Malaysian, U.S. Handling of Flight 370 Search Sparks Anger in Chinese Media
By Clifford Coonan
March 20, 2014 1:00 AM
The mysterious
disappearance of Flight 370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, which was
carrying 239 passengers, 153 of them Chinese, has prompted an outraged
reaction in China, with mainstream media outlets and social media
buzzing with angry commentary.
Yi Pu La Xin, 30, a mechanic, wrote on the WeChat messaging system: “What I don’t understand is why they give the information piece by piece instead of being honest and giving us the truth from the beginning. My feeling is they only give as much information as necessary. What are they trying to hide? Are they worrying about losing face?”
Yi Pu La Xin, 30, a mechanic, wrote on the WeChat messaging system: “What I don’t understand is why they give the information piece by piece instead of being honest and giving us the truth from the beginning. My feeling is they only give as much information as necessary. What are they trying to hide? Are they worrying about losing face?”
VIDEO: Family Members of Missing Malaysian Flight Passengers Dragged Screaming From Press Conference
The
official Xinhua news agency has described Malaysia’s handling of the
investigation as “intolerable” and ran an oped piece saying it was of
the utmost urgency to share information about the investigation.
“The
international search is entering a new stage. Sharing information is
more urgent," the piece reads. "Time is going by second by second, it is
very urgent that every party honestly and publicly share information.
Some countries use excuses, such as “national security” or “military
information” to not share the information they know. But secrecy can’t
be at the cost of lives. Even though some so-called 'sensitive
information' can’t be made to public, but at least they should share the
information with the parties who are involved in the search. With lives
at stake, information shouldn’t be considered yours or mine."
Given
the Chinese government's utter lack of transparency on many matters,
especially political issues, the call for openness by the state press
could be read as ironic. But in recent years, Beijing has in fact
loosened rules preventing journalists from reporting on stories such as
natural disasters.
Xinhua has also criticized the United States
for not doing enough, suggesting that the situation would be otherwise
if more Americans had been onboard the missing jetliner.STORY: Malaysia Airlines Flight: CNN Airs Special Report As New Clues Emerge
On Sina Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter, Huan Shui Shi Chuang wrote how he had passed the Lido Hotel in Beijing, where relatives of the missing are staying.
“When
I passed the Lido Hotel, two relatives shouted, 'please don’t take any
more pictures of us. Our pictures are already everywhere.' We were very
sad at the moment. At that moment, everybody put down their cameraman
and phones. It was deadly silent.”
Another commentator, Er Yan said he hated waiting.
“It
is full of torture during the wait," he wrote. "When you are waiting
for family or relatives outside the operating theater, you tell yourself
that everything will be fine. But when the whole country is waiting for
information on the missing airplane, we can all imagine how much pain
the family has to bear. So governments, especially the Malaysian
government, please hurry up and be honest.”
A sudden possible break
in the search Thursday morning, Beijing time, had Chinese media outlets
cautiously optimistic. Australian officials revealed that two objects
possibly related to flight MH370 had been sighted by satellite in the
remote southern Indian Ocean. As vessels and airplanes were en route to
explore the objects further, China Daily reported that that Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said
China is paying great attention to Australia's possible findings and
has ordered the embassy and consulates in Australia to keep in close
touch with the Australian authorities.
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