Speech minister Madlener voor 2e ICAO symposium on assistance to aircraft accident victims and their families. Haarlem
“It is important to listen to the witness statements from those amongst us, who have dealt with the harsh reality of losing a loved one. A parent, a child, a sibling whom they might have dropped off at an airport only hours before disaster struck, never to see them again.
I therefore welcome in particular the distinguished representatives of victims’ families’ associations who have joined us. Your presence and participation in this week’s discussions is very important. It should remind us all how precious life is and that collectively we should to do what we can do to preserve it.”
Dat zegt de minister op 26 november bij het ICAO-symposium on assistance to aircraft accident victims and their families.
President Sciacchitano, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
Welcome to Haarlem! The Netherlands is proud to hosting this second symposium of the International Civil Aviation Organization on assistance to aircraft accident victims and their families. I can assure you we have a vested interest in its success.
As a relatively new minister and new member of the international civil aviation community, it is a real pleasure for me to meet all of you in this charming historic city of Haarlem. A city of first things: the first museum in Holland, the first railway line, the first newspaper of the world. And of course: the city where Dutch aviation pioneer Anthony Fokker conducted his first demonstration flight in 1911. I do hope you will have an opportunity to sample some of the many delights this city has to offer whilst you are here.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Eighty years ago, in December 1944, fifty four States gathered in Chicago to conclude negotiations on the Convention on International Civil Aviation. The message of the preamble to the so-called Chicago Convention was clear – and I quote – “the future development of international civil aviation can greatly help to create and preserve friendship and understanding among the nations and peoples of the world.”
Eighty years later, the International Civil Aviation Organization counts one-hundred-and-ninety-three Member States. It has evolved into a truly global aviation community.
Eighty years later, we cannot imagine a world without civil aviation, whether it be for business or for pleasure, uniting continents, peoples and cultures.
Eighty years later, international aviation has brought you here, or at least most of you, to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, safe and sound.
The governments that signed up to the Chicago Convention agreed on “certain principles and arrangements in order that international civil aviation may be developed in a safe and orderly manner”.
It is safe to say that ICAO has done just that. Safety lies at the very heart of ICAO’s reason to exist. Safety is what makes aviation stand out from all other modes of transport.
However, despite technological advancement, stringent safety standards and rigorous training, tragic accidents happen. And sadly, when they do occur, crashes in aviation invariably involve significant numbers of casualties and become headline news. Low frequency, high impact. And often with devastating consequences.
This second ICAO symposium on Assistance to Aircraft Accident Victims and their families looks into what happens after the cameras stop rolling, the reporters have left and the world has moved on. It addresses what has happened in the past and what should happen in the future. It considers the challenges that victims and their families face in the immediate aftermath of an air crash and in the days, months and years beyond.
ICAO has come a long way in addressing these issues. The recommendations that came out of the first symposium on Gran Canaria in 2021 and the 2022 ICAO Assembly resolution are testimony to this. Perhaps more importantly, in 2022 the ICAO Council approved Amendment 29 to ICAO Annex 9. It imposes an obligation on all States to take decisive action in this field.
This symposium will take stock of progress achieved in developing relevant policies. It will share best practices and identify remaining challenges.
In the Netherlands, we have unfortunately had our fair share of aviation disasters. Therefor it’s very valuable that our national family victim associations are present here today.
We can all learn from such experiences, good and bad. It should not matter where an accident occurs. All victims and their families should be able to rely on the support they need and deserve in times of great distress and despair. We also recognize the critical role ICAO can play in supporting capacity building, ensuring that no country is left behind.
Commitments on paper only carry weight if they are put into practice. With this in mind I am particularly excited to announce today that the Netherlands will be sponsoring the deployment of a new ICAO implementation package on assistance to aircraft accident victims and their families. It should offer a comprehensive solution to States that may need support to implement ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices.
Ladies and gentlemen,
This event is especially significant for me at a time when we collectively commemorate the harrowing loss of 298 innocent lives, including 196 Dutch citizens, in a civil aviation disaster that could have been avoided. The seventeenth of July 2024 marked ten years since the tragic downing of Flight MH17 on its way from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.
I had the privilege of attending the commemoration here in the Netherlands.
In his speech, Mr. Piet Ploeg, Chair of the MH17 Air Disaster Foundation, who unfortunately cannot be with us today, reflected that these were 10 years of missing, 10 years of searching for truth, justice and accountability.
The thing is, these words could equally apply to many other heart-wrenching aircraft accidents. It could easily be a different aircraft, from a different country, carrying citizens with different nationalities. In sum, it could happen to all of us.
So with that thought, it is important to bring focus to today’s agenda. Especially to listen to the witness statements from those amongst us, who have dealt with the harsh reality of losing a loved one. A parent, a child, a sibling whom they might have dropped off at an airport only hours before disaster struck, never to see them again.
I therefore welcome in particular the distinguished representatives of victims’ families’ associations who have joined us. Your presence and participation in this week’s discussions is very important. It should remind us all how precious life is and that collectively we should to do what we can do to preserve it.
Ladies and gentlemen,
This symposium is indeed about friendship and understanding. It is about sharing practical ideas and solutions. It is about working together to ensure that the mental, physical and spiritual well-being of victims involved in civil aviation accidents and their families, are carefully considered and accommodated by ICAO and its Member States.
I wish you all fruitful discussions, with open minds and open hearts, charting the way forward.
Thank you for your attention.