Relatives cling to hope but their mood darkens
Print Edition
THE father of a Chinese passenger on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was clinging to hope yesterday despite Australia’s announcement that possible aircraft debris had been spotted, insisting: “My son is still alive.”
Wen Wancheng refused to accept the announcement meant he had lost his son on the flight to Beijing.
“My son is still alive. My son is still alive,” the 63-year-old from east China’s Shandong Province said. “I don’t believe the news.”
“Do you think I would believe my son is gone?” he added. “Can I believe he is in the sea?”
Chinese citizens make up two-thirds of those on the MH370 manifest, and their anguished relatives have been waiting for news at the Lido Hotel in Beijing.
While some said there was “no new information” despite the Australian images, many appeared in a more somber mood than in previous days.
Several relatives linked arms as they walked past reporters outside their briefing room, looking downward or covering their faces in front of the cameras.
Others marched quickly past the media crowd, appearing disorientated as they searched for the exit.
“I am sick of hearing there is new information only for it to be dismissed later,” one man said angrily.
Another man, Zhao Chunzeng, said families were seeking a confirmed discovery. “We are waiting, just waiting and we can’t respond to news until it is definitely confirmed,” he said.
Asked if he felt the Australian announcement had greater significance as it came from Prime Minister Tony Abbott, he said: “Maybe, but we will still have to wait and see.”
Inside the briefing room, relatives had confronted a Malaysia Airlines official over the lack of information on the flight’s whereabouts.
“You are cheating us,” one man said. “You are cheating us relatives. You have been torturing us.”
Another relative mentioned the possibility of a hunger strike, which some family members have suggested in recent days.
“We are here to learn the truth,” the man said. “We can choose not to eat, we can choose not to sleep. We can choose to not receive your care.
“We want our relatives back. We don’t want our relatives to be sacrificed to a political fight.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said the government was paying “great attention” to the news from Australia.
“The Chinese side is ready to make relevant arrangements based on the latest updates,” he said, without elaborating.
At the hotel, some relatives have posted messages on a large whiteboard near the room where airline officials hold daily briefings.
“Mum and Dad, please come home safe,” read one message. “Your son is waiting for you.”
Another read: “Dear father, please come back safely. My heart aches not to have you by my side. I just want to see your face. I just want to hold your hand. I just want you to tell me what to do.”
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