Sombre mood as survivors, victims’ families gather in Bali ahead of 20th anniversary of the 2002 bombings
BALI, Indonesia: Mourners from across the world gathered in Bali on Tuesday (Oct 11), ahead of the 20th anniversary of the 2002 bombings as they paid tribute to the 202 people who lost their lives.
A commemoration event on Wednesday is expected to draw more than a hundred participants ranging from government officials, survivors of the attack as well as friends and families of those who were killed. There are also others who were permanently disabled and psychologically traumatised.
On Tuesday, the flags of 22 nations where the fallen victims originated were raised at the 2002 Bali Bombing Monument, which serves as the main venue for the commemoration.
Since Monday, people have been flocking to the monument, a structure made out of marble and sandstone carved in a shape inspired by Balinese shadow puppetry. They brought flowers and letters to honour the victims. The items were laid at an altar at the foot of the monument.
“We love and miss (you) all so much. Love from your heartbroken family,” said a note attached to a bouquet of flowers dedicated to brothers Aaron and Justin Lee who died 20 years ago.
Some mourners also tied an Australian flag at the base of several flag poles at the monument. The flag was decorated with small photographs of the 88 Australians who were killed in the attack.
As the commemoration neared, more people came to the monument to show their respect, quietly gazing at the names of the deceased which were etched in gold letters against a massive black marble plaque.
Some were in tears as they spotted the names of their loved ones before they hugged each other in a show of support.
“It still pains me whenever I see his name on the monument,” Ni Luh Erniati, who lost her husband Gede Badrawan to the bombings, told CNA.
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A TIME TO REMEMBER
On Oct 12, 2002, two bombs exploded within seconds apart at around 11pm on a busy Saturday evening. The two suicide bombers responsible for pulling the trigger had targetted two locations which were roughly opposite each other: Paddy’s Pub and Sari Club. The two were at the time packed with local and international tourists.
The second blast, which originated from a van packed with hundreds of kilograms of explosives, was so powerful it can be heard from 9km away and left a crater around 1m deep.
“The commemoration serves as an opportunity for survivors and victims’ families to come together and show support for one another so that they know they are not alone,” 2002 Bali bombings survivor, Thiolina Marpaung told CNA. Mdm Marpaung is a member of the commemoration’s organising committee.
Not all survivors were planning on attending however. “I am still traumatised about travelling to Legian,” another Bali Bombing survivor, I Dewa Ketut Widia Putra told CNA. “Being there brings back so many painful memories for me.”
HEIGHTENED SECURITY
The commemoration is slated to begin at 4.30pm on Wednesday and finish just after midnight.
Mdm Marpaung said there will be prayers at the ceremony, officiated by leaders of different religions, as well as songs and poetry readings performed by local musicians and several survivors and victims’ family members.
The organisers will also play a documentary film about the incident and its aftermath.
Officials from various Indonesian ministries and government agencies as well as foreign diplomats are expected to attend the event.
The Bali Provincial Police said among the dignitaries scheduled to come are national police chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo, home affairs minister Tito Karnavian and coordinating minister for politics, legal and security Mohammad Mahfud Mahmodin.
Bali Police spokesman Stefanus Setianto told CNA that with so many senior government officials attending the commemoration, police are beefing up ecurity around the monument as well as Nusa Dua where the officials will participate in a formal dinner before joining the ceremony at 10pm.
Mr Setianto refused to divulge further details about the added security.
The police spokesman however confirmed that the busy Legian Street will be off limits to regular vehicles during the commemoration.
