ShareVIJFHUIZEN, Netherlands: Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof vowed Wednesday to bring to justice those behind the downing Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, as relatives of those killed gathered to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the disaster.
Russia has refused to extradite three men convicted by a Dutch court over their role in shooting down the plane. Last year international investigators suspended their work, saying there was not enough evidence to prosecute more suspects.
But Schoof told hundreds of mourners and government dignitaries: “We remain united in our fight for justice. That’s what’s driving us.” He was speaking at a ceremony — broadcast live on national television — in the memorial park near Schiphol airport.
It was from there that the doomed flight took off on a bright summer’s day on July 17, 2014. Hours later the Boeing 777 jet was shot down by a Russian-made BUK surface-to-air missile over eastern Ukraine, as it passed on a flight line toward Kuala Lumpur. All 298 people on board were killed.
“You all know that a conviction is not the same as somebody being behind bars,” Schoof said. “Justice requires us to be prepared for the long haul — and we are,” he added. “We’ve got the time, the patience and the perseverance. That’s my message to the guilty, and my promise to the relatives.”
‘Not fully free’
A Dutch court in November 2022 sentenced three men in absentia to life imprisonment for their roles in bringing down the plane over separatist-held pro-Russian territory. It happened during the early stages of the conflict during which Russia seized the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine.
The judges said Russians Igor Girkin and Sergei Dubinsky and Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko were responsible for transporting the BUK missile from a military base in Russia and deploying it to the launch site — even if they did not launch the missile themselves. None of the suspects took any part in the legal proceedings or acknowledged their roles in the incident. A fourth man, Oleg Pulatov, was acquitted.
But before international investigators suspended their work, they concluded there were “strong indications” Russian President Vladimir Putin had approved the supply of the missile that downed the plane. Among the mourners was Evert van Zijtveld who lost his daughter Frederique, 19, and his son Robert-Jan, 18, and his parents-in-law. Van Zijtveld told AFP he did not think “those responsible will serve their sentences”.
Driekske Bakker, 71, who lost her brother and sister-in-law, told AFP: “I was happy that at least there was a trial and they can’t leave Russia ... so they are not fully free.” Bakker displayed a painting she made, entitled “MH-17”. It depicts bodies falling from the sky into a sunflower field, a symbol she said of the loss felt by relatives.
The victims came from at least 10 countries, with 196 of them Dutch, 43 Malaysian and 38 Australian. Relatives read out their names at the ceremony. Schiphol Airport shut down a nearby runway as a mark of respect and elsewhere in the Netherlands, flags were flying at half-mast.
‘Ten years of fighting’
Other countries held their own memorials. The Australian parliament in Canberra hosted one ceremony, where family members placed flowers on a wreath, many pausing for a moment to wipe away tears. Australia will “not be deterred in our commitment to hold Russia to account,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong told relatives and dignitaries.
The European Union on Tuesday called upon Moscow to “accept its responsibility in this tragedy and cooperate fully in serving justice”. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on X: “Russia’s responsibility for this atrocity is inevitable.”
Moscow has refused to extradite any of the suspects, saying it is illegal under Russian law. In a statement, the Russian embassy in The Hague again denied Moscow’s involvement, pointing the finger instead at Kyiv. “We were not involved in the investigation and our attitude to these findings is therefore well known,” added Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Piet Ploeg, who lost his brother, sister-in-law and nephew on the doomed flight and now heads a foundation for MH17 victims said relatives endured “ten years of endless (court) procedures which were only obstructed by the state responsible.” “Ten years of fighting against Russia’s denials and its total indifference to the suffering caused,” he said. — AFP
