VIJFHUIZEN, July 18 — International collaboration is vital in seeking justice for the 298 people killed in the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 tragedy 10 years ago, said Netherlands Prime Minister Dick Schoof.
“It’s very important that countries stick together. The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) is suspended, but whenever there is new information, they can start up immediately, so international cooperation is very, very important,” he said.
He said this to reporters following the commemoration ceremony of the MH17 tragedy at National Monument MH17 in Vijfhuizen Park here yesterday.
When asked if he was asking victims’ families not to give up hope that justice would one day be served, Schoof said: “They must not give up hope that we will strive for it (justice)… but there are no guarantees.”
He said the impact of the MH17 tragedy remains profound in the Netherlands.
“In the aftermath, 10 years ago, in the Netherlands, when the first casualties arrived in coffins on the airfield, there was a huge crowd … and the whole country mourned. Today, 10 years later, it is still such a significant event.
“All the flags are at half-mast... It has had a huge impact in the Netherlands. It does today, as it did 10 years ago,” he said.
Earlier, more than 1,500 people from around the world gathered in the monument park to pay tribute to the victims. Dutch King Willem-Alexander also attended the ceremony.
Victims’ family members were sobbing as they listened to the readout of the names of the 298 people, including crew, who died when the flight was shot down over eastern Ukraine 10 years ago.
The list was read by Scot Choo, son of MH17 pilot Eugene Choo, who also died in the tragedy.
After reading the names of the MH17 crew, he said: “Thank you for serving our nation. We miss you.”
Most passengers aboard the Boeing 777 jet were Dutch, and others were from 17 countries including Australians, Brits, Malaysians and Indonesians.
The plane was shot down over eastern Ukraine after taking off from Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, killing all onboard, on July 17, 2014.
On November 17, 2022, the Hague District Court sentenced two former Russian intelligence agents, Igor Girkin and Sergei Dubinskiy, along with a Ukrainian separatist leader, Leonid Kharchenko, to life in prison, in absentia, after finding them guilty of causing the MH17 crash and murders of all 298 passengers.
Another Russian, Oleg Pulatov, was acquitted of the same charges.
— Bernama
