- Title: Families of MH370 victims protest against search suspension
- Date: 18th January 2017
- Summary: BEIJING, CHINA (JANUARY 18, 2017) (REUTERS) WOMAN CRYING ON THE GROUND AND SHOUTING (Mandarin): "I FEEL TERRIBLE. I FEEL TERRIBLE. GIVE MY DAUGHTER BACK. MY DAUGHTER IS MISSING." WOMAN BEING SURROUNDED BY MEDIA WOMAN CRYING AND SHOUTING (Mandarin): "THE PARTY, MOTHERLAND, FIND MY DAUGHTER, FIND MY DAUGHTER. FIND MY DAUGHTER, I CANNOT LIVE ANYMORE" OLD MAN TRYING TO BREAK IN ROOM WHERE MALAYSIAN AIRLINE AUTHORITIES STAY FAMILIES TALKING A WOMAN HELPING ANOTHER WOMAN TO WIPE AWAY TEARS VARIOUS OF FAMILIES IN CONFERENCE ROOM VARIOUS OF MOTHER OF MH370 PASSENGER, HU XIUFANG, CHATTING WITH OTHER FAMILIES (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) MOTHER OF MH370 PASSENGER, HU XIUFANG, SAYING: "If they are all gone, then there's no point for me in my living too. I don't want to live, you know. When I heard this news, I felt very angry, very angry, you know. This is such a big thing in the country and an astonishing incident in the world. It carried so many passengers and they now give up so easily. We will never accept this, you know." FAMILIES IN CONFERENCE ROOM HU CHATTING WITH OTHER FAMILIES VARIOUS OF FAMILIES AND MEDIA GATHERING OUTSIDE FOR AN INFORMAL BRIEFING OLD WOMAN LOOKING AROUND MEDIA STANDING (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) FATHER OF MH370 PASSENGER, LI ERYOU, SAYING: "We (families) express our strong opposition and protest on this point. It means that they set up a trap again and made us to jump into the hole. We have been requesting a meeting with the Malaysian government and relevant authorities in charge of the hunt for more than two years. And we bring it up in every family meeting. But the reason they promise us that we can go today is that they want relatives and families to accept the fact." HU, LI AND OTHER FAMILIES PROTESTING AND CHANTING HU, LI AND OTHER FAMILIES PROTESTING AND CHANTING (Mandarin): "TELL THE TRUTH. TELL THE TRUTH. GIVE MY RELATIVE(S) BACK. GIVE MY RELATIVE(S) BACK." HU, LI AND OTHER FAMILIES PROTESTING AND CHANTING (Mandarin): "NEVER GIVE UP. NEVER GIVE UP. SEARCHING NEVER STOPS. SEARCHING NEVER STOPS. INVESTIGATION NEVER STOPS. INVESTIGATION NEVER STOPS. TELL THE TRUTH. TELL THE TRUTH" HU AND LI CHANTING (Mandarin): "NEVER STOP. NEVER STOP. NEVER SUSPEND. NEVER SUSPEND. NEVER GIVE UP. NEVER GIVE UP. GIVE MY RELATIVE(S) BACK. GIVE MY RELATIVE(S) BACK."
- Embargoed: 1st February 2017 10:39
- Keywords: China Malaysia MH370 families victims protest
- Location: BEIJING, CHINA
- City: BEIJING, CHINA
- Country: China
- Topics: Air Accidents,Disaster/Accidents
- Reuters ID: LVA0015ZLX9OL
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:About 30 relatives of those who were onboard Flight MH370 when it went missing gathered at a monthly meeting with Malaysian Airlines officials in Beijing on Wednesday (January 18) to protest against the suspension of the search.
Australia, Malaysia and China jointly announced the suspension of the search in the southern Indian Ocean on Tuesday (January 17), drawing an angry reaction from relatives who have been calling for the hunt to be expanded.
Among those at the meeting on Wednesday was 66-year-old Beijing resident Hu Xiufang, who lost her son, daughter-in-law and grandchild in the incident.
"If they are all gone, then there's no point for me in my living too. I don't want to live, you know. When I heard this news, I felt very angry, very angry, you know. This is such a big thing in the country and an astonishing incident in the world. It carried so many passengers and they now give up so easily. We will never accept this, you know," she told Reuters.
The location of Flight MH370 has become one of the world's greatest aviation mysteries since the plane, a Boeing 777, disappeared in 2014 en route to Beijing from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur with 239 people on board.
Most of the passengers were from China.
The search cost about A$200 million ($150 million), mostly paid by Malaysia, and had already been extended twice. But Australia, Malaysia and China have been reluctant to keep looking without new evidence about the plane's final resting place.
Relatives told Reuters the airline had invited four representatives to go to Malaysia and discuss the decision but they had rejected the offer.
"We (families) express our strong opposition and protest on this point. It means that they set up a trap again and made us to jump into the hole. We have been requesting a meeting with the Malaysian government and relevant authorities in charge of the hunt for more than two years. And we bring it up in every family meeting. But the reason they promise us that we can go today is that they want relatives and families to accept the fact," said Li Eryou, a father of an MH370 passenger.
Instead, the relatives called for Malaysian authorities to hold a meeting with the families in China.
An airline spokeswoman said its Post-Accident Office was in constant contact with family members, but did not give any further details.
Earlier on Wednesday, Australia said it was not ruling out a future underwater search for Flight MH370. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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