Is the Hollie Greig story getting through to them at last?

Hollie Greig and Mum Anne

We now see a break in the “Scottish Armour” that could at last see justice come to dear Hollie Greig and her mother Anne. It is truly amazing to see a press release suddenly coming out of Scotland courtesy of the BBC with the following headlines: “Parents to learn of sex offenders” but does this resolve the past crime carried out on poor Hollie? Does it address the ongoing ring of Pedophiles that were involved in her case, part of which became a possible murder?

It is with interest that I read in this article the following statement from Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill who said “The scheme would allow parents to ask for background checks on anyone they may have concerns about.” My question would therefore be what about the long list that was made available to the Aberdeen Sheriff and the Grampian Police and what happened to background checks normally associated with such matters?

 

Kenny MacAskill 

MacAskill went on to say, according to the BBC report that “Scotland is one of the leading countries in the world in terms of its approach to the management of sex offenders and we will continue to strengthen this approach.” I do however find this statement a none event in relation to Hollie Greig’s traumatic life!

He also stated “We have made progress in recent years to toughen up safeguards in place – such as strengthening measures to assess, manage and minimise the risks posed by sex offenders – but I am determined to go even further.”…..my response to this would be then go even further and bring all those involved in Hollie’s case to trial including those people in high office that suppressed Hollie’s story!

In my opinion there is no need to slowly phase this procedure in…….”It should be immediate and without delay so as to stop any further suffering of innocent children”…….We are now led to believe that it is a number one priority of the British Prime Minister to protect our children……So Mr. KacAskill lets see this action kicking in now and not by the end of the year.

 

The BBC article finished by stating the comments from Assistant Chief Constable Iain Livingstone, from the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland who welcomed the decision to roll out the initiative. He said: “The Keeping Children Safe pilot in Tayside has been a positive step which adds to existing child protection measures and increases the intelligence the police have in relation to monitoring sex  offenders. “The implementation throughout Scotland will increase our ability to protect children and other vulnerable members of the community.” From my perspective I would hope that he also looks into the situation that developed within the Grampian Police Force in Aberdeen who said, in Hollie’s case there was no case to answer (even one of their members were involved). I believe that the person involved may have since died.

It is interesting to note that Simpson and Marwick are acting as the solicitors for Aberdeen’s Sheriff Graeme BUCHANAN who has played a major role in this case. This same solicitor also acted on behalf of Denis Mackie, the father of Hollie (a pedophile) who started this whole sordid story and took away Hollie’s childhood. One must also put an emphasis on the fact that Graeme Buchanan  presided over the divorce of Anne and Denis Mackie. Doesn’t it appear so strange that such a high ranking Sheriff would be involved in a simple family divorce case? Was there a case of personal interest and protection in doing so? One can now clearly see how all the paths keep crossing each other but lead to the same point of origin.

This is a perfect opportunity for all those in authority to clear away this terrible “Dark Grey Cloud that hangs over Scotland” and by doing so inject pride back into the people of Scotland……..I would even go as far as to say that Hollie and her Mum Anne should be given an award for the bravery in standing up to authority. No amount of money could ever give Hollie back what she lost (“Her Childhood”).

It is clearly evident that at last this excessive publicity is getting through to very high places and those guilty of direct involvement or neglect in Hollie’s case must surely be deeply concerned by now. As they say what goes around comes around and there is no escape. I am confident that Hollie will now have her day in court.

 

 

Peter Eyre – Middle East Consultant – 28/2/2010