She Went to Aruba- Will You?
"She" is, of course, Natalee Holloway, the Alabama honors high-school graduate who went to Aruba in May 2005 on a class trip. On the last night of the trip, she and other students went to Carlos 'n' Charlies, a bar where Aruban police say drugging of drinks is known to occur. She left with three Aruban residents. One, Joran van der Sloot, had spent days with her tour group, falsely saying he was a visiting Dutch tourist. (A hotel manager later identified him as a known predator who targeted American tourist girls.) He and his companions, Deepak and Satish Kalpoe, drove Natalee away, alone.
Natalee's disappearance, and her family's quest for the truth, have drawn media coverage and
worldwide interest ever since. The case was revived in January, when a series of 'sting' videotapes by a Dutch TV crime reporter showed Joran confiding that he was with Natalee when she suddenly passed out on the beach. He said he panicked and, without knowing if she were still alive, called "Daury," a "friend" who dumped her body at sea.
Joran said he wasn't bothered by what happened.
"I was even able to sleep that night. I just went home and went to bed." He later said his story was a lie given under the influence of marijuana. On February 15, 2008, an appeals court of three judges upheld an earlier ruling that the tapes did not provide enough new evidence to re-arrest him, even though this was the first time that he acknowledged knowing about Natalee's fate.
Joran and the Kalpoes have given well over 20 versions of what happened. Their first story --
they dropped Natalee off at her hotel and saw two security guards take her away -- was disproven by Beth Holloway. The guards, who were never associated with Natalee in any way, were swiftly arrested on no evidence except this lie from the three people last seen in Natalee's company. The three were not arrested until 11 days after Natalee vanished. Aruba police had a warrant to search the entire van der Sloot property, but Dutch judge Bob Wit met them and limited the search to Joran's apartment. On June 10, 2005, Aruba officially announced that Natalee was dead and that one suspecthad confessed ... only to withdraw the announcement
and cite "a disinformation campaign."
Why should Americans avoid Aruba?
Paulus van der Sloot, Joran's father, a lawyer who aspired to be a judge, is believed to have used his contacts in Aruba's government and law enforcement to destroy evidence and obstruct the investigation. In her book, Beth Holloway Twitty quoted a former head of Aruba tourism as outright admitting that there was a cover-up. More evidence supports this argument than
we can put here. After nearly three years, there are no answers. Will you visit a country that winks at the disappearance of American tourists, even though our tourism provides 80% of its income? Do you want to prop up this banana republic with your money?
How can I learn more about this case?
The Natalee Holloway mystery may be the most intensively covered missing-person case in history, and is abundantly documented. Even a basic timeline would require not a handout, but a volume. People interested in doing more research into the case, reviewing the timeline, or just following the news and comments on it are invited to visit these Web sites. There are many more, but these are some of the key ones and offer links to others:
www.scaredmonkeys.com
www.arubanboycott.blogspot.com
www.arubassilence@bravehost.com
www.therealarubatruth.blogspot.com
The two books by Natalee's parents are Dave Holloway's "Aruba: the Tragic Untold Story of Natalee Holloway and Corruption in Paradise," and Beth Holloway's "Loving Natalee." These are
indispensable reading. Also see the blog of Dutch crime reporter Peter deVries:
http://www.peterrdevries.com/
Texas Equusearch, a volunteer search and rescue group, has been searching the waters off Aruba for Natalee's body since mid-November 2007. The search relies on volunteer help and is financed by private donations. Aruba and the Netherlands provide no funds for this search, which costs an estimated $50,000 a day.
Read about it on http://www.nholloway.blogspot.com/
What can I do to help this victimized family?
Nelson Oduber, prime minister of Aruba, recently admitted on Dutch TV that his country has lost tens of millions of dollars in tourist revenue owing to the boycott (Aruba previously denied any impact). The boycott is working, but Natalee's family still deserves the truth!
We are volunteers who want justice, and who believe the boycott is our best leverage on Aruba.
(We also think Natalee's case has revealed that Aruba is not a fit destination.)
Please consider these measures:
*Boycott Aruba. Heed our motto: "No justice for Natalee, no tourists for Aruba."
