MH370: Families urged to stay positive and accept reality

Family members of Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH370 must be positive and accept the fate that the 239 passengers and crew are considered to have died. Family members of the tragic MAS flight MH17 which crashed in eastern Ukraine on July 17 as it was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur with 283 passengers and 15 crew on board, who offered their sympathy to families of flight MH370 said they should be strong and carry on with their lives. Amaluddin Noorshah, the nephew of MH17 pilot Wan Amran Wan Hussin said the announcement by the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) should be viewed as part of the process to start claims for insurance and rights. "What is most important is that we have to accept what has happened and cannot be changed. As Muslims, we have to believe in Allah's will, that is most important now. "Everyone has to accept the reality that everyone will die, only the way they die is different, and the living must continue as usual," he told Bernama on Thursday. Wan Amran's older sister, Wan Aini, could not hold back her tears after hearing news about the announcement. "I know how painful it is to wait for someone who does not come back, especially in the case of MH370 which disappeared without a sign. I hope the families accept it and continue with their life...acceptance is what will give us peace of mind, but at the same time, continue to pray," she said. The mother of MH17 co-pilot Ahmad Hakimi Hanapi, Noriah Daud also encouraged all family members of MH370 passengers and crew to be strong in accepting the announcement. Noriah said the government had done its best to search and rescue the victims. "I myself lost the only son I had who was the hope of the family. But whatever it is, we have to continue with life," she said. The announcement made by DCA Director-General Datuk Azharuddin Abdul Rahman was shown live over RTM's TV1. The MH370 was officially declared an accident under international aviation rules and all 239 passengers and crew of the ill-fated flight considered to have perished. Azharuddin said the announcement of MH370 as an accident was made in accordance with the Standards of Annexes 12 and 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation (commonly referred to as the 'Chicago Convention'). Flight MH370 dropped off radar on March 8 as it flew from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 227 passengers and 12 crew on board. The Boeing 777 aircraft has yet to be found, even after an exhaustive search in the southern Indian Ocean where it is believed to have gone down after veering off course.