Families of missing Malaysians seek access to operations centre in Nepal

The families of Malaysians missing in Nepal have requested that their representatives be given access to the National Security Council’s (MKN) operations centre there to enable two-way information sharing with authorities.

Manivannan Rethinam, a spokesman for the Malaysia-Nepal Disaster Family Support Group, which represents 49 of the 55 affected families, said direct representation would allow them to provide information that could help the search operations.

“This is not a request for operational control, nor an attempt to interfere with the authorities’ work. It is a request for transparency, coordination and two-way information sharing,” said Manivannan, whose sister, Komathi, is among those missing.

Acknowledging that the foreign ministry has maintained daily communications with the next of kin, Manivannan said that after 17 days, general updates similar to those in public press statements are no longer sufficient.

Aside from confirmation that three people had cleared immigration on the Tibetan side of the border, there have been no further updates on the status of the 55 missing Malaysians since the sixth day of the disaster, he said.

He also said the families had been seeking a meeting with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim since the ninth day of the disaster to brief him directly on their findings and seek guidance, but had yet to receive a reply.

His statement was followed by Sentosa assemblyman Gunaraj George, who urged foreign minister Mohamad Hasan to provide clear, case-specific updates to the 55 families.

Gunaraj said while top-level directives and the deployment of Malaysian rescuers were appreciated, official communication must also provide direct and actionable information to the next of kin.