Tears and turmoil as angry relatives march on embassy(2)

Some only shouted a few words, but others screamed in voices so distorted and cracked that their words were barely intelligible.

Nobody stopped during the almost-4-kilometer march to the Malaysian embassy. People took turns holding the heavy banners so those carrying them would not become too fatigued. "Let me hold it for a while," said many relatives to those holding placards.

Media refused entry

When they arrived at the area around the embassy, the family members found the roads were blocked, so they rushed to break through the police cordon, eventually gathering in front of the embassy gates.

The police quickly sealed the area and dozens of members of the media were refused entry. Only a few managed to get inside to witness the protest.

The relatives began to shout and hold up their boards, demanding that embassy staff leave the building and come and talk with them.

Many people were crying and some of the reporters passed them paper tissues to wipe away the tears.

There was no response from the embassy, so some angry men attempted to enter the building, only to be stopped by police officers and members of the armed forces who had been sent to maintain order.

Letter of protest

"Let the reporters outside come in!" some protesters shouted at the police officers, but to no avail. One officer told them that the protest within the area was controllable, but if the relatives tried to rush outside and talk with reporters, the protests could escalate and become violent. An official from the Beijing Public Security Bureau spoke with the relatives and gradually managed to calm them down.

After negotiations, the embassy agreed to accept the protest, but only on condition that the safety of the Malaysian officials was guaranteed.

An embassy official appeared a little later and accepted a letter of protest. The relatives only agreed to disperse when they learned that the Malaysian ambassador and Chinese officials had agreed to meet with them in the afternoon.

At 1 pm, they boarded a number of buses and returned to the Metropark Lido Hotel.

However, the relatives were still upset after attending the meeting with the ambassador.

"Let me share with you my deepest sympathy in this period of sorrow and grief," said Datuk Iskandar Sarudin, the Malaysian ambassador to China, in the hotel's conference room.

After a short speech, he listened to questions from several relatives, but failed to answer any, which provoked further anger.

The ambassador promised that a high-level Malaysian technical team would arrive in Beijing on Tuesday night and would meet with relatives at the daily briefing on Wednesday morning.