EDWARDO MATHEW--AN ARUBAN VICTIM SPEAKS OUT

A white pretty girl from Alabama, U.S.A. disappeared in Aruba May 30,2005 - Last seen with white Dutch boy belonging to a very powerful and influential family that is well-connected to the head of the heads of the justice department in Aruba.


All evidence that could have been accumulated to keep the white suspect detained was ignored and overlooked solely because the white man's word weighs more than the black man's word. "If you are a white Dutch suspect in Aruba, you can easily be turned into a witness as long as you point your fingers to a black man/Arubian," says Edwardo Mathew.



Mathew is uniquely suited to provide commentary on the situation. A native of Aruba who served a sentence at the KIA correctional facility in Aruba from 2001 to 2004, it is widely believed that Mathew was wrongfully convicted. His case is currently being heard before the European Court of Human Rights.

The laws governing Aruba reflect a customary practice of unequal and discriminatory treatment reminiscent of the 1800's when blacks had no rights in society.

"How can Natalee's family find justice in Aruba if there is no justice under the Arubian Dutch laws?" asks Mathew. "No man in a civilized country or island anywhere in the world should be held in prison for kidnapping and murder or any other crime by a public prosecutor behind closed doors - yet the public in Aruba is not allowed to receive information. Why?"

The Dutch have most often attempted to portray their disposition as strong advocates of human rights, which stands in stark contrast to a legal system that can hold a suspect without bail for 116 days or more with little or no evidence in a four foot by four foot cell - without a mattress, accompanied by rat and cockroach infestation.

The Dutch/ Arubian justice system permits cases to be heard behind closed doors, providing free reign by the public prosecutor to withhold and/or tamper with information. The Dutch legal system allows judges and prosecutors to function without checks and balances - rulings may be swayed in any direction or favor that suits them personally. "The world should be concerned about this mysterious case as it clearly poses a personal concern for the Dutch public prosecutors and friends," states Mathew.

"The overriding question is - can justice prevail in Aruba if those who are in charge of enforcing justice have a personal stake in the outcome?" adds Dr. Arianna Mathew, wife of Edwardo Mathew and American citizen. "The appropriate course of action would be for Prime Minister Nelson Oduber to step aside and permit the FBI to lead the investigation in full to prove to the world that Aruba is doing everything to seek equal justice as mistakes have already been made by initially releasing the three boys and holding the two black men."

As the current government, MEP reportedly stated in the Arubian national media that the Dutch judges are not to be trusted.

"We must remember that the Netherlands, 'The Dutch,' for personal reasons held onto their slave trade 15 years after it had been abolished by using this same Dutch legal system," concludes Dr. Arianna Mathew. "Based on the legal system's past patterns and history - can we trust this system now?"

CONTACT:
Edwardo Mathew
Massimo
PHONE. 4018645592 or 4018869965