[Breaking News] Another Bomb Blast Occured in Bali! [Archive]

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 06:46 PM

It was only a matter of time. Populist movements are treated as legitimate groups often in Indonesia. The first outlet for many people is large-scale protests. The second outlet is often taking the law into their own hands.

An example of the consequences of this mentality is seen through the PKI experience. They were a large populist movement. You can only preach crap about the proletariat and taking over the government for so long without someone taking matters into his own hands. This exactly what happened as a small group decided the time was right. They tried to take over the government, and sparked a retaliatory blood-letting that was the quickest and worst the world had seen WW2.

This is always the consequence of populist politics. There are massive religiously-dominated political parties in Indonesia. There are numerous vigilante terrorist organizations that operate with impunity, forcing their religious ideals on people of other faiths and convictions. The latter group is never prosecuted. There are also large purely terrorist organizations like Jemaah Islamiyah that are allowed to maintain thousands of "above ground" members for charities, etc. No one seemed to mind when a similar group raised up a 10,000 man army to send to fight around Ambon.

Do you think these things have no consequences? I'm not trying to be negative, but it's just a fact. People are being taught daily that the West is evil, that Muslims should become introverted and sever contact with other faiths, that this so-and-so country is imperialist and these others are its lapdogs. There may be some truth in what they are saying, but do they realize that constantly saying this has consequences? The environment in Indonesia is perfect for terrorist recruitment. Sure, it is Malaysians that have been heading up many attacks, but a terrorist would have to be flat-out retarded not to come to Indonesia. He could recruit hundreds of followers there so easily.

If you think I’m wrong and stupid, fine. If you hate me, fine too. I’m just tired of this crap. Why are Indonesians suffering under this stupid play of politics? This is going to hugely set back tourist arrivals, hurt the economy, etc. It’s not about the police or the BIN. Most of the elements of these authorities are corrupt out of their mind, but the BIN has no authority and their members are paid absolute s***. That’s just a fact of life and it’s not going to get better putting the blame anywhere. The more important aspect is that neither the police nor BIN is willing to prosecute all the criminal, religiously-inspired groups in society. I don’t care if the terrorist groups are Christian, Muslim, freaking Mayan Pagans, or Hindus. They are outlaws and they need to be thrown in prison. I’m talking about the FPI, Jemaah Islmayih, Laskar Jihad, or any other group that seeks to criminally impose its ideals. On a side note, the so-called legitimate charities of these groups are how they are funded. That's how the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt was funded, it's how al-Qaeda was funded, it's how any smart terrorist organization is funded.

So, as far as I’m concerned, don’t blame the police or the BIN. There is no pressure on them to prosecute these criminals. In fact, there is pressure on the opposite end for them not to prosecute. Once prosecuted, they’ll probably not be fully penalized anyway because the legal system is crap. I don’t think the solution comes through trying to improve the police or any legal apparatuses because even with increased capabilities they don’t have the motivation to do their work. I see the only solution is the rise of a large, progressive democratic movement. These were the hopes of Reformasi, but they never materialized because of the prevailing situations. The same people maintained their grip on power, just with a different face. There has to be a progressive society and progressive politics or I think this situation is just going to get worse. These are just a few in a string of deadly bombings in Indonesia for the last 5 years that to me all seem to point toward a common source. That is, the revival of populist politics, with much more dangerous implications with the mixing of religion into the game.

I don’t see the situation getting better because I don’t see any progression. Just my two cents, and I feel like crap right now.

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 06:52 PM

I dont look for news on CNN, most of their international news agency is a crap. They like to see the "x" factor rather than what is really going on there. For example is the looting action by some new orleans police official, why dont they find the other looters, why only the cops...CNN = News for entertainment and propaganda, because it matters. :bash:

cheers
CNN has really bad reporting a lot of time. I wouldn't trust them as a news source. Reuters is the best for me.

tommygunn

October 1st, 2005, 06:54 PM

At least 19 people were killed in a series of bomb blasts on the popular tourist island of Bali.

At least 51 others were injured, Indonesian police and media reported. Foreigners were among the victims, witnesses said.

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 06:59 PM

AP says the death toll is 22.

David-80

October 1st, 2005, 07:06 PM

I understand your frustation, as a minority we can always frustated with whats going on in Indonesia but let me clear one point that you made there. The BIN members and staff are actually has the highest salary among its department of defense and other defense regional institution and they have much authority to detain, identified, analyzing and even doing something that BIN never allowed before. With that facility and authority, how in the heck bombs can exploded in a clear night of jimbaran beach? something is wrong there. With the advise of mr president, a month before the bomb exploded that there would be another bomd attack, why dont they find the bombs, whats going on with dr azahari and his friend? whats actually happening with their faith? no one from Polri or BIN care to explain, thats why they need to get sacked. We pay them with our taxes but they dont work with their ass off.

I dont really want to talk about the politics, religions or other implication because whats going on now, another bomb is exploded, people died, the victims are again Indonesian and thats what i see.

cheers

David-80

October 1st, 2005, 07:11 PM

CNN has really bad reporting a lot of time. I wouldn't trust them as a news source. Reuters is the best for me.

Yeah reuters is good because in each country they have a correspondent with native speaker and good knowledge of local politics and culture.

For Indonesian news, try ANTARA, www.antara.co.id

cheers

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 07:11 PM

Can I ask what is the salary for:

Low level police officers
Privates/NCOs in the military
etc.

I know the salary for ground agents in the BIN is less than Rp2.500.000 a month (senior agents make around 2.000.000 a month). I had always assumed this wasn't much for a civil servant, but perhaps I am just wrong.

Blue_Sky

October 1st, 2005, 07:19 PM

http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/5320/situasi21ck.jpg

Valeroso

October 1st, 2005, 07:21 PM

Well, there goes the future outlook of tourism in Bali! My condolences goes to the victims. Karma will hit the terrorists soon!

David-80

October 1st, 2005, 07:23 PM

Salary of police (especially anti-terror police) is currently 5 times higher than last year, remember that i posted a news about government was about to raise the salary of most police officers to reduce bribes? the anti-terror (detachment-88) is the highest paying police officer right now, not mentioning they have the special training and good facility to intercept any criminal and terrorist activities. I remember about the case of kidnapping in central java, which occured last month. they can catch the kidnapper in less than a week in kalimantan with the help of detachment 88 anti terror. But they cant catch Dr azahari cs considering they almost catch him in bandung, with only 10 seconds different before they could actually arrest those men.

BIN agents and D-88 are about the same salary, but the ground agents are much higher than its counterpart, which i know why. maybe because they do the dirty works, i try find the data eventhough its impossible to get the right stuff considering its really a top secret file.

cheers

David-80

October 1st, 2005, 07:25 PM

Thank you guys for the support of Bali, lets cheer for Bali and down for the terrorist!

cheers

Ara

October 1st, 2005, 07:29 PM

Only Rp2 million? Civil servants, in all field, are grossly underpaid.

Blue_Sky

October 1st, 2005, 07:34 PM

Damn!!!
Im very speechless for this tragedy
Those coward doesnt deserve to live in indonesia

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 07:35 PM

I know two BIN employees very personally. If they are the best paid security people, that makes me really sad. These guys don't get paid crap. One works in the HQ, another is a field agent (sorry, I was using the wrong term). They've been on foreign assignments, and they've both worked there over 30 years. I can't imagine who, in that organization, is making more money than they, but I suppose there are some. I still hold that they are underpaid.

Blue_Sky

October 1st, 2005, 07:36 PM

video clip from ANTV
taken from Bali

http://www.kaskusupload.net/show/303_updatebali.3gp

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 08:16 PM

Latest news:

Bombs rock Bali ahead of anniversary, 32 dead and 100 injured

JIMBARAN, Indonesia (AFP) - Bombs exploded in three packed tourist restaurants on the Indonesian island of Bali killing at least 32 people and injuring over 100, just days before the third anniversary of the nightclub attacks there.

Police said two explosions ripped through beach-side seafood restaurants 100 metres (yards) apart in the fishing village of Jimbaran during the evening meal.

Minutes later witnesses said at least one blast tore through the Raja restaurant 30 kilometres (18 miles) away in the shopping district of Kuta, the scene of the 2002 bombings which left 202 people dead, mostly foreign tourists.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono immediately condemned the latest outrage and vowed to hunt down the perpetrators. "These are clearly terrorist attacks because the targets were random and public places," he said.

The October 12, 2002 attacks were blamed on the Al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah and both analysts and governments were quick to blame the pan-Asian Islamic extremist group for the latest bombings.

A French diplomat who visited two hospitals in Bali on Saturday said at least 32 people had been confirmed dead and 101 had been injured in the blasts, which came during the peak tourist season.

At the scene of the Kuta bomb, bodies lay covered by bloodied blankets as police moved among crowds of onlookers using flashlights to pick their way through the gutted interior of the bomb-damaged restaurant.

British tourist Daniel Martin told the BBC he was standing in a building next to the restaurant in Kuta when a "tremendous" explosion erupted.

"It was just sheer chaos with no one really taking control," Martin said, adding that "there were no police or anyone else around for a good while. It was everyone pitching in to help the wounded.