*Tell your views to:
Aruba Tourism Authority,
100 Plaza Dr., Secaucus, NJ 07094
*Embassy of the Netherlands, 4200 Linnean
Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008
*Ask your legislators why our government will not speak out against Aruba, three years later.
*Join our e-mailing list at JusticeforNatalee@gmail.com to learn of future events.
If "we the people" do not demand justice, nobody will. Join our boycott of Aruba.
Natalee's disappearance, and her family's quest for the truth, have drawn media coverage and
worldwide interest ever since. The case was revived in January, when a series of 'sting' videotapes by a Dutch TV crime reporter showed Joran confiding that he was with Natalee when she suddenly passed out on the beach. He said he panicked and, without knowing if she were still alive, called "Daury," a "friend" who dumped her body at sea.
Joran said he wasn't bothered by what happened.
"I was even able to sleep that night. I just went home and went to bed." He later said his story was a lie given under the influence of marijuana. On February 15, 2008, an appeals court of three judges upheld an earlier ruling that the tapes did not provide enough new evidence to re-arrest him, even though this was the first time that he acknowledged knowing about Natalee's fate.
Joran and the Kalpoes have given well over 20 versions of what happened. Their first story --
they dropped Natalee off at her hotel and saw two security guards take her away -- was disproven by Beth Holloway. The guards, who were never associated with Natalee in any way, were swiftly arrested on no evidence except this lie from the three people last seen in Natalee's company. The three were not arrested until 11 days after Natalee vanished. Aruba police had a warrant to search the entire van der Sloot property, but Dutch judge Bob Wit met them and limited the search to Joran's apartment. On June 10, 2005, Aruba officially announced that Natalee was dead and that one suspecthad confessed ... only to withdraw the announcement
and cite "a disinformation campaign."
Why should Americans avoid Aruba?
Paulus van der Sloot, Joran's father, a lawyer who aspired to be a judge, is believed to have used his contacts in Aruba's government and law enforcement to destroy evidence and obstruct the investigation. In her book, Beth Holloway Twitty quoted a former head of Aruba tourism as outright admitting that there was a cover-up. More evidence supports this argument than
we can put here. After nearly three years, there are no answers. Will you visit a country that winks at the disappearance of American tourists, even though our tourism provides 80% of its income? Do you want to prop up this banana republic with your money?
How can I learn more about this case?
The Natalee Holloway mystery may be the most intensively covered missing-person case in history, and is abundantly documented. Even a basic timeline would require not a handout, but a volume. People interested in doing more research into the case, reviewing the timeline, or just following the news and comments on it are invited to visit these Web sites. There are many more, but these are some of the key ones and offer links to others:
www.scaredmonkeys.com
www.arubanboycott.blogspot.com
www.arubassilence@bravehost.com
www.therealarubatruth.blogspot
The two books by Natalee's parents are Dave Holloway's "Aruba: the Tragic Untold Story of Natalee Holloway and Corruption in Paradise," and Beth Holloway's "Loving Natalee." These are
indispensable reading. Also see the blog of Dutch crime reporter Peter deVries:
http://www.peterrdevries.com/
Texas Equusearch, a volunteer search and rescue group, has been searching the waters off Aruba for Natalee's body since mid-November 2007. The search relies on volunteer help and is financed by private donations. Aruba and the Netherlands provide no funds for this search, which costs an estimated $50,000 a day.
Read about it on http://www.nholloway.blogspot
What can I do to help this victimized family?
Nelson Oduber, prime minister of Aruba, recently admitted on Dutch TV that his country has lost tens of millions of dollars in tourist revenue owing to the boycott (Aruba previously denied any impact). The boycott is working, but Natalee's family still deserves the truth!
We are volunteers who want justice, and who believe the boycott is our best leverage on Aruba.
(We also think Natalee's case has revealed that Aruba is not a fit destination.)
Please consider these measures:
*Boycott Aruba. Heed our motto: "No justice for Natalee, no tourists for Aruba."
*Tell your views to:
Aruba Tourism Authority,
100 Plaza Dr., Secaucus, NJ 07094
*Embassy of the Netherlands, 4200 Linnean
Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008
*Ask your legislators why our government will not speak out against Aruba, three years later.
