Minister's Team To Expedite Repatriation Of Remains Of MH17 Malaysian Passengers, Crew

KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 (Bernama) -- Malaysian Health Minister Dr S. Subramaniam will lead the ministry's team in expediting the Disaster Victim Indentification (DVI) process to enable speedier repatriation of the remains of Malaysians who perished in the Malaysia Airlines MH17 aircraft tragedy. The team would discuss with its Dutch counterparts and other related experts in seeking various options to resolve whatever hitches, if any, during the course of the DVI process, he said in a statement issued by the ministry on Tuesday. He said there were currently, 21 medical and odontology forensic experts and officers from the health and defence ministries, police and chemistry department assisting the Dutch authorities in Amsterdam. "In order to further facilitate this process and the subsequent repatriation of the human remains to Malaysia, I will be part of the prime minister's multi-ministerial delegation to Amsterdam to lead my team," added Dr Subramaniam. He said the ante-mortem procedure which was carried out earlier in Malaysia by the medical and odontology forensic experts among the next-of-kin is part of the DVI process to consolidate and enable the matching process needed to accurately identify the crash victims. In compliance with the Importation and Exportation of Human Remains, Human Tissues and Pathogenic Organisms and Substances Regulation 2006, all prior arrangements are also being made to facilitate the entry of human remains back into Malaysia. Dr Subramaniam is expected to leave for Holland with Prime Minister Najib Razak's multi-ministerial delegation. Of the 298 people on board the doomed MH17 aircraft, 43 were Malaysians, including its crew. The Boeing 777-200ER is believed to have been shot down over the Ukraine airspace on July 17. --BERNAMA