"There were people lying in the street with serious wounds, blood pouring into the street ... I was afraid to go into the actual restaurant for fear of what I might see in there."

An eyewitness who arrived at the scene in Jimbaran minutes after the explosion said he saw at least eight bodies, including four foreigners. "There are also lots of body parts," Bagas Saputra said.

Television images from Sanglah hospital in the Bali capital Denpasar showed several foreign tourists, wearing nothing but shorts, being treated for injuries.

Australia, which lost 88 citizens in the 2002 attacks, confirmed at least one national had been killed and three others injured.

"You can assume it's an attack by an organisation like Jemaah Islamiyah, just speaking from experience, but of course at this stage no one has claimed responsibility," said Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer.

Indonesian reports listed at least one Japanese national killed and five Koreans injured. A British foreign minister, Lord Treisman, told Britain's Sky News that US, Australian, Japanese and Korean tourists were among the injured.

Rohan Gunaratna, head of terrorism research at Singapore's Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies, told AFP the Indonesian government should now formally ban the JI as a criminal or terrorist group.

"The only group that has the intention and capability to mount a coordinated and simultaneous attack against a Western target in Indonesia is Jemaah Islamiyah," he said.

President Yudhoyono had called in late August for tighter security in the world's most populous Muslim nation during September and October, saying these appeared to be favoured months for terrorist acts.

He said the possibility of more attacks remained real since two of the key bombers accused of being behind the 2002 Bali attacks, Malaysians Azahari Husin and Noordin Mohammad Top, remained on the loose.

Both are believed to have played key roles in the Bali bombings, the August 2003 bomb blast at the Marriott hotel in Jakarta and the suicide van bomb blast in front of the Australian embassy in September 2004.

All the attacks are blamed on Jemaah Islamiyah which has been accused of having close links to
Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network and aims to set up an Islamic state across a vast swathe of Southeast Asia.

Three militants have been sentenced to death for their part in the Bali bombings and two others are serving life sentences for the attacks.

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 09:21 PM

BBC follows CNN's example...

---

Bali bomb attacks claim 25 lives

Bomb attacks in two busy tourist areas on the Indonesian resort island of Bali have killed at least 25 people.

More than 100 others were injured in at least three blasts which took place just before 2000 local time (1200 GMT).

Devices went off at three restaurants - two in an area by the sea at Jimbaran, the other at Kuta beach, the resort most popular with Western tourists.

In October 2002, bomb attacks blamed on Islamic extremists killed 202 people in Kuta, among them many foreign tourists.

Local TV has been showing pictures of bloodied and confused survivors and collapsed buildings. Shattered glass littered the street in Kuta.

A hospital official told Reuters news agency that at least 35 wounded foreigners had been taken to the island's main hospital.

Local media said police had found a number of other unexploded devices.

No group claimed the attack in the hours immediately afterwards.

However BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says the finger of suspicion is already pointing towards the extremist regional group Jemaah Islamiah (JI) which was blamed for the 2002 bombings.

Bali - a predominantly Hindu island popular with Western tourists - represents a soft and tempting target for Islamist extremists linked to al-Qaeda, our correspondent says.

'Chaos on streets'

The exact number of blasts, which happened almost simultaneously, was not clear. Some witnesses said they heard at least two explosions at each location.

A British tourist who was in a building next door to a restaurant that was hit in Kuta said there was a "thunderous boom" that caused all the shop's windows to blow out.

"It was just chaos," Daniel Martin told the BBC.

He said there were people lying in the streets with serious injuries, with everyone pitching in to help.

Journalist Maris Bakkalupulo went to the scene of the Kuta blast, and saw a noodle and steak restaurant that was badly damaged.

"It's completely gutted," she told the BBC. "Everything has been blasted out of the building, which is very mangled."

Another tourist in Bali, Anthony Brearley from Australia, said he heard two explosions in Kuta.

"I think the locals still think it's a gas explosion. I think they genuinely think it couldn't happen again," he told the BBC News website.

"All the Australian people automatically thought 'bombs', and they were gone."

Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said at least one Australian was killed and three injured. A Japanese national was also among the dead, officials said.

"These are clearly terrorist attacks because the targets were random and public places," said Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"We will hunt down the perpetrators and bring them to justice."

Warnings

The blasts come less than two weeks before the third anniversary of bomb attacks that killed 202 people - many of them foreign tourists.

JI, the group blamed for the 12 October 2002 bombings, is also suspected of being behind a suicide bombing at the Marriott hotel in Jakarta in 2003, and a suicide bombing at the Australian embassy last September.

The authorities had warned that militants had been planning further attacks on Western targets in Indonesia, although there had been no particular alerts over the past few days.

Zorobabel

October 1st, 2005, 09:21 PM

Tackling Jemaah Islamiah
By Jonathan Head
BBC News, Bangkok

The Indonesian authorities are blaming the bomb blasts in Bali on terrorists.

Suspicion is certain to fall on the regional Islamic movement, Jemaah Islamiah, which was held responsible for the blasts in Bali in 2002.

The huge blasts nearly three years ago which tore the heart out of Bali's tourist industry did something else - they woke the Indonesian government up to the gravity of the threat posed by Islamic militants.

Until then, the authorities had been reluctant to move against an extremist fringe for fear of provoking public anger among the world's largest Muslim population.

But the Indonesian security forces already had good information about the al-Qaeda linked network known as Jemaah Islamiah (JI).

Security boosted

After the Bali bombs, with the help of neighbouring countries, they were quickly able to capture most of those who carried out the bombings.

They have also brought to justice those behind two subsequent attacks against a Jakarta hotel in 2003 and the Australian embassy last year.

Security at major hotels in Bali and Jakarta has now visibly improved.

JI was dealt another blow when Hambali, the man believed to be its commander, was caught in Thailand and handed over to the US.

However the Indonesian judicial system has been criticised for handing down a relatively light sentence against Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, the movement's spiritual leader.

And in recent weeks the Indonesian government has warned that JI militants were preparing to attack again.

Now it seems that warning has proved tragically accurate, just as Bali's tourist industry was getting back on its feet again.

Ara

October 1st, 2005, 09:48 PM

However the Indonesian judicial system has been criticised for handing down a relatively light sentence against Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, the movement's spiritual leader.
We can blame the Bush administration directly for this. Their refusal to let Hambali to testify against Baashir resulted in the light sentence.

ryanr

October 1st, 2005, 10:24 PM

:omg: I'm shocked...again? How much does Bali, especially the Balinese people have to suffer?

And i was in that Raja restaurant and nightclubs in Kuta last March! i didnt see much security around the area that time.

Zorobabel

October 2nd, 2005, 12:00 AM

Hospital officials say the death toll is now 36 with another 103 wounded.

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 12:26 AM

I think this outrage will just strengthen calls for Bali to be given special autonomy....I think the Balinese must be really sick of Javanese migrants and want to be able to have more say in determining who can come to Bali etc.

I'm very very sad...can't imagine how difficult life will be again for the many Balinese who rely on tourism as the source of life.

Also, if I were SBY I would declare terrorism/extremism a banned ideology, declare JI as a BANNED organisation and launch 'preemptive' attacks against them. Stuff civil liberties and human rights for now.... :banned: :gaah:

firmanhadi

October 2nd, 2005, 12:29 AM

We can blame the Bush administration directly for this. Their refusal to let Hambali to testify against Baashir resulted in the light sentence. Terroris An$!ng B*%sat! Ini pasti ulahnya murid2nya si Abu Bakar Ba'asyir. Deportasi aja tuh orang ke Yemen, nyebarin kerusakan aja dia di Indonesia. :mad:

Zorobabel

October 2nd, 2005, 12:40 AM

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 12:43 AM

Short Interview with SBY last night

Presiden: Teroris Mencari Sasaran Baru di Luar Jakarta
Sabtu, 01 Oktober 2005 | 23:22 WIB

TEMPO Interaktif, Jakarta: Presiden menerima laporan tentang adanya ledakan di Kuta dan Jimbaran, Bali, beberapa menit setelah kejadian. Presiden langsung mengumpulkan para pejabat keamanan di Base Ops Pangkalan Udara Halim Perdana Kusumah, Jakarta, Sabtu (1/10) malam.

Setelah pertemuan selama sekitar dua jam, Presiden menjawab pertanyaan wartawan. Berikut petikannya:

Apa yang salah dengan kerja BIN dan jaminan Presiden ke depan tidak ada lagi teror?
Jika ditanya kepada seluruh kepala negara apa bisa menjamin, saya kira sulit menjawabnya. Yang jelas, kami akan all out untuk mengatasinya. Saya akan tingkatkan langkah intelijen, kepolisian, dan langkah keamanan lain untuk menghadapi ancaman itu.

Aksi terorisme di negara mana pun yang punya peralatan canggih masih kita lihat dan saksikan. Ini yang bisa kita jelaskan kepada masyarakat dunia bahwa ancaman terorisme masih terus menghantui, termasuk di Indonesia.

Pada Juli lalu saya dapat informasi akan adanya aksi pertama elemen teroris di Indonesia, Malaysia, dan Filiphina. Kami akan segera lakukan langkah kerja sama dengan kedua negara tersebut.