*Join our e-mailing list at JusticeforNatalee@gmail.com to learn of future events.
If "we the people" do not demand justice, nobody will. Join our boycott of Aruba.
***
Folks, that text will be on flyers that we will be giving out at the Houston Travel Show held at the George R Brown Convention Center on March 29-30, 2008. I will definitely be there, and we should have plenty of media attention thanks to local stations that have been sympathetic to Natalee's case in the past.
posted by Dan in Tx | 5:53 AM
3 Comments:
I have to admit Aruba was never on my "to do" list. My husband visited there a few years before we met and didn't really like the place that much, although that was about 20 years ago. We have visited several Caribbean destinations that we both have really liked a lot and given this tragedy, would never go to Aruba now. If you want to call that a boycott, fine by me/us!! I've been following Natalee's plight since it was first aired as a news item on Fox News (FNC). I saw right away that this case was being bungled and special favors and privileges were being afforded to Joran Van der Sloot because his father was a "Judge" (it was quite a while before we learned that he was not, in fact, a Judge...that he had failed his pursuit in that regard). This case is the Mother of all Trainwrecks in terms of Blatant Corruption and a Horror Show in terms of how Natalee's parents have been treated. Aruba has only Aruba to blame for any problems it is experiencing...reduced tourism and increased crime. "One Happy Island" with No Crime? Only in THEIR dreams! No Natalee? No Aruba!
I feel for the family but to blame this on the island of aruba instead of the person that did it.I have spent many years in aruba, I was even married in aruba. i feel that aruba is getting a bad rap. i have never been to a more beautiful place, the people are so friendly and go out of their way to make sure you are enjoying yourself.my daughter wants to go to aruba with her friends for graduation and i will gladly let them go , feeling very safe with that choice to let her go. I live in the pittsburgh pa area and this kind of thing happens everyday but i still let my daughter go to the steelers games, pirates games etc. i dont boycott the city of pittsburgh. I am sure if this had happened to my daughter i would have bad feelings but i would never blame it on the whole island. if the family knew the island before this happened they would not feel as they do. i have walked the streets and alleys of aruba in the middle of the night and never seen the things that they claim to be going on. i am not saying that things dont go on that shouldnt but i never see it. but i believe the same bad things are going on in my back yard at home and i just dont see it. I feel for the family but trying to destroy an islands reputation is not going to bring her back.Aruba did everything possible to help as the always do.
Hello, Jennifer. Thanks for posting.
I don't think you understand that what happened to Natalee is not the issue- how Aruba reacted is. Time and time again, Aruba failed to follow basic, fundamental investigative procedures into Natalee's disappearance. Three weeks passed before the suspects' homes or vehicles were searched- any competent police department would've obtained search warrants immediately. THe FBI was repeatedly prohibited from questioning the suspects- even though NOTHING in Aruban or Dutch law prohibits this. 18 months passed before all Arubans were removed from the case- even though most of them (Jakobs, Dompig, van der Straaten, and others) were KNOWN friends, acquaintances, and co-workers with Paulus van der Sloot.
Look me in the eye and tell me again how Aruba did everything they could. Or better yet- look Dave Holloway in the eye and tell him that. Aruba did not do everything they could, they still haven't, and what they did do was at their convenience and only when loose ends were tied up. Aruba never did anything meaningful- it was all smoke and mirrors, meant to look good to the gullible but it accomplished nothing.
Before you send your daughter to Aruba, why don't you look beyond the seemingly safe tourist facade at the drug smuggling, corruption (both past and present), human trafficking, and money laundering that runs rampant through Aruba and the rest of the Netherland Antilles. You see, Jennifer, up until now Aruba has grown fat off of Americans who were too ignorant and lazy to dig a little deeper.
And anyway, why would you want to spend hundreds of dollars more to vacation in Aruba, when you can have the exact same experiences in Jamaica (also not the safest of places), Puerto Rico, or the Bahamas? I mean if you want to throw your money away like that, throw it my wjavascript:void(0)ay!
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