Aruba wants President Bush
to blow the whistle on Bob Riley
Amigoe
11/10/2005

ARUBA – “This is abnormal and out of all proportions”, said Prime Minister Nelson Oduber last night about Alabama’s governor Robert ‘Bob’ Riley’s call to boycott Aruba. The government wants the American President George W. Bush to blow the whistle on Riley and make it clear to him that a boycott of Aruba is out of the question.

Riley together with Beth and Jug Twitty gave a press conference yesterday morning on CNN and appealed to all his fellow citizens to boycott Aruba. He said that he hopes that his appeal would convince the Aruban authorities to take the investigation on the disappearance of Natalee Holloway as serious as possible. He is of the opinion that it looks like if the investigation takes long enough, it would go away. But as long as we have something to say on this here in Alabama, it will not go away. Riley told the Aruban authorities to involve the family with the interrogations and to give them all the information on the case. The FBI should also be involved with the investigation. “The family had asked to replace the investigation team and to my opinion, that is a reasonable request, considering the state of the investigation.” Riley asked the governors of the other 49 states to support him in this boycott.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister, the Parliament, and the Strategic Communications Task Force (SCTF) deliberated extensively on the matter. They simply cannot understand that after all the support and the information they have given the family, Beth and Jug Twitty have still convinced the governor to call up a boycott. “We always had a very good relationship with the United States, and now this. We always had gotten in contact with the American authorities regarding this case; we have cooperated with the FBI and the CIA. Already from the beginning the Twitty couple were stuck to the ‘cover-up’ theory and we cannot convince them of different”, said Oduber. Although the investigation team couldn’t find any substantial evidence against the suspects in this case, the team has worked hard and efficient. “The case is still open and Twitty knows this.” When all this is over with, there will be a thorough investigation on the current one. “If mistakes were made, they will come to light right away.” The Twitty’s and Riley cannot insist on replacing some persons from the investigation team. “They have no right to demand that. This is a matter that only concerns our country.”

[English language original text]