Waktu itu ada informasi elemen teroris akan melakukan serangan dan yang jadi sasaran adalah Jakarta. Informasinya bahan peledaknya siap diledakan.
Waktu itu saya beri instruksi dalam sidang kabinet, saya ulangi berkali-kali untuk menggagalkan rencana itu.

Penjagaan di Jakarta ditingkatkan pada Juli, Agustus, dan September. Karena itu, elemen yang sama mungkin mencari sasaran baru.

Selama ini penjagaan di Bali sebenarnye tatap intensif, baik di hotel maupun di tempat lain. Tapi ternyata serangan kali ini di tempat terbuka dan bukan di tempat-tempat yang pengamanannya lebih baik. Kami sekarang mengutamakan langkah cepat untuk mengatassi masalah ini.

Senin depan, ada rencana pertemuan Presiden dengan Perdana Menteri Singapura, apa ada kaitanya dengan itu?
Selama ini belum ada informasi, apalagi intelijen, tentang kaitan aksi pengeboman ini dengan isu lain, misalnya isu kenaikan BBM atau rencana pertemuan bilateral saya dengan PM Singapura.

Saya belum bisa jawab apakah pertemuan ini bisa berlanjut. Agendanya tidak berkaitan dengan aksi terorisme, agenda bilateral itu menyangkut soal ekonomi, kemanan, dan isu-isu lain. Saya pastikan, pertemuan bilateral itu tidak spesifik membahas di bidang melawan terorisme.

Dugaan pelakunya siapa? Soal penangkapan Azahari dan Noor Din Moh Top bagaimana?

Operasi pengejaran warga Malaysia, Noor Din Moh Tiop dan Azahari terus berlangsung. Perkembangan sudah ada lanjutan tapi tidak bisa disampaikan ke publik. Budi Riza

Zorobabel

October 2nd, 2005, 12:53 AM

Some pictures. Most of the victims, as usual, are Indonesians.

http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051001/capt.xekw10210012226.indonesia_bali_explosion_xekw102.jpg?x=380&y=252&sig=taoZoBBOO5IOffxSB.sPug--

http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051001/capt.xekw10310012231.indonesia_bali_explosion_xekw103.jpg?x=380&y=259&sig=23.kSAZeQ9NLmKTuV.3UmA--

http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051001/capt.xekw10410012233.indonesia_bali_explosion_xekw104.jpg?x=380&y=264&sig=1jW.jc5t1ORX.o7sSTygZQ--

http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051001/capt.xekw10110012230.indonesia_bali_explosion_xekw101.jpg?x=380&y=269&sig=4fk7rCz1V0deVziHTDkiLw--

ncon

October 2nd, 2005, 03:23 AM

i think they targeted Australian than Balinese people

@Chad glad to hear ur sister is ok

ncon

October 2nd, 2005, 03:31 AM

more pics courtesy of BBC news:

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/3063/40864066damageap300x2450gx.jpg
The bombs came despite increased security in Bali following the 2002 attacks.

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/5644/40864380kuta300afp3aw.jpg
One of the bombings was in Kuta, scene of the bombings three years ago in which 202 people died.

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/1451/40864388shopfront300afp5re.jpg
The blast tore through shopfronts in the tourist beach area.

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/3757/40864384policechief300afp0so.jpg
Bali's police chief came to look at the damage.

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/5083/40864386register300getty7yq.jpg
After the blasts, tourists and locals sought information about friends and relatives.

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/6664/40864382military300getty5sf.jpg
The Indonesian army came to investigate the bombings, sending an armoured vehicle to the other site at Jimbaran beach.

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/554/40864390tables300getty3hp.jpg
The blast left an eerie emptyness at the cafes, where food and drink lay abandoned.

ncon

October 2nd, 2005, 03:34 AM

World powers unite in condemnation of Bali bombings

LONDON : World leaders condemned a wave of bomb attacks on the resort island of Bali that left at least 32 people dead on Saturday, and pledged to support Indonesia in its fight against extremist violence.

The blasts tore through three packed tourist restaurants on the Indonesian holiday spot, creating all-too-familiar scenes of bloody chaos just days before the third anniversary of the nightclub attacks there.

British officials said tourists from Britain, the United States, Australia, Japan and Korea were among the scores of people injured. A French embassy official said at least 32 people were killed and 101 wounded.

Messages of indignation and support flooded in from the United Nations, Britain, the United States, France, Germany and Ireland, while those on the ground in Bali struggled to come to terms with the latest atrocity.

UN chief Kofi Annan said was dismayed that the island - a popular destination for Western holidaymakers - had once again become a target of indiscriminate violence.

"The Secretary-General strongly condemns today's bombings on the Indonesian island of Bali," a statement issued by his spokesman said.

"He sends his deepest sympathy to the injured and the bereaved of many nationalities as well as to the Indonesian government. He urges the Indonesian authorities to act promptly in identifying and bringing the perpetrators of this cowardly attack to justice."

British Prime Minister Tony Blair also denounced the "appalling attacks".

He noted the importance of working together to prevent such carnage.

"We stand by Indonesia at this very difficult time," said Blair, who was writing a personal note to Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"I offer our full support to the people of Bali as they recover from another atrocity so soon after the 2002 attack," he said. "The British government stands ready to help in any way we can."

London's Foreign Office said one Briton with dual Australian nationality had been seriously injured and another slightly hurt in the blasts.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice echoed Blair's words.

"The United States condemns the terrorist bombings today in Bali that claimed innocent lives and injured many more," she said in a statement.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims, and we wish a speedy recovery to those injured."

Washington stood side-by-side with Indonesia, Rice said, adding: "We will continue to work together in our common fight against terror."

French President Jacques Chirac said in a letter to Yudhoyono that news of the near-simultaneous bombings "stunned and saddened me".

He added: "France in the strongest possible way condemns these hateful acts."

A French woman residing in Indonesia was slightly wounded in one of the attacks but no French national was among the dead, a spokeswoman for the foreign ministry told AFP.

Germany's Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer denounced "in the strongest possible terms the despicable attacks in Bali."

A spokesman quoted him as saying: "The motive behind the attacks should be determined and those responsible brought to justice."

The German foreign ministry had no immediate information on whether any of its nationals had been killed or injured in the blasts.

Similarly, Ireland had - for now - escaped a mention in the casualty toll, but its Minister Dermot Ahern added his voice to the chorus of disgust.

"I utterly condemn this barbaric attack which was deliberately designed to kill and injure innocent people," Ahern said in a statement. - AFP/ls/de

ncon

October 2nd, 2005, 03:40 AM

More pics Courtesy of CNA

http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/2950/0026qg.jpg
2 Oct 2005: An Indonesian mourner looks at a list of dead victims of bomb blasts near a hospital in Bali. - AFP PHOTO

http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/7690/0046bh.jpg
2 Oct 2005: A bomb blast victim is taken by volunteers for treatment at a hospital in Bali. - AFP PHOTO

http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/8617/0122rl.jpg
1 Oct 2005: Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stands with government officials as he addresses a press conference in Jakarta in the wake of the Bali blasts. - AFP PHOTO

http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/9458/0138do.jpg
1 Oct 2005: An Indonesian policeman surveys the scene at a bomb-damaged restaurant in Kuta, on the island of Bali. - AFP PHOTO

ncon

October 2nd, 2005, 03:42 AM

Australian PM Howard horrified by Bali blasts

SYDNEY : Australian Prime Minister John Howard said on Sunday he was upset and saddened by a series of bomb blasts on the Indonesian island of Bali that killed at least 25 people, including an Australian teenager.

A series of blasts rocked popular restaurant areas of the resort island late Saturday, almost three years since the bombing of a Bali nightclub strip left 202 people dead, including 88 Australians.

"I'm very upset at the number of deaths and injuries," Howard told the Nine Network.

"I'm particularly saddened by the death of at least one young Australian.

"I have grave concerns for two others. Latest information we have is that about 17 Australians have been injured."

Howard said it appeared that the majority of those killed were Indonesian but injured foreigners included Australians, Japanese, Koreans and Germans.

"It would appear that this is a terrorist attack. It should be seen for what it is - an indiscriminate attempt to undermine democratic Indonesia," he added.

Howard warned Australians in the area to avoid crowded places but maintained that the attacks were primarily an attack on Indonesia.

"It's an indiscriminate murderous attack. The people who did it don't care about who they hurt or kill," he said.

"I see it very much as part of an ongoing attempt by terrorists to undermine democratic Indonesia.

"It should be seen primarily as an attack on Indonesia."

While saying it was too early to tell whether Islamic militants linked to the Al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah organisation was responsible, the attack
"shows that there are a group of people who are determined at any cost to achieve their murderous aims," Howard said.

"Nobody has pretended that you can put a finite limit on how long (the US-led 'war on terror') will last, but you can't throw up your arms and stop resisting it," he said.

"If the world had not done certain things over the last three years there would have been many more attacks."

Three seriously injured Australians would be evacuated on Sunday to Perth or Darwin and Singapore for medical treatment while assistance would also be offered to other blast victims.

