Distraught relatives of Chinese passengers on the missing Malaysia Airways plane today clashed with police as anger at the announcement the jetliner had crashed in remote seas off Australia boiled over.
About 30 protesters threw water bottles at the Malaysian embassy in Beijing and tried to storm the building demanding to meet the ambassador, witnesses said.
Family members, many with tear-stained faces, linked arms and chanted “Malaysian government has cheated us” and “Malaysia, return our relatives” as they marched peacefully and held banners.
Their grief and anger was unleashed after Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak announced that Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which vanished more than two weeks ago while flying to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur, had crashed in the southern Indian Ocean.
Citing satellite-data analysis by British firm Inmarsat, he said there was now no doubt that the Boeing jet came down in the ocean and that no-one could have survived.
But a massive search has so far failed to identify any wreckage from flight MH370, which was carrying 239 people on board including 152 Chinese nationals.
A multinational hunt for plane debris which may have been spotted on satellite images some 1500 miles south-west of Perth, Australia, was suspended today due to bad weather.
Malaysia’s confused initial response to the Boeing 777’s disappearance and a perception of poor communications has enraged relatives and strained ties between Beijing and Kuala Lumpur.
After Najib’s announcement, Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Xie Hangsheng demanded Malaysia hand over all relevant satellite analysis showing how Malaysia had reached its conclusion about the fate of the jet.
Anger was fuelled by the fact some relatives of those on board first received the news that the search for survivors was over in a text message from the airline, which said: “We have to assume beyond all reasonable doubt that MH370 has been lost and none of those on board survived.”
A group reportedly representing families issued a statement describing the Malaysian airline, government and military as “executioners” who constantly tried to delay and deceive them.
“We will take every possible means to pursue the unforgivable crimes and responsibility of all three,” said the statement on the microblog of the Malaysia Airlines MH370 Family Committee.
The relatives protesting in Beijing held signs that said: “MH370, Don’t let us wait too long!” and “1.3 billion people are waiting to greet the plane”. They wore matching t-shirts that said: “Best of luck to MH370, return home safely.”
“We’ve waited for 18 days and still, you make us wait. How long are we supposed to hang on?” a woman surnamed Zhang told Reuters.
The protest ended after a few hours, when police told protesters to get on buses and escorted them away.
Malaysia Airlines today defended the sending of the text message, saying it had been a “last resort” to ensure some relatives did not hear the news first from media.
“This is a time of extraordinary emotions and we fully understand,” said Malaysia Airlines Chairman Mohd Nur Yusof. “In fact, we really feel for the next of kin. In terms of how they react, it’s emotional.”
Asked whether he would resign over the crisis, the airline’s chief executive, Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, said that would be a “personal decision” to be made at a later time.
The search for Malaysia Airlines MH370
