Bali Bombing 2nd Anniversary in Kuta Bali

Tuesday October 12th 2004 marked the 2nd anniversary of the Bali Bombing of the Sari Club and Paddy’s Irish Bar on Jl. Legian in Kuta.

The ceremony was due to start at 9am so I made sure I was downtown at 8.30am. The cops had blocked off Jl. Legian which I knew in advance so took Jl. Padma through to Jl. Melasti then rode through Jl. Benesari to get to Poppies II. Hey I’m feeling like a local!

On Poppies II thing take a while to get going on a regular day but today it definitely seemed quieter with more shops closed ( see how nice Poppies II looks with the new street fixed). Outside the Circle K on Poppies II close to Jl. Legian were a dozen or so male and female cops with metal detectors. They were stopping people and searching bags and searched mine too.

Once on the main street I could see the memorial which was decorated with wreaths and flowers. Flags of each nation that lost a citizen in the bombing were flying and as Dallas Finn pointed out all the flags were different sizes.

People from overseas gathered on the street in small groups in wait for the ceremony. The sun was strong even at 9am and by the time things got underway people were already commenting how strong it was. I knew I’d be cooked so wore a hat and a sarong round my pastey white neck

The way the seating was arranged was that a delegation of Asian people were sitting across from Poppies II under a shade with a straight view of the memorial, obviously relatives of victims from Korea / Japan. To the right side of the memorial was another big shade with seating for many of the Australian relatives and dignitaries. More seating was arranged to the left of the memorial for more victim’s relatives and members of the general public. I could roam around quite freely but didn’t want to push my way into a relatives area and stayed with the rest of the crowd on Jl. Legian.

Looking around I could see it was a media frenzy with camera crews and reporters. Even the cops got in on the act.

At the bottom of the steps to the memorial in the center was microphone and the first person to speak was the Governor of Bali, who I thought for a second was Suharto. This was followed by an interfaith gathering and another short speech.

I was offered a seat in the general area and sat next to people from Australia listening to the Australian Ambassador to Indonesia David Ritchie speak about what a tragedy the bombing was and how the victims will never be forgotten. His secretary translated over a microphone for him. The speech included thanks to President elect Susilo for his kind words previously.

After his speech we all stood for the Australian national anthem (Advance Australia Fair ) and the Indonesian national anthem. An Indonesian government representative gave a short speech in Indonesian outlining the date of the bombing, the fact that many people were killed, it was a tragedy and the Indonesian government expresses condolences.

We then all stood and sang ‘Waltzing Matilda’ (a popular song in Australia) before government representatives from the 21 foreign countries laid wreaths at the memorial.

Small bottles of water were provided for those sitting in the arranged seating area. This was an absolute scorcher of a day and people were sweating like mad. After being at the event for a couple of hours I had to leave because I felt like I was melting. By the time I left the streets were more crowded and the atmosphere was subdued though not depressing.

I met Dallas Finn the founder of Bali Peace Park and asked him how his 5am interview with the ‘Today Show’ went. “Oh you’re not going to believe it,” he said. “Some bugger went and got eaten by a crocodile and they bumped me.” I think he’s going to get another shot at the interview and am sure he’ll create plenty of attention for his cause.

The whole event today went smoothly and I hope the relatives of the victims feel some relief from their participation.

Here’s what the BBC had to say about the event.

• Night gathering at Ground Zero in Kuta Bali
• More photos from Ubud
• People gather for sunset memorial on Kuta Beach Bali
• Bali bombing memorial in Kuta Bali
• Locals attend memorial ceremony in Kuta Bali

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