"I have also given instructions that Australia will offer medical evacuation facilities to the Indonesian authorities for anybody, irrespective of nationality, who has been injured in this terrible outrage," Howard said. - AFP/de

Feel so sad for the Australian :(

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 04:32 AM

Videos on the location:
http://media.smh.com.au/?rid=16969&sy=smh&source=smh.com.au%2F&t=4IRP4I&ie=1&player=wm7&rate=1122&flash=1

3 bombs in Bali:
http://media.smh.com.au/?category=&rid=16968&rate=1122&sy=smh&source=int16969r&t=4IRP4I&player=wm7&ie=1&flash=1

Terrorists brought death to Indonesia's Bali paradise for the second time in three years Saturday, as blasts killed at least 26 people at two resort spots.

Sanglah Hospital, near the Bali capital Denpasar, which took over the task of identifying victims, said 25 people were killed and 101 others were being treated at six hospitals. At the hospital's main entrance was a long of list of names, five of them simply labelled 'Jimbaran body parts'.

So far 12 bodies had been identified: 10 Indonesians, one Australian and a Japanese national. First reports said one Briton was known to be 'slightly injured' and left hospital after treatment.

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 04:33 AM

The bombings were again believed to be the work of Jemaah Islamiyah, a regional Islamist organisation with close links to al-Qaeda. If confirmed, it would represent the first time since 11 September 2001 that al-Qaeda associates have returned to the scene of a high-profile attack, suggesting that New York, Madrid and London are not immune.

The British government was facing questions last night over its travel guidelines after it emerged that Australia issued advice last Thursday warning its citizens to avoid all non-essential travel to Indonesia and telling those concerned about their safety to leave.

The Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, also recently warned that terrorists were planning 'another strike' and called for heightened security during September and October. The Foreign Office had not issued a warning to UK travellers.

James Hughes, a British tourist, told BBC News: 'The noise was deafening - like 1,000 fireworks going off at one time.'

Daniel Martin, another Briton who was in a building next door to the Raja steakhouse that was attacked in Kuta, said there was a 'thunderous boom' that caused all the windows to blow out. 'It was just chaos,' he added. Another witness in Kuta claimed to have seen a Japanese tourist decapitated and the severed foot of a woman.

Ketut Kader, 53, who survived the Jimbaran blast, said it was 'the most frightening thing I have experienced. I was about 20 metres from the first explosion. It knocked me backwards but I didn't fall over. Everyone started panicking and screaming. It was just crazy. We all ran down to the beach as we thought that would be the safest place, but after the first blast the second bomb went off. I was about 75 metres away. It was much bigger and knocked me to the ground.'

Kuta was targeted on 12 October 2002, when al-Qaeda bombed two nightclubs and killed 202 people and injured another 209. Thirty-three operatives from Jemaah Islamiyah have been convicted of the bombings, with three sentenced to death.

The fresh onslaught appeared to be timed to coincide with the opening of a rugby championship, exactly as it was three years ago. Some of the victims of the 2002 bombings had been due to take part in the Bali Rugby Tens tournament, which was scheduled to open again this weekend. But this time the players were in Sanur, about 15 miles north east of Kuta.

The bombs detonated almost simultaneously in the early evening, with an initial statement from the President's spokesman putting the number as high as six. The Indonesian police reported three.

Two exploded at seafood restaurants, the Nyoman Cafe and the Menega, along Jimbaran Beach at around 7.40pm, just as tourists were settling down for dinner.

At about 8pm, the blast in the Raja steakhouse gutted the whole of the ground floor and much of the first floor, and blew the front off the second floor.

Television footage showed the front of a middle-aged man's beach shirt was drenched in blood, his forehead gashed. Another man lay on his back on a bench, his face, head and arms covered in blood.

President Yudhoyono said terrorists were to blame and warned that more attacks were possible. 'We will hunt down the perpetrators and bring them to justice,' he said.

reference : here (http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,1583185,00.html)

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 04:37 AM

Revealed: British link to Bali bombs
MICHAEL SHERIDAN AND JASON CHILDS, BALI
25 dead, 100 injured in carnage

TERRORISTS struck again on the island of Bali yesterday, killing at least 25 people and injuring more than 100 in co-ordinated attacks on Saturday night diners at holiday resorts.

At least three bombs went off within minutes of each other at popular restaurants eight miles apart, all packed with tourists. Some victims were found decapitated amid the carnage.

Security officials blamed Al-Qaeda’s local affiliate, Jemaah Islamiya (JI), which carried out the Bali bombings of three years ago in which 202 people died, including 28 Britons.

Its top bombmaker, Azahari bin Husin, who completed a doctorate at Reading University in the 1990s and is known in his native Malaysia as “Demolition Man”, is suspected of involvement in the latest bombings.

Indonesia’s president had warned that another attack might be imminent and a senior Indonesian counter-terrorism official had said only five days ago that the authorities were urgently seeking two of JI’s terrorist masterminds, including Azahari.

The first of last night’s explosions tore through the threestorey Raja’s restaurant at Kuta Square in the heart of Bali’s tourist area at about 7pm.

Daniel Martin, a British tourist who was in a shop next door, said he heard a “thunderous boom” and all the windows blew out.

He rushed outside to find people lying in the street with serious injuries. “There was thick smoke for a few minutes afterwards but there didn’t seem to be any fire,” he said.

“People were clambering onto the roof of the restaurant — they were climbing out and screaming and jumping down to the street . . . It was just chaos.”

Shortly afterwards two bombs went off in open-air seafood restaurants on Jimbaran beach, where holidaymakers were sitting with their feet in the sand at informal tables set up by young cooks who were serving cheap fresh fish and cold beer.

“I helped lift up the bodies,” said Wayan Kresna, an Indonesian witness. “There was blood everywhere.”

Dan Delhomme, from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, said he had been less than 50 yards from one of the bombs and had heard both blasts, one 25 seconds after the other. “We were the first out of there but we saw two wounded by the roadside,” he said.

Police later said they had found three unexploded bombs in Jimbaran. They had apparently failed to go off after the security forces hastily shut down the island’s mobile telephone network following the first blasts.

Twelve Indonesians, two Americans, a 16-year-old Australian boy and one Japanese were reported to have been killed. One woman with dual British and Australian nationality was seriously injured and another Briton slightly hurt.

Bali was only just recovering from the 2002 bombings. After the Indian Ocean tsunami on Boxing Day last year, many tour operators switched their packages to Bali to cater for holidaymakers who wanted to avoid Thailand and Sri Lanka.

reference : here (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-1807787,00.html)

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 04:40 AM

Australia's Howard Calls Bali Explosions an Attack on Indonesia
Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- The blasts on the Indonesian resort island of Bali yesterday were an act of terrorism and an attack on democracy in Indonesia, Australia's Prime Minister John Howard said.

At least 17 Australians were wounded in the attack, and one was killed, Howard said today in a television interview on Nine Network. Most of those injured or killed were Indonesians, with Germans and Japanese among those hurt, he said.

Bombs exploded in two restaurants in Jimbaran, an area of luxury beachfront hotels, around dinner time yesterday. A third blast occurred 30 kilometers (18 miles) away in Kuta, the scene of a terrorist bombing in 2002 that killed more than 200 people and is blamed on Jemaah Islamiyah, a group linked to al-Qaeda. At least 23 people were killed and 94 injured in the blasts, according to the Sanglah hospital in Denpasar.

``I see it as an ongoing attempt by terrorists to undermine democratic Indonesia,'' Howard said. ``It should be seen primarily as an attack on Indonesia.''

Bali, a mountainous island east of Java known for its terraced rice paddies and temples, is one of the nation's biggest tourist attractions. Tourism is estimated by Standard and Poor's to account for about 5 percent of Southeast Asia's largest economy and to employ 8 million people.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the blasts were ``clearly an act of terrorism.'' Howard said he wasn't sure if Jemaah Islamiyah is responsible, although ``naturally suspicion'' would fall on the group.

reference : here (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000081&sid=aIDq833iwwMg&refer=australia)

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 04:48 AM

Australian bomb blast victim, Bruce Williamson.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb12.jpg

A policeman surveys the scene at a bomb damaged restaurant in Kuta.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb6.jpg

A victim in a body bag is carried out.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb3.jpg

A victim of the bomb attack at Jimbaran Beach.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb10.jpg

A vitctim from a cafe at Jimbaran Beach is carried out.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb9.jpg

Forensic policemen sift through the debris at the Kuta restaurant.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb2.jpg

Police carry debris after almost simultaneous bombs went off in Bali.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb4.jpg

An Indonesian policeman at the scene of the blast in Kuta.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bomb1.jpg

all pictures from here (http://news.ninemsn.com.au/slideshow/default.aspx?subsectionid=2989&photo=1)

deep condolonce for Bali's bomb victim

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 05:03 AM

Indonesia investigates Bali bombings
Last Updated Sat, 01 Oct 2005 22:32:29 EDT
CBC News
Indonesian authorities have begun investigating the three bomb blasts that ripped through crowded restaurants on the Indonesian resort island of Bali Saturday night, killing 25 people and wounding at least 100 others, including three Canadians.

The near-simultaneous blasts came almost exactly three years after two nightclubs in Bali were bombed, killing 202 people, with two Canadians among the dead.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono branded Saturday's blasts as acts of terrorism and vowed to catch those responsible. Last month, he had said he was worried about new attacks and called for increased security.

