Scores of relatives of the 228 people killed in the June 1 Air France jet crash dedicated a memorial in an upscale beach neighborhood on Saturday amid strong criticism that the airline has failed to provide them with the answers or compensation they were promised.
Nelson Marinho, who lost a son in the crash and is president of an association of Brazilian victims’ family members, said the dedication was “a smoke screen to take the focus off the responsibility that [Air France officials] have.”
“We don’t want ceremonies,” he said.
Marinho said many Brazilian relatives have yet to receive compensation. He also said any memorial should be located closer to where the jet went down — off Brazil’s northeastern coast, about 3,200km north of Rio.
Air France said in a statement on Thursday that the Rio memorial was created “at the request of 75 percent of the families contacted.”
The statement, however, didn’t indicate how many of the families had been reached.
More than 150 relatives attended Saturday’s dedication. The French Foreign Ministry had said it expected 500 participants.
The Airbus A330 crashed en route from Rio to Paris and all aboard were killed.
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