17 July 2024 - MH17 Anniversary

[mike carey]

Today marks the tenth anniversary of the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 as it flew over Eastern Ukraine en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur in 2014. A total of 298 people were killed, most from the Netherlands but 38 were Australian citizens or residents. About 100 of the passengers were delegates to an international AIDS conference in Melbourne.

A solemn commemorative service was held this morning in the Great Hall of Parliament House in Canberra. Those in attendance included the Governor-General, senior members of the government, members of the diplomatic corps from countries whose citizens had been on the flight, the then Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police, the Chief of the Defence Force and members of Parliament. Most importantly, family members of the Australians killed.

There were tributes offered by the Governor-General, the Foreign Minister, the then Foreign Minister who was Australia's lead in our joint campaign with the Netherlands to have the United Nations Security Council adopt a unanimous resolution condemning the shooting-down, and the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police which provided 500 personnel to security and forensic operations at the crash site and in later investigations. Following the service, a wreath was to be laid at a new memorial in the Parliament House rose garden.

Later today, another commemorative service will be held in The Hague. The Attorney General, Mark Dreyfus KC MP will represent Australia at that service.