A spokesman for the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, Marty Natalagawa, said the investigation was already underway. "The focus now, apart from the obvious one of saving lives and treating the injured, is on the gathering of the evidence, the material evidence on the ground at the two bombing sites so the police can quickly ascertain who perpetrated these heinous and cowardly acts," he said.

President Yudhoyono said it was too soon to assign blame. Security experts, however, said the attacks bore the hallmarks of Jemaah Islamiah, a network widely viewed as the regional arm of al-Qaeda, and as responsible for the 2002 nightclub bombings and two other subsequent attacks in Jakarta --one at the J.W. Marriott hotel in 2003, the other outside the Australian Embassy in 2004-- that killed at least 23.

Kenneth Conboy, an American security expert in Jakarta and author of an upcoming book on southeast Asian terrorism, said Saturday's bombings looked to him like the work of Jemaah Islamiyah.

"They saw the 2002 Bali bombing as their only true success because it inflicted foreign casualties, and the collateral damage weren't Muslims," he said.

Jemaah Islamiah, which in English means Islamic Community, wants to establish an Islamic state across southeast Asia -- including Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the southern Philippines, and southern Thailand. In October 2002, the United States officially designated it a terrorist organization.

Officials at Bali's Sanglah hospital, near the island's capital of Denpasar, said 25 dead had been brought in, although the Paris-based Agence France-Presse had reported that a French diplomat in Indonesia said the death toll was 32.

Reuters reported that 15 of the dead have been identified -- 12 Indonesians, including a six-year-old boy, two Australians and a Japanese national.

The wounded are known to have included three Canadians, 49 Indonesians, 17 Australians, six South Koreans, three Americans, three Japanese and one Briton.

Dan McTeague, the parliamentary secretary to Canada's minister of foreign affairs, says three Canadians were in one of the cafes, and suffered minor injuries. They have been treated at a clinic and released.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew said in a statement late Saturday that there are no known Canadian deaths.

"While the details are still unfolding, this is clearly an act directed against innocent civilians. The perpetrators must be found and brought to justice," he said. "Canada condemns all acts of terrorism and is committed to working with Indonesia in the fight against international terrorism."

Indonesian police confirmed that three blasts had taken place at separate restaurants packed with evening diners -- two at outdoor seafood cafes on Jimbaran Beach, and one 30 kilometres away at a noodle and steak house in downtown Kuta, an area surrounded by shops and jammed with pedestrians.

They have not said how the bombs were delivered or if suicide attackers were responsible.

Australian journalist Sean Mulcahy was in Kuta when one of the bombs went off.

"I've travelled through war zones for my job as a journalist and this is something that you would expect in Afghanistan or Iraq, the emergency rooms at some of the hospitals, the ground is just covered in blood, there's people walking, arms missing, it is just a war zone," he said.

Ketut Suartana said he was eating at Jimbaran when the first bomb exploded. The second came just minutes later.

"We were eating and suddenly it just went dark. I tried to run but I kept falling over. Then the second blast happened," said Suartana, lying on a hospital bed with scratch marks over his face and chest.

"People were in panic. I just tried to save myself."

Witnesses had reported seeing dismembered bodies at the scene, many of them foreigners.

The events of Saturday are a nightmare for Bali's tourism industry --the economic lifeblood of the island-- which had only recently begun recovering from the blasts of 2002.

In the last 18 months, Bali hotels and restaurants had said their business was exceeding pre-2002 levels and that they were looking forward to a busy Christmas and New Year. Tourism Minister Jero Wacik predicted a sharp drop in tourism, but said he hoped the island would bounce back.

The United States has condemned the bombings and offered to help.

With files from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/bali_bomb_getty_55834092.jpgA victim of the bomb blast is helped from a fish cafe on Jimbaran beach on Oct. 1 in Bali, Indonesia. (Jason Childs/Getty Images)

reference here (http://www.cbc.ca/storyview/MSN/world/national/2005/10/01/indonesia_bombings20051001.html)

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 05:33 AM

investigation
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/1002051034bsr.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b287/h4nh4n/100205129bsr.jpg

Zorobabel

October 2nd, 2005, 05:33 AM

Suicide Bombers Carried Out Bali Attacks
By IRWAN FIRDAUS, Associated Press Writer

BALI, Indonesia - Suicide bombers targeted the Indonesian tropical resort of Bali with coordinated attacks Saturday that devastated seafood and noodle restaurants packed with foreigners, killing at least 25 people.

Maj. Gen. Ansyaad Mbai, one of Indonesia's top anti-terrorism officials, said Sunday that the three attackers went into the restaurants on wearing explosive vests. The remains of their bodies were found at the scenes, he said.

"I have the seen them. All that is left is their head and feet," he told The Associated Press. "By the evidence we can conclude the bombers were carrying the explosives around the waists."

Saturday's near-simultaneous blasts at two seafood cafes on Jimbaran beach and a three-story noodle and steakhouse in downtown Kuta came a month after Indonesia's president warned of possible terrorist attacks. Two Americans were among the 101 people wounded.

Mbai said two Malaysian fugitives were suspected of masterminding the Saturday strikes. The two men, Azahari bin Husin and Noordin Mohamed Top, have been on Indonesia's most wanted list since the Oct. 12, 2002, attacks on two Bali nightclubs that killed 202 people, mostly foreigners.

"The modus operandi of Saturday's attacks is the same as the earlier ones," said Mbai.

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 07:38 AM

hey, we have a thread on this already, no need to start a new one.

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 07:44 AM

My gut feeling is...that this is now becoming an anti-government/police/authorities act rather than anti-America/anti-Western act. The remnants of JI are upset that so many of them have been captured by authorities in the last 3 years. Tell me what you think of my opinion...

----------------------------------------------------------------------

President condemns fresh attack on Bali

Rendi Witular, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Stunned by deadly explosions in the resort island of Bali, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono immediately held a press conference on Saturday in which he condemned the blasts as terrorist attacks. "The blasts were clearly terrorist attacks as the targets were random and were done in public places," said Susilo only an hour after the blasts.

Top government and key security officials, with the exception of Vice President Jusuf Kalla, were present at the press conference held at Halim Perdana Kusumah air base.

Speaking to journalists, the retired four-star general explained that necessary measures were being taken to treat the victims and investigate the blasts. The President himself would visit the blast sites on Sunday "in order to ensure correct measures are taken to handle the post-blast situation."

The President said the blasts were regrettable, happening precisely when Bali was enjoying economic growth even better than the situation before the Bali bombings in 2002 in which over 200 people were killed, mostly foreign tourists.

The President disclosed at the press conference that the government had actually received intelligence information in July that terrorist networks from Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines were planning attacks in Jakarta.

"The terrorists had even prepared the bombs," said the President, adding that after receiving the information he had ordered security personnel to beef up security in the capital, but apparently the terrorists had refocused their attention to Bali. Susilo expressed his condolences to the victims of Jimbaran and Kuta blasts and called on the public to work harder to prevent terrorism from taking place in the nation.

The blasts have piled on the problems that Susilo must confront. He is currently facing mounting public protests after his government increased fuel prices by an average 126 percent.

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 07:47 AM

Wow, John Howard actually supports me:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Bali bombs aimed at moderate Indonesia leader-Howard
02 Oct 2005 05:13:00 GMT

Source: Reuters

Background CRISIS PROFILE: Deadlock in Indonesia's Aceh conflict

MORE
(Updates with new Howard quotes, details, background)

By Paul Tait

SYDNEY, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Coordinated blasts that killed 25 people on the holiday island of Bali were an attempt to undermine the moderate, democratic leadership of Indonesia that is a threat to Islamic extremism, Australia said on Sunday.

While no evidence has emerged about who was behind Saturday's blasts in crowded restaurants packed with evening diners, Prime Minister John Howard said the "horrific attack has all the hallmarks of terrorism".

"This is an attack on democratic Indonesia. It is clear also of course that terrorists target Westerners, including Australians, but we should not diminish the significance of democratic Indonesia, modern, Islamic Indonesia as a target," Howard told a news conference.

"There's nothing the terrorists want more than to destabilise Indonesia and what Indonesia represents as a moderate Islamic country and bulwark against the perverted, obscene version of Islam which is represented by these terrorist attacks," he said.

Howard said he planned to speak with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and that Australia was ready to offer whatever assistance its northern neighbour needed.

"President Yudhoyono represents a threat to Islamic extremism," Howard earlier told Australian television.

"He is the democratic, moderate face of Islam and he is somebody therefore that should be supported and helped. The terrorists know that and they want to undermine him."

hypermount

October 2nd, 2005, 08:02 AM

My mom and her friends went to Bali last year around this time when her resort on an island at the malaysain east coast started to close becasue of monsoon. Very sad to hear it happened again. And made me angry too to hear those perpretrators are malaysians.. shame.

