Demolition Man: Indonesian militant Umar Patek, left, is escorted by armed police officer as he enters the court room at the start of his trial at West Jakarta district court in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 5, 2012. Patek is accused of building the massive bomb used in the deadly attacks on the resort island of Bali in 2002.(AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)Australian witnesses of the first Bali bombing testified that their wounds and trauma had yet to heal 10 years after the crime.
The three were among four foreigners testifying at the trial of
suspected terrorist mastermind Umar Patek at the West Jakarta District
Court on Thursday. Another was an American, Steven William Cabler.
Among the 202 killed, 88 were Australians and seven were Americans.
Business owner Peter Hughes from Perth said he was inside
Paddy’s Bar and some 10 meters from the entrance when the first bomb
exploded.
"I was knocked to the ground. . . . The whole place went black."
He heard the second explosion, greater than the first one. He
said he had thought the bomb was an exploded gas canister in the bar.
"[I
had burns to] more than 50 percent of my body. I had numerous cuts from
shrapnel.” He also sustained serious injuries to one of his legs and
abdomen.
"I still have some [shrapnel] in my head."
Hughes added, "You never fully recover [from traumas like this]. I would say that I am about 85 percent recovered."
He was treated in Indonesia, and then Darwin and Perth in Australia.
"I feel isolated. I feel lonely. I feel depressed. I feel frustrated. I feel annoyed. And very, very angry."
Hughes
had also testified in the trial of Amrozi, one of the three convicted
terrorists executed for their role in the 2002 Bali bombing.
Aother Australian, Stuart Anstee of Launceston in Tasmania, told
the court he was at the nearby Sari Club with five friends at the time
of the second explosion. Three of his friends who were from Australia,
the US and Germany, were killed. Anstee, an environmental engineer who
also testified at Amrozi’s trial, said he was badly burned on the left
shoulder.
"I managed to get out of the club. When I was outside the club, I
noticed blood spurting out of my neck," from shrapnel that had cut his
jugular vein.
He was taken to a military hospital in Indonesia, and then went to Darwin.
"I was very scared, confused, I didn't know what had happened, I
couldn't see because the blood had clotted my eyes shut and I thought I
was blind," Anstee said.
He said he concluded that it was a "cowardly attack ... A gutless attack on innocent people."
"I still love Indonesia. I've been back several times since
the bombing. It's not Indonesia's fault. You can't be responsible for a
few terrorists," said Anstee, who was visiting Bali for the first time
at the time of the first bombing.
Following intensive care in Darwin for three days, Anstee said that for
the next 12 months, "I had several operations to repair my voice and my
ears. And ongoing mental counseling [that goes on till today]."
Another Australian who sustained severe wounds, Jason Paul
McCartney of Victoria, also said he was still undergoing treatment for
burns.
"Scarring, shrapnel wounds, hearing and also mental scarring,"
said the former football player with the Kangaroos team. Several fellow
footballers were among those killed and injured in the bombing.
Before the disaster McCartney said he had visited Indonesia 10 times.
"I
do still have a great love for Indonesia. Bali in particular. But I
have a great sadness for what happened to me and other people. And
anger."
Due to his injuries, he said, "I tried, but couldn't continue my career." He has spent millions on health bills.
Umar
Patek's lawyer Asludin Hatjani said the witnesses had not said much
that linked his client to the case. However, prosecutor Bambang
Suharjadi said the testimonies were relevant to building the case.
The
prosecution is aiming for the death penalty. The trial was adjourned
until April 12.
Asked of his opinion of the witnesses, the defendant said: "I don't
know anything. I wasn't there". Other witnesses have said he was
involved in the preparation of the bombs. (png)
