Kin of MH370 passengers protest outside MAS

comments     Yap Jia Hee     Published     Updated

MH370 A group of 14 next-of-kin of passengers of the missing Flight MH370 held a protest outside the Malaysia Airlines (MAS) headquarters today and demanded to meet with the managements of MAS and the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA).

After negotiating with a MAS officer at the entrance to the building, the officer allowed three of the relatives present to enter and meet with management representatives.

The relatives of the passengers from China on the missing MAS flight to Beijing that took off from Kuala Lumpur last March at first rejected the offer, saying they wanted all to be allowed inside.

After 20 minutes, three of the family representatives accepted the offer and went in.

"We came here today because we want to send a petition to MAS. We want answers to four questions,"one of the family representatives, Zhang Jian Yi, 49, told members of the media before going into the MAS headquarters.

Asked what the questions were, Zhang refused to reveal them, but said they would not give up easily, even if MAS failed to answer their questions.

Zhang’s daughter, son-in-law and his three-year-old granddaughter were on the ill-fated flight. He then went inside together with the other two representatives.

However, after 15 minutes, MAS arranged a van and took the three family representatives to another place to meet with the managements, but the venue was not revealed.

Offer for lunch rejected

Later, a MAS officer approached rest of the relatives outside the airline headquarters and offered to take them for the lunch.

But they refused, and one of the family members, Wong Rong Xiang, 60, began to repeatedly ask where MAS took the three relatives.

“I am very worried about the safety of the three. Where did you take them? I am really afraid, I cannot bear this...” Wong screamed, with tears in her eyes.

Wong’s son was on the MH370 and she said she was thoroughly disappointed with the MAS management.

MAS senior vice-president for Strategic Communications, Najmuddin Abdullah, told the media that MAS has fulfilled the demands of the relatives.

“The next-of-kin came here to meet with the CEO. We will take the three family representatives to another meeting room to meet with MAS CEO Ahmad Johari,” Najmuddin said.

Asked what the airline had to say for the families from China, who had come here despite Chinese New Year being so near, Najmuddin simply asked: “What for?”

As for the accommodation and meals arrangements for the relatives of the next-of-kin, he said MAS will issue a statement on this.

Some two hours after this, three of the family representatives arrived from their meeting  with the airline CEO Ahmad Johari.

“We want MAS to respond to our petition within three days,” one of the representative s, Boon Wan Seng, 63, told the media.

He also revealed the four questions  or demands they made to MAS:

1)  Ask MAS to explain why, in the absence of factual evidence and the legal basis, announced, the MH370 is described as "an accident";

2)  Let the family members know and understanding the details of the search and investigation work for the aircraft;

3)  The families want to set up their own private investigation group in order to participate in the rescue work, but MAS must bear all the costs; and

4)  MAS must remedy the economic burdens and soothe the minds of the next-of-kin concerned.

Boon said the relatives would stay in Malaysia despite the Chinese New Year, which falls on Feb 19, and would continue to deal with MAS.

“The petition does not involve all the family members of those on the MH370 flight. This is only from this group of 14 relatives,” Boon added.



Malaysiakini
news and views that matter


Sign In