Next of kin grow stronger
BEIJING: One year on, their longing for their loved ones who went missing together with Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 has only grown stronger.
The next of kin of the Chinese passengers onboard the ill-fated flight marked the first anniversary of its disappearance at the Yonghe Lama Temple here.
“We want to pray for the safe return of our family members,” Jiang Hui, whose mother was on the plane, said.
About two-thirds of the 239 passengers and crew members on the missing Boeing were Chinese nationals.
Tears streaming down her face, Cheng Liping quietly held a paper outside the temple entrance.
On it was written this message: “(I) will never give up! There is no home without my husband! My two sons need their father (to) return home safely!”.
Many of the family members wore long-sleeved white T-shirts that featured their earnest hope: “Never give up. Search on. Bring MH370 home.”
Catherine Gao spent half a day painting three posters for the anniversary. One of them portrayed a happy family of three, holding hands together.
“My six-year-old daughter has never stopped asking about her father’s whereabouts.
“She said plane is supposed to be the fastest way to travel, but why is he taking such a long time to come home?” she said.
A few family members wailed as they spoke of the pain they have suffered in the past one year.
“Where are those on board the plane? It has been one year already,” one of them said.
“I really, really miss you,” another said amid sobs.
“We are really useless. We can’t find you and bring you home,” an elderly man said.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told a press conference in conjunction with the National People’s Congress that the search for the missing plane would continue.
“Today is a tough day for the relatives of the passengers on MH370. Our hearts are with you,” he said.
Wang added that the Chinese government was willing to provide all necessary services for the next of kin and assist them to safeguard their legitimate and lawful interests.