Results: Victims' Families Victimized Again

For the families of the 57 Canadians killed in the Iranian plane crash, returning their loved ones' bodies home is proving to be a complicated and frustrating process. The majority of the Canadian passengers hold dual citizenship with Iran. Because Iran does not recognize dual citizenship, it insists 140 Iranians were on the flight and just three Canadians. The families of these victims want to retrieve their loved ones' bodies and bury them back in Canada. Iran wants the bodies to remain there. Do you think it is a huge insult to not allow the families to bring their loved ones home to bury?

Masih Alinejad, an Iranian author and activist living outside the country, also publicly raised concerns over the way victims' loved ones have been treated. She personally heard from the family of three Iranian-Canadian victims told that Iranian officials warned them that if they did interviews with media, "they won't be able to [get] the body of their beloved ones back & bury them peacefully." Essentially the Iranian government is using the victims as bargaining chips in their campaign to not allow freedom of speech. The Iranian officials are also not allowing victims' families to see their loved ones one last time, insisting the coffins be kept sealed, and the Iranian government would arrange a burial. Do you agree that tactics like this are the lowest form of intimidation?

A week after his father was killed in the Iran plane crash, Ryan Pourjam spoke at a memorial about who his father was and the life lessons he left behind. "I can't remember a single moment in my life where Mansour, my dad, had any trace of negativity in his voice or actions", Ryan said at the service held in Ottawa's Carleton University, where his father, Mansour Pourjam, was a biology alumnus. He spoke about not focusing on the bad and negative, but always looking for the positive, even in unspeakable tragedy. Do you admire this young teen's courage and message?

A downtown Toronto Persian Restaurant put up a touching memorial for the victims, on the front door of their restaurant. Etched in the glass are the names of the victims either on their way to Canada, Canadian residents or Canadian citizens. People have been coming to the restaurant to pay their respects, leave flowers or simply to talk about the victims. Do you think that memorials like this can help people deal with the loss?