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Jackson says sorry
20/11/2002 22:37 - (SA)
Berlin - European media scolded Michael Jackson on Wednesday for endangering his young son by hanging him over a fourth-floor balcony railing at a Berlin hotel, but German prosecutors said they were not investigating and loyal fans brushed aside an incident the pop idol blamed on over-excitement.
The reclusive pop legend, who campaigns on behalf of children's welfare across the globe, issued a statement saying he had made a "terrible mistake", by holding Prince Michael II over the edge of the Adlon's iron balcony for adoring fans to see.
"I got caught up in the excitement of the moment," the statement said. "I would never intentionally endanger the lives of my children."
Footage of the incident showing the boy with a white cloth covering his face replayed repeatedly on German television and newspapers ran photos of the display. Berlin's BZ daily described Jackson's behaviour as "foolish".
But British tabloids were far sharper. Jackson was chastised in The Sun under the headline "You lunatic", and in the Daily Mirror as "Mad bad dad".
'Bizarre person'
"The Berlin police should arrest this negligent father for reckless endangerment of his own child," the Mirror's showbusiness editor, Kevin O'Sullivan, wrote in an editorial. Sweden's Expressen headlined its story "Jackson plays with the baby's life".
However, Berlin prosecutors said they were not investigating the incident, although an inquiry could be opened if any complaint against Jackson was filed.
Promoters of the Bambi entertainment award ceremony, during which Jackson is to receive a life achievement award, played down the flap.
"Some people obviously found it strange, but that's why Michael Jackson has given an explanation for the incident," said Patricia Riekel, the editor of celebrity magazine Bunte and a board member at publisher Burda, which organises the Bambis.
"I thought it was a very spontaneous action and he loves children. I don't think it was dangerous," Riekel added at a news conference on the awards.
The incident didn't dampen the spirits of teenage fans who crowded the pavement in front of the luxury hotel on Wednesday in hopes of getting a glimpse of their hero, breaking into intermittent screams of excitement even though Jackson was nowhere in sight.
"It was rather bizarre, what he did," said Joerg Diestel (17) from Berlin. "But Michael's a bizarre person."
Maria Hunyadi (15) from Budapest, Hungary, had come to Berlin along with six of her friends to catch a glimpse of Jackson.
"I thought it was dangerous, but he probably did it spontaneously," she said.
Bambi award
Little is known about Prince Michael II. People Magazine reported in August that he was six months old. Citing an anonymous friend, it said the boy was not adopted, but did not identify the mother.
The singer also has two children with ex-wife Debbie Rowe: a 5-year-old boy - also named Prince Michael - and a 4-year-old girl, Paris. The couple divorced in 1999.
"He has a great aura about him," said 16-year-old Uta Nierlein, a fan from Berlin. But, she added: "If I had a child I wouldn't hang him out of the window like that."
Jackson, taking a break from California hearing on a lawsuit seeking damages for cancelling two concerts, is to attend a benefit for homeless children and a charity auction where he will put a jacket and hat on the block later on Wednesday. He'll pick up the Bambi award on Thursday. - Sapa-AP
- SAPA
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South Africa
