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Portugal concerned over impact of girl's abduction on Algarve

Officials in Portugal are concerned that the disappearance of a four-year-old British girl from a hotel in the Algarve will discourage visitors from heading to the country's top tourism center.

The story has dominated front pages and had led newscasts in Britain since Madeleine McCann vanished from a resort in Praia da Luz two weeks ago after her parents left her, and her brother and sister, both aged two, alone while they went to a nearby restaurant. Police continue to search for her.

British visitors account for nearly 40 percent of all overnight stays in the Algarve, a region of sandy beaches and white-washed houses.

Six days after Madeleine went missing on May 3 the government suspended an international ad campaign promoting the Algarve.

The ad campaign is part of a stepped up effort by the authorities to boost the image of the Algarve as more than just a beach destination as it strives to compete with growing competition from cheaper Mediterranean sunshine destinations like Tunisia and Turkey.

Economy Minister Manuel Pinho said at the time that it would be a "sensible move" to delay the ad campaign but he said he did not think the disappearance of the four-year-old would stop tourists from coming to the country.

"Portugal is one of the safest destinations in Europe and that image should remain that way," he said.

Not everyone is as optimistic.

"It can't be good, it has been days and days of the media talking about nothing but this," said the manager of a 40-room hotel in the former fishing village of Quarteira in central Algarve, who said he did not want to be identified so as to not link his establishment to the case.

"People on a holiday want to relax, some people might not feel like the Algarve is a place where they can do that after reading about this," he said.

At stake is a sector that employs 10 percent of all workers in Portugal, a nation of some 10.5 million people, and generates about 8 percent of its GDP.

Police on Tuesday announced that they had identified a 33-year-old British suspect but did not have enough evidence to charge him. Their investigation continues.

Adding to the concerns of tourism officials is the fact that Praia da Luz is located at the more rural -- and quieter -- western end of the Algarve which is especially popular with families.

The case was drawn high profile attention in Britain. Former England soccer captain David Beckham and Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo have made televised appeals for information.
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