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 08:03 AM

http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051002/capt.da10110020219.indonesia_bali_explosions_da101.jpg?x=380&y=256&sig=K3DDAcZQXpFIuSot8gIUGQ--http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/rids/20051002/i/r1720269974.jpg?x=380&y=292&sig=czXwKj5gADgVSDT4aNOBCw--http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051002/capt.da10210020221.indonesia_bali_explosions_da102.jpg?x=380&y=258&sig=5ShXSqUBiH58u4kPTo_vig--
http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051002/capt.da10410020234.indonesia_bali_explosion_da104.jpg?x=380&y=253&sig=kQ1tuo3ztjLE14Xt7MOEyw--http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051002/capt.xekw11610020428.indonesia_bali_explosions_xekw116.jpg?x=231&y=345&sig=o9M5wkoBKyoiFHvytBu7kw--http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051002/capt.xekw11410020420.indonesia_bali_explosions_xekw114.jpg?x=380&y=248&sig=c7HVATGZw3W8VNJ_sc6TDQ--http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051001/capt.xekw11210012328.indonesia_bali_explosion_xekw112.jpg?x=270&y=345&sig=Yhi.7bxLMO6Mooz.XFIbrA--

h4nh4n

October 2nd, 2005, 08:11 AM

hey, we have a thread on this already, no need to start a new one.
sorry
i don't realized, close this thread is fine or merger

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 02:22 PM

http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2005/10/02/baligirl_narrowweb__200x280.jpg
Loss ... Yuri, 9, stands over the body of her mother Ratih Tedjo Janti Matsuda, a Bali bombing victim, at her house in Jakarta.
Photo: AP

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 02:24 PM

something positive out of this whole mess..
---------------------------------------------------------------

Signs that life on Bali fast returning to normal after bomb blasts
By Dominique Loh, Channel NewsAsia

KUTA, Indonesia : Less than a day after the bomb blasts in Bali, there are already signs on Sunday that life on the resort island is getting back to normal.

Even hospital staff treating the injured say that after the painful lesson 3 years ago, they are much better equipped this time round to deal with the casualties and to help families locate their loved ones.

Our reporter spent the day among the walking wounded at Bali.

There are now about a hundred and forty casualties warded at Sanglah Hospital, nearly half of them are Indonesians.

All round the hospital, anxious family members and friends wait for news about their loved ones.

Among them is Fanty Fong, a Bali resident whose friend was injured in the bomb blast at Jimbaran.

She said: "She got 6 pieces in her body. It is very bad for us particularly for people who live in Bali, we depend on tourism very much. It contributes 75 percent to the local economy. I myself am in the industry, it's very bad, second time in 3 years. Enough is enough, the victims are innocent people, not their target, totally unnecessary."

One of the lessons learnt after the first bombing is to quickly set up a crisis centre like the one in Sanglah Hospital.

It helps to provide crucial information to friends and families looking for their loved ones.

Yvonne Verbeet, Bali International Women's Association, said: "They come here asking for names, which hospital they are in, how are the badly wounded, all kinds of questions and missing people. Hey! I'm missing this person, can you help me look. An Australian doctor she found me and asked if she can help us."

But having survived an even deadlier attack three years ago, life was quickly back to normal less than a day after the blasts.

Shops near the one of the blast sites have re-opened and tourists are back on the street.

Even as forensic experts comb the debris for clues, more tourists from all over the world are arriving for a holiday in Bali. - CNA /ch

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 02:25 PM

Bali attacks against 'Islamic values': OIC

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AFP): The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) denounced on Sunday the deadly bombings on the Indonesian resort island of Bali as "terrorist acts" which contradict Islamic teachings.

The Bali attacks were "terrorist acts which totally contradict the teachings of Islam... and harm Islamic values which call for tolerance and coexistence," said an OIC statement issued at its headquarters in the Red Sea city of Jeddah.

OIC secretary general Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu pledged the 57-member Islamic body's "solidarity" with Indonesia "against these terrorist operations which do not only kill innocent civilians... but also directly harm the image of Islam."

At least 26 people were killed and more than 100 were injured when several bombs exploded on Saturday evening in Bali. (**)

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 02:28 PM

Malaysian ex-PM Mahathir slams culprits behind Bali bombings

KUALA LUMPUR (DPA): Malaysia's former leader Mahathir Mohamad criticized the culprits behind the latest bombing attacks on Indonesia's Bali island, saying their actions will hurt the reputation of Muslims."People will perceive the Moslems as being very bad people," Mahathir told reporters. "We are against such attacks. There is no reason at all for doing that."

Officials and security experts have blamed al-Qaeda-linked regional terror group Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) for an attack that came 11 days short of the third anniversary of the first Bali bombings, which killed 202 people including 88 Australians.

Mahathir said the attacks show that the fight against terrorism is more difficult than "fighting a conventional war."

"Terrorism is not easily contained," said the former prime minister, who retired in October 2003. "You don't know where they will strike."

Mahathir said governments should tackle the root causes of terrorism by trying to deal with dissatisfaction of certain groups.

"You must find the reason and deal with the reason," he said. (**)

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 02:30 PM

http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/ap/20051002/capt.da10910021204.indonesia_bali_explosions_da109.jpg?x=380&y=251&sig=il8JOnpT7uxoZa8ICRzOxw--
Hindu priests perform a cleansing ceremony for the victims of the bombings near one of the site where the explosions went off in Kuta, Bali, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2005. Indonesia said Sunday it suspected two al-Qaida fugitives of masterminding the suicide bombings of crowded restaurants in tourist resorts on the Indonesian island of Bali which killed at least 26 people and injured more than 100. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Ara

October 2nd, 2005, 02:45 PM

Mahathir said governments should tackle the root causes of terrorism by trying to deal with dissatisfaction of certain groups.

"You must find the reason and deal with the reason," he said. (**)
The root causes of Jemaah Islamiyah is the existence of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, thailand and the Phillipines. They want to create a super Islamic state in the region. They pose a danger to Indonesia and cannot be reasoned with. The members must be found and have them answer for their crimes. There is no negotiation with these thugs.

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 02:53 PM

Blue_Sky

October 2nd, 2005, 06:02 PM

Polda Bali mendapat kiriman rekaman video yang dikirim seseorang. Dengan rekaman itu, polisi mengetahui awal mula terjadi bom di Restoran Raja's, Kuta Town Square. Dalam rekaman itu, pelaku terlihat mengenakan baju hitam, bercelana jean, dan menyandang tas punggung.

Rekaman video itu diputar di depan wartawan dalam jumpa pers Kapolda Bali Irjen Pol Made Mangku Pastika di Hotel Inna Kuta Beach, Jl. Pantai Kuta, Denpasar, Bali, Minggu (2/10/2005). Menurut Kapolda, rekaman video ini diterima Polda Bali pada Minggu pagi.

Rekaman video ini milik salah seorang yang saat kejadian sedang berlibur dan berada di sekitar Restoran Raja's. Di restoran ini, pemilik rekaman ini memfilmkan anggota keluarga mereka. "Secara tidak sengaja, terekam gerakan pelaku," ungkap Kapolda.

Saat ditanya siapa pemilik rekaman video itu, Kapolda benar-benar merahasiakannya. "Kami tidak akan pernah menyebutkan namanya. Orang itu mengalami luka sedikit. Mungkin ada keluaganya yang masuk restoran. Video ini cukup panjang," jelas dia.

Ketika ditanya apakah pemilik rekaman video itu adalah warga Indonesia atau orang asing, Kapolda juga menolak membocorkannya. "Apakah dia orang asing atau tidak, kita protek," ujar Kapolda.

Isi Rekaman Video

Dalam video yang diputar, dalam gambar tampak ada perempuan asing berbaju putih yang sedang berpose. Di sebelah kanan belakang, tampak seorang laki-laki berbaju hitam, bercelana blue jean, dan membawa tas yang diduga berisikan bom, masuk ke dalam restoran Raja's.

Gerakan lelaki itu terus terpantau oleh kamera. Pria itu meletakkan tangan kanannya ke tas punggungnya. Dalam hitungan detik saat pria itu masuk ke dalam restoran, terjadi ledakan bom. Sebelum ada ledakan, tampak terlebih dulu kilatan cahaya yang terang.

Kronologi

Menurut Kapolda, ledakan pertama terjadi Kafe Menega pukul 19.40 Wita. Ledakan kedua terjadi di Kafe Nyoman pukul 19.41 Wita. Dan terakhir, ledakan terjadi di Restoran Raja's pada pukul 19.45 Wita.

Kapolda juga memperlihatkan foto-foto wajah ketiga pelaku peledakan. Foto-foto yang diperlihatkan berjumlah 6 foto, dengan masing-masing pelaku dua foto. Foto wajah ketiga pelaku masih tampak jelas dan inderanya masih lengkap. Ketiganya masih tampak muda, berumur antara 20-30 tahun.
::KLIK:: (http://jkt.detiknews.com/indexfr.php?url=http://jkt.detiknews.com/index.php/detik.read/tahun/2005/bulan/10/tgl/02/time/215354/idnews/453507/idkanal/10)

ncon

October 2nd, 2005, 06:04 PM

i have seen them videos looks suspicious walking so slowly......

Blue_Sky

October 2nd, 2005, 06:53 PM

Just click (warning: disturbing pics)
http://jkt1.detik.com/beritafoto/public/index.php?fuseaction=detik.readfoto&tahun=2005&bulan=10&tgl=02&time=232052&idnews=453521&idkanal=157&id=1

Fir3blaze

October 2nd, 2005, 07:05 PM

DUDE!!! That's link shows severed heads and bloodied mess.... :runaway:

WARNING: IF YOU ARE PREGNANT, HAVE A HISTORY OF HEART CONDITION, OR EASILY TRAUMATISED BY IMAGES OF BLOOD AND GORE, DO NOT CLICK THE LINK!

ryanr

October 2nd, 2005, 07:49 PM

Just click (warning: disturbing pics)
http://jkt1.detik.com/beritafoto/public/index.php?fuseaction=detik.readfoto&tahun=2005&bulan=10&tgl=02&time=232052&idnews=453521&idkanal=157&id=1

Is that the terrorist?

