Madeleine McCann

As with any other parent in the world, I suffer the same recurring nightmare - something happening to either of my children. Fortunately, to date, it has been exactly that - only a nightmare.

But for one family, that nightmare has become frighteningly and solidly real, and it is playing out across the airwaves on every news bulletin.

Ten days ago, 4 year-old Madeleine McCann was asleep in her bed with her parents, a short distance away, at a restaurant with friends, when someone broke into the holiday apartment and abducted her. Nothing has been seen of her since.

I have absolutely no idea how her parents are feeling at this moment. They must be totally devastated and destroyed inside, but day after day they soldier on, determined to carry the hope until that hope has gone. I'm sure I would be an emotional wreck within a very short space of time, my panic would be almost pathalogical!

How do they stop tearing themselves apart? If only they hadn't left her to go for a meal.... Already the criticism is being raised, and, with only the facts in the news to go on, it is an easy case to make.

However, I can understand, a little, the decision she took. Recently, we were in a holiday complex very similar to the place the McCann's were staying at. These complex's are very much a self-contained world with everything a person would want available on-site: restaurants, swimming pools, bars, entertainment, etc. and it is that inclusiveness that can lead to believing that the place is ultra safe - our complex even had its own security force that patrolled on a regular basis. I certainly didn't bat an eye-lid when my children went off and explored the site (I even encouraged it) with minimal warnings to danger - to me, there just didn't seem to be any danger! I know my children are older, but bad things can also happen to children of their age.

'Maddy's' parents still believe that their daughter is still alive and I'm hoping their faith will be answered. She is a beautiful and precious person (they all are at that age) and deserves to have her natural life back - now.

A Photo Set

Delara Darabi
Originally uploaded by Welcome to Infinite Pictures.

If you look at the left hand side of this page and scroll down you will find my Flickr badge which, if you click, will take you to my pictures on Flickr. When I upload some pictures onto my site, I tend to put them into 'sets' for ease of location and viewing. Once I do this, I then send emails to people so they can bore people all over the world with my pictures of canals, boats and beer.

However, I came across a set that gave me a jolt. The set is of pictures by Delara Darabi who, at the time of writing this, is a 20 year-old woman sitting on death row in Iran, and who had been 'convicted' of a capital crime at the age of 16 and condemned to death. At the time of witing this, Iran has another 31 young people who had been convicted while still a 'child' of a capital offence.

In Delara's case, she was convinced by her then boyfriend to confess to murder committed during a burglary. He convinced her that she could not be executed because of her age, but this turned out not to be the case. She also was given a three-year jail sentence, 50 lashes for robbery and 20 lashes for an 'illicit relationship'. All of this Delara denies and pleads her innocence.

Not knowing the actual facts of the case for certain, I can't comment, but the UN states that a child is someone who is under the age of 18 at the time of the offence, and as a child, is not expected to fully understand the consequences of their actions and thereby be put to death. Iran (and the US) have signed up to this Covenant, but the executions continue.

Obviously, Delara doesn't have her own page on flickr, but a supporter does, and has loaded some of her pictures, along with a personal statement from Delara, onto his page.

You can see those pictures here.
You can read more about Delara and the others presently sitting on death row in Iraq on the Stop Child Execution website; and on that website, you can sign a petition.
Delara also has, courtesy of Amnesty International, a MySpace page where you can find further information.

Whatever the circumstances and offences, it is, fo me, an offence against civilisation that there are countries and systems that feel comfortable putting children to death.