- Title: INDONESIA: Ceremony marks fourth anniversary of Bali bombings
- Date: 12th October 2006
- Summary: PEOPLE LISTENING TO AUSTRALIAN AMBASSADOR SPEAKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) AUSTRALIAN AMBASSADOR TO INDONESIA, BILL FARMER, SAYING: " We will not allow terrorists to spread disorder and dismay, to drive neighbours apart to attack the aspirations of the Indonesians for a democratic and prosperous future. They have failed and they will not succeed."
- Embargoed: 27th October 2006 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Indonesia
- Country: Indonesia
- Topics: Obituaries
- Reuters ID: LVAAWY72624W0A0AQ0BECPW3E054
- Story Text: Families of Indonesian and foreign victims marked the fourth anniversary on Thursday (October 12) of deadly bombings by Islamic militants on Bali with ceremonies and prayers.
Some 20 Australians and 50 Indonesians from families of the victims participated in an Australian-sponsored, low-key memorial on the resort island to remember their loved ones.
Ministers from Australia, which lost 88 nationals in the tragedy, had attended the past three high-profile annual commemorations.
But the Australian ambassador was the lone official representative from Indonesia's neighbour at a tightly-guarded site a few miles away from the bombsite at bustling Kuta beachstrip.
Those at the early morning ceremony at the Garuda Wisnu Kencana cultural park in Jimbaran, where limestone hills loom over Bali's famed beaches, heard a poetry reading and solemn speeches, and scattered flowers into a pond.
The attack were among a series of deadly bombing attacks in recent years blamed on Islamic militants from the al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah militant group.
"We will not allow terrorists to spread disorder and dismay, to drive neighbours apart to attack the aspirations of the Indonesians for a democratic and prosperous future. They have failed and they will not succeed," said Bill Farmer, Australia's Ambassador to Indonesia.
Dozens of Australian survivors, families of the victims and locals gathered to commemorate the anniversary in a somber ceremony.
"To come out and think about the people that you knew actually died and the ones that didn't, they're happy and free now, the bombers haven't been gotten..but they're up in heaven," said Maureen Trowell, survivor of the bombings.
"They're still having a dance and a beer," said Spike Stewart who lost his son during bombings.
Bali is a popular holiday destination for Australians. Four Australians were killed in the 2005 bombings, while 88 Australians were among those killed in 2002.
Indonesia launched a massive crackdown after the bombings, including the legal prosecution of some 300 people related to various terror attacks and plots.
Three main actors behind the 2002 bombings are on death row awaiting executions by firing squad.
Terrorism experts and state security agencies say Jemaah Islamiah had links to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network.
Ansyaad Mbai, the head of Indonesia's counter-terrorism desk, earlier this week said Jakarta should not rest on its laurels because the terrorism threat remained "real and present". - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None