David-80

October 2nd, 2005, 08:33 PM

Is that the terrorist?

Yes, I saw on RCTI, showing the men with black shirt walking fast with the bodybag and looking very confidence entering the restaurant with nobody even checking on him...i suspect he's working there or he used too...suddenly after hes gone inside the restaurant..boom..and thats it.

cheers

Alvin

October 2nd, 2005, 10:53 PM

03 October 2005

Indonesia must outlaw JI
Jakarta needs to ramp up efforts to control terrorist groups, writes Rohan Gunaratna
October 03, 2005
FOR a second time in three years, Jemaah Islamiah's suicide bombers have struck Bali.

Within the regional law enforcement and intelligence community, the months of August to December are known as the bombing season.

There was no specific intelligence that Bali was about to be attacked. There was, however, an abundance of strategic intelligence that a Western target in Indonesia would be struck.

Ideally, the Indonesian police and intelligence community should have used this knowledge to develop ground or contact intelligence to prevent Bali II.

The attack on Saturday night highlighted Indonesia's lack of understanding of the threat, and the Government's inability to develop a comprehensive strategy to fight a growing jihad movement in the country.

It also demonstrated Indonesia's continuing lack of counter-terrorism leadership and an inability to invest in developing appropriate legislation, training and intelligence. Three years after the Indonesian Government started to fight JI, the group remains a credible threat.

Until the deadly attack in October 2002, Jakarta denied the existence of JI on its soil. Despite an attack every year since BaliI, Indonesian government strategy to combat JI is flawed. Unless Jakarta recognises the need for immediate action and far-reaching measures, the country is likely to suffer further from terrorism.

To reduce the threat to Indonesia and the region, the Government must consider three issues.

First, JI is still a legal organisation in Indonesia. It is not an offence for any one to be a member of JI. It is legitimate for an Indonesian or a foreigner to disseminate propaganda, recruit, raise funds, procure supplies and engage in other support functions of JI.

If Indonesia is serious about fighting terrorism, it must proscribe JI as a terrorist group and dismantle both its support and operational infrastructure. For instance, the Majlis Mujahidin Indonesia (MMI: The Mujaheddin Council of Indonesia) also led by Abu Bakar Bashir is generating significant recruits, funds and other forms of support for JI.

Without building a robust counter-terrorism legislative framework, many JI leaders and members including its supremo Bashir will go free in the coming months.

Second, the Indonesian intelligence and police gravely lack a specialist counter-terrorism structure. The police force is primarily using its Criminal Investigations Division to fight terrorism. The Government must create an organisation dedicated to fighting terrorism and extremism.

Although there have been significant arrests, more than 400 Afghan and Moro-trained JI members remain free in Indonesia. As long as the masterminds of the attack, Azahari Husin and Noordin Top, are still free, it is likely that JI will mount another attack.

Third, the threat of jihadism is spreading in Indonesia. Although fewer than 1 per cent of Indonesians actively support terrorism, it is a threat that is growing every day. As groups that engage in political violence do not require large-scale support, there is sufficient support in Indonesia to sustain a successful terrorist campaign into the future.

With JI actively recruiting from other jihad groups, it would be a mistake for the Government to focus only on JI. The Government must increase its surveillance of like-minded groups. For instance, Australian embassy bomber Heri Golun was a member of Negara Islam Indonesia, West Java.

JI is penetrating mainstream and Islamic political parties. To counter a regional trend in favour of Islamic militancy, the Government must work with religious and education leaders. An ethic must be built in society against groups that advocate violence to achieve a political goal.

After Bali I, Australia developed an offshore counter-terrorism policy. A key component has been to build a robust counter-terrorism capability in Indonesia, most of which has been used to train Indonesian police. Through the Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcement Co-operation in Semarang, both the Australian Federal Police and the Indonesian police have trained several thousand police, intelligence personnel, and other Indonesians to fight terrorism.

Australian political leaders and officials must work even closer with their counterparts in Jakarta to legally criminalise JI. Designation or proscription of JI as a terrorist or illegal group will strengthen the hand of government bodies to dismantle it.

Despite key losses, JI's intention and capability to strike Western targets in Indonesia and overseas remain intact.

In many ways, the real fight against JI has not yet begun.

Rohan Gunaratna is the Head of Terrorism Research, Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies, Singapore, and the author of Inside Al Qaeda: Global Network of Terror (Columbia University Press, New York)

Zorobabel

October 2nd, 2005, 11:14 PM

I think the author is obviously right.

sandrin

October 2nd, 2005, 11:54 PM

WANTED BALI Bombing suspects. Please post their faces ALL OVER Indonesia.
Please report to the authorities immediately.

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40865000/gif/_40865546_2bali_suspects_203.gif
Azahari Husin (left, photo: AFP) and Noordin Mohamed Top (photo: AP) Photos courtsey of BBC News

Bali suspects on most-wanted list
Azahari Bin Husin (left, photo: AFP) and Noordin Mohamed Top (photo: AP)
Azahari Husin (left, photo: AFP) and Noordin Mohamed Top (photo: AP)

BBC News Report:

Two Malaysians being sought over the latest Bali bombings have been on the run for several years on suspicion of playing a role in some of Indonesia's worst attacks, including the 2002 Bali bombings.

Azahari Bin Husin and Noordin Mohamed Top have been named by Indonesia's counter-terrorism chief, Maj Gen Ansyaad Mbai, as the suspected masterminds of Saturday's suicide attacks.

Both are believed to be top leaders of Jemaah Islamiah (JI), the shadowy group said to have links with al-Qaeda.

Gen Mbai said the new bombings bore the hallmarks of JI, blamed for the blasts which killed 202 people in Bali's popular Kuta beach tourist area in October 2002.

Azahari Husin was named in court as a bomb-maker in those attacks by one of those eventually tried and convicted for them, while Noordin Top is thought to have helped finance them. Newspapers have dubbed the two men the "Demolition Man" and the "Money Man".

Both men have been named as suspects in two other attacks - one in 2003 on Jakarta's JW Marriott hotel which killed 12, and one on the Australian embassy in 2004 which killed 11.

'Bomb classes'

Azahari Husin, a trained engineer, once worked as a university lecturer in Malaysia and in 1990 he gained a doctorate in property valuation from the UK's University of Reading.

A married father-of-two in his late forties, he is said by some to be a fanatic, ready to die for his cause.

He is believed to have given bomb-making classes to JI militants, and to have issued precise instructions on how the massive car bomb used at the Sari club in Bali was to be manufactured.

He is also alleged to have been a key figure at the JI planning meeting which selected Bali as a target.

Both he and Noordin Top went to Indonesia after fleeing Malaysia when it cracked down on Islamists following the 11 September 2001 attacks on the US.

On the run

According to Australian terrorism expert Clive Williams, Noordin Top is believed to be JI's top recruiter.

A former accountant, in his late thirties, he got married in Indonesia using an assumed name, Abdurrachman Aufi.

His wife, Munfiatun, was jailed in June for concealing information about his whereabouts.

Indonesian police think they have come within minutes of catching Noordin Top and Azahari Husin on different occasions.

In October 2003, they mounted a major search operation in the city of Bandung after failing to catch them in a swoop on a house where bombs were discovered.

Both men escaped during the swoop as the authorities feared they would detonate explosives they were reportedly wearing.

Alvin

October 3rd, 2005, 01:03 AM

Jangan Gunakan Alasan Agama
Berbagai Pihak Mengecam dan Mengutuk

Jakarta, Kompas - Panglima Tentara Nasional Indonesia Jenderal Endriartono Sutarto di Jakarta, Minggu (2/10), mengemukakan, terorisme seperti yang terjadi di Bali adalah sesuatu tindakan biadab yang seharusnya tidak ditoleransi oleh siapa pun, apa pun tujuannya, terlebih kalau itu memakai alasan agama.

Tujuan aksi terorisme di Bali kami belum tahu pasti. Sementara info yang ada ya lebih kepada bagaimana mereka dengan mengatasnamakan agama menunjukkan ketidaksetujuannya pada suatu kebijakan yang lebih ditujukan kepada negara lain, ujar Endriartono.

Saat ini ia belum melihat kaitan antara aksi di Bali ini dan gelombang penolakan terhadap kebijakan pemerintah menaikkan harga bahan bakar minyak. Mudah-mudahan tidak ada sebab kalau memperjuangkan rakyat kecil dan yang jadi korban rakyat kecil juga kan tidak betul, ujarnya.

Ketua Umum Pengurus Besar Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) Hasyim Muzadi, yang ditemui di Malang, kemarin mengatakan, ledakan bom Bali yang kedua kalinya ini dilatarbelakangi motif politik.

