Kin of Ethiopian Airlines crash victims allege neglect
Families of victims from Kenya and Rwanda lay flowers on March 15, 2019, as they visit the crash site of the Ethiopian Airlines plane at Hama Quntushele village, near Bishoftu, in Ethiopia's Oromia region. FILE PHOTO | TONY KARUMBA | AFP
What you need to know:
- In a petition submitted to the Senate, the eight family members say the government has not provided counselling services despite the post traumatic stress the families are experiencing.
Eight family members of the victims of the Ethiopian Airline, which crashed in March, have accused the State of abandoning them, saying it had failed to fulfil the promises made after the tragedy.
Soon after the crash, in which 157 people perished, the Foreign Affairs ministry committed to support all the families of the 32 Kenyans who lost their lives, by providing counselling services and acting as the link government agency in the attendant bureaucratic procedures.
However, in a petition submitted to the Senate, the eight family members, all from Murang’a County, say the government has not provided counselling services despite the post traumatic stress the families are experiencing.
“This has forced the families to seek private counselling at expensive rates from their own meagre resources despite the tragic losses,” the eight say in the petition that was delivered to the House by Deputy Speaker Kithure Kindiki.
The families say they have tried to get death certificates to no avail, yet the role falls under the Foreign Affairs ministry since the crash occurred in a foreign country.
Senators threw their weight behind the petition and while they faulted the State for taking too long, demanded that quick action be taken to honour the promises.
