.
It contains the lines:
The absence contradicts itself:
the missing conjures what we miss.
You are not here, I’m not myself,
but still I talk to you like this.
Kate and Gerry added: “The police investigation continues, and we await a breakthrough. Thank you to everyone for your support- it really helps.”
Last month it emerged that prime suspect Christian Brueckner may not face charges in Germany over the toddler's disappearance after a German court ruling.
The court’s decision means that legal authorities in Braunschweig have no jurisdiction over Madeleine’s case, who disappeared in Portugal in 2007 aged three.
