Relatives of Flight 370 passengers still pressing for answers
Relatives say officials are shutting them out over search for plane that vanished on March 8
More than 290 days have passed since Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 vanished from civilian radar, one hour into a journey from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8.
In the days leading up to Christmas, more than 30 relatives of passengers on the flight gathered in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, demanding the government pressure the Malaysian authorities for more information on the search.
Watch: Chinese MH370 families still hopeful after 10 months in limbo
"The Malaysian officials at the support centre for MH370 relatives have been absent for two weeks … They said they would go back home to renew their passports. The relatives are desperate now that they are cut off from any information," Jiang Hui, one of the relatives, said. "It is the responsibility of the Department of Consular Affairs to protect the rights of Chinese citizens when they travel abroad. Yet the officials there refuse to talk to us and we can't even enter their office."
Police showed up after relatives stood outside the ministry for a few hours and then asked them to leave. One relative was detained for about an hour. "It is difficult for us to understand why our own government is so tough on us. We did nothing but look for our loved ones," Jiang said.
Jiang is a regular visitor to the two offices set up by the Chinese and Malaysian governments near Beijing Capital International Airport to release information about the ongoing search for the plane. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, from 2pm to 5pm, the offices open their doors and dozens of relatives rush in, among them 60-year-old Gao Xianying, from Guoyang in Anhui province.