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Two decades on, Indonesia remembers Bali bombing tragedy
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Australian Bali bombing survivor Andrew Csabi lays flowers during a commemoration ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of the Bali bombings that killed more than 200 people, at the Australian consulate general in Denpasar, Bali on Oct. 12, 2022. (AFP/Johannes P. Christo)
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urvivors of the 2002 Bali bombings and victims’ loved ones gathered on the holiday island and elsewhere on Wednesday to mark two decades since the terrorist attack that killed more than 200 people and changed the country’s national security landscape.
A candlelight vigil was held at the Bali bombing memorial on Jl. Legian in the tourist area of Kuta, just meters away from the site of the blasts. The monument was built by friends and family members to remember those who perished after al-Qaeda-linked extremists detonated bombs at a bar and nightclub on Oct. 12, 2002.
Isana Dewata, a foundation for survivors and those who lost loved ones in the tragedy, held a mass peace prayer at the monument, where wreaths and religious offerings had started to pile up.
“It’s okay that some people have forgotten what happened 20 years ago, but there are still real victims. There were children who lost their parents in the bombing,” said Thiolina Marpaung, one of the vigil’s organizers, as quoted by AFP.
In Nusa Dua, the National Police’s Densus 88 antiterrorism squad held a full-day event to commemorate the attacks. They hosted a number of activities, including an exhibition and a reunion of survivors, investigators and authorities who responded to the tragedy 20 years ago.
Insp. Gen. Boy Rafli Amar, the head of the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT), which was set up in response to the attack, paid tribute to the victims and the survivors.
“Today is a day I remember with deep regret and sadness,” he said in his remarks.
