MH17: Malaysian DVI team members get certificates from PM

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak today presented certificates of appreciation to 19 Malaysians who had helped in the identification of the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 tragedy victims in the Netherlands.

The recipients also included forensic experts from the Health Ministry, Malaysian Armed Forces and the Royal Malaysian Police.

The certificates, bearing the prime minister's signature, were awarded in recognition of their service in identifying the remains of the MH17 tragedy victims as part of the disaster victim identification (DVI) team.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam and Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah were also present at the event.

The Malaysian DVI team had helped in the identification of the remains as well as their removal from eastern Ukraine where the flight had gone down on July 17.

Flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine as it was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur with 283 passengers and 15 crew on board. The Boeing 777-200 aircraft is believed to have been shot down over the troubled country.

Besides 43 Malaysians, nationals from the Netherlands, Australia, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, the Philippines, Canada and New Zealand were among the 298 people on board.

All the remains recovered in Ukraine were taken to the Netherlands for identification. Dutch nationals comprised the largest number of passengers on Flight MH17.

The head of the Malaysian DVI team, Dr Mohd Shah Mahmood, said the team had skills comparable to those of the international forensic teams.

"Our advantage was that we had among us a bone specialist who became the source of reference for the international forensic teams. The recovered bone fragments were referred to the Malaysian DVI team," he said.

Brig Gen Datuk Dr Mohd Ilham Haron, who was involved in the recovery of remains in Ukraine and the identification process, said the Malaysian DVI team had earned the recognition of the international DVI teams.

"We had brought along the most modern equipment and experienced specialists for the identification process.

"The greatest challenge was the time constraint under which we had to conduct the identification, and we had to do our best because the whole world was watching us," he said.