Menurut dia, hal ini terlihat dari waktu kejadian yang berdekatan dengan pengumuman kenaikan harga BBM. Kejadian ini, katanya, sengaja dilakukan untuk semakin mengacaukan dan membuat panik situasi dan kondisi di Indonesia. Namun, katanya, peledakan tersebut sama sekali bukan merupakan pengalihan isu kenaikan harga BBM.

Menurut Hasyim, lokasi peledakan kali ini tidak diarahkan langsung untuk menewaskan wisatawan asing. Kita tahu, korban tewas banyak orang Indonesia ujarnya.

Atas nama PBNU, Hasyim mengutuk dan menyesalkan tindakan para pelaku tersebut sebagai perbuatan yang tidak berperikemanusiaan. Ia mengimbau warga NU, terutama yang berada di Bali, untuk membantu meringankan penderitaan korban serta keluarganya.

Sementara dalam wawancara dengan Kompas Cyber Media kemarin, mantan Ketua Pimpinan Pusat Muhammadiyah Syafii Maarif juga mengutuk dan menyatakan tindakan itu mahabiadab. Itu bukan perbuatan orang beragama karena agama melarang tindakan tak berperikemanusiaan semacam itu, katanya.

Menurut dia, kalau pelakunya orang Islam, lebih baik tinggalkan Islam dan menjadi penjahat ulung saja karena kalau tetap mengaku Islam hanya akan merusak citra Islam. Ia mengeluhkan aparat keamanan yang tidak bisa mengungkap siapa sebenarnya di balik itu semua. Kalau memang tersangka di balik semuanya adalah Dr Azahari dan Nordin M Top, mengapa masih juga bebas berkeliaran dan tidak juga dapat tertangkap hingga kini, ujar Syafii Maarif.

Mantan Presiden KH Abdurrahman Wahid dalam acara malam keprihatinan di Bundaran HI, Jakarta, semalam selain mengecam dan mengutuk tragedi Bali II ini juga mengatakan, Bali adalah bagian dari Indonesia.

Berbagai pihak, kemarin, yang melayangkan kecaman dan kutukan atas tindakan peledakan bom ini adalah Solidaritas Muda Hindu Antikekerasan, Pengurus Pusat Himpunan Psikologi Indonesia, DPP Partai Demokrat, Masyarakat Profesional Madani, Federasi Serikat Pekerja Mandiri, Perhimpunan Mahasiswa Katolik Republik Indonesia, dan lain- lainnya.

Kepala Kepolisian Daerah Metro Jaya Inspektur Jenderal Firman Gani di Jakarta kemarin juga mengatakan, teroris hanya mengincar dua tempat utama di Indonesia, yaitu Bali dan Jakarta, karena dampak psikologis bagi dunia internasional lebih mudah tercapai dari dua tempat tersebut. (INU/EGI/KCM/OSD)

XxRyoChanxX

October 3rd, 2005, 01:55 AM

crazy Bi****ch....grrrr....

Fir3blaze

October 3rd, 2005, 07:56 AM

627

October 3rd, 2005, 08:01 AM

1 billion rupiah = $100,000???

thats so little.. they should make it more

peseg5

October 3rd, 2005, 08:06 AM

1 billion rupiah = $100,000???

thats so little.. they should make it more

not for average Indonesians...hehe

Anton

October 3rd, 2005, 09:13 AM

The root causes of Jemaah Islamiyah is the existence of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, thailand and the Phillipines. They want to create a super Islamic state in the region. They pose a danger to Indonesia and cannot be reasoned with. The members must be found and have them answer for their crimes. There is no negotiation with these thugs.

I agree that Jemaah Islamiah is not to be negotiated with - their "dissatisfaction" should not be catered to.

BUT, what about the dissatisfaction of groups that although not dangeroues, may in the future be inclined to support JI? Ie, those sitting on the fence and not yet a danger that JI is, but who could be inclined to support JI in the future. Ie, one political solution could be to starve JI of the support it needs.

Ara

October 3rd, 2005, 09:47 AM

I agree that Jemaah Islamiah is not to be negotiated with - their "dissatisfaction" should not be catered to.

BUT, what about the dissatisfaction of groups that although not dangeroues, may in the future be inclined to support JI? Ie, those sitting on the fence and not yet a danger that JI is, but who could be inclined to support JI in the future. Ie, one political solution could be to starve JI of the support it needs.
They are more then welcome to participate in the democratic process. They can forward a platform and talk to other political parties. In the end, the people will decide wether or not we should accept their platform. If they are not satisfied, they can lobby or run for office.

Violence is not an option. Should they choose to follow the violent path, they should be found and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. This is the era of democracy. There are options groups can use to forward their agenda.

Ara

October 3rd, 2005, 09:53 AM

This is a great news. F**k JI.
Tourists keep coming to Bali

TUBAN, Bali (Antara): The latest bombings on Bali on Saturday evening have not deterred foreign tourists from visiting the island, an immigration officer at the Ngurah Rai International Airport said on Monday.

At least 22 people were killed and hundreds injured by the bombs in Jimbaran and Kuta areas.

"There were 5,992 people who arrived and 6,063 people who left from this airport on Saturday. On Sunday, there were 4,875 people arriving and 7,349 people departing through here," said Harsoyo of the airport's immigration office.

"These figures are for people leaving and entering Bali through the airport only. There are several other entry points such as the Benoa harbor and Gilimanuk and Padang Bai ferry crossings," he added.

Meanwhile, a professor on tourism sociology at the Udayana University, I Gede Pitana, said there had been no exodus following the bombings unlike what happened in 2002 when 202 people were killed by another series of blasts.

"It was different when compared to the bombings three years ago. Tourists are still coming to Bali and there is only a slight increase in people leaving Bali," he said.

Three years ago there was a drop in tourist arrivals and a huge number of foreigners leaving Bali. (***)

Alvin

October 3rd, 2005, 10:42 AM

^^Bali will probably feel the effect later, as the impact of cancellation of bookings etc. become more apparent in the coming holiday season. :( Sad, but true - don't expect this tragedy to have no impact on tourism whatsoever.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Anger rises as Indonesia once again targeted by Islamic fanatics 43 minutes ago

JAKARTA, (AFP) - Anger is mounting over the latest bomb attacks by Islamic extremists in Indonesia, where yet again most of the dead have been locals and most of the damage has hit local businesses.

Like the Jakarta Marriott hotel attack in 2003 and the September 2004 blast outside the Australian embassy, Indonesians bore the brunt of the horrific weekend suicide bombings on the resort island of Bali.

Although the toll remains unclear, only two Australians and one Japanese were confirmed to be among about 19 victims of the three restaurant blasts.

"Why is it only us? Why is Bali again the target of bombs?" asked I Gede Wiratha, the head of the Bali chapter of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Wiratha said strong rumors were circulating in predominantly Hindu Bali that witnesses heard one of the suicide bombers shouting "Allahu Akbar" or "God is great" before blowing himself to smithereens.

Made Mangku Sudita, 36, who owns a beach restaurant just next door to the cafe where the first blast occurred in Jimbaran, expressed the public mood when he called for vengeance against those responsible.

"We have to kill those terrorists", he told AFP.

Similar sentiments were aired by many others, including taxi driver Wayan Rampa who lost his job in the silver industry after the October 2002 bombings devastated Bali's tourism sector.

"There is no need to take them to prisons... they should be taken to Bali to be turned into skewered meat or be grilled," he said of the culprits.

Despite the anger, Bali's minority Muslim community said it was not feeling any heat.

"Even after the 2002 bombings, there were only a few small incidents but as a whole we Muslims were never really under threat in Bali," said Hasan Ali, the head of the Bali chapter of the Indonesian Council of Ulema.

He said the weekend bombings were much smaller in scale and effect that the 2002 attacks that left 202 dead and an entire block in a busy commercial quarter razed by fire and explosions.

"We have been monitoring reaction closely and so far, we have no report of animosity or hostility towards our community," he said.

Made Artha, who heads the Bali chapter of the country's top authority body on Hinduism, the Parisada Hindu Darma Indonesia, said displeasure and anger were there but these emotions had not translated into violence.

"We are also tireless in our efforts to urge people not to point the finger at any particular group or religion. This will not solve the problem but on the contrary, will only deepen it, we tell them."

Artha said the Balinese were more resilient now, and had not lost any time in returning to their normal activities and reopening businesses.

"Maybe we are now getting used to this," he said wryly, referring to the two other deadly attacks the island had suffered in the past three years.

He said there was also a sense of resignation as people accepted the fact that no matter how vigilant they are, an extremist willing to lose his life for his cause is very difficult to stop.

"We are now more experienced, more knowledgeable" about bomb attacks and how to cope with them, he said. "All can also see that bombs are exploding everywhere, in London, in Madrid, in Karachi, not only in Bali."

Elsewhere in the world's most populous Muslim nation, the impact of the bombings was lessened by pressing concerns over recent fuel price hikes, which have more than doubled prices at the pump.

"Most people are busy trying to deal with their survival, and other problems, including bombings in Bali, do not become an issue worthy of consideration," said J. Kristiadi from the Center for Strategic International Studies.

The government blamed Saturday's attacks on Jemaah Islamiyah, a radical Muslim network that has also been accused of links to Al-Qaeda and of involvement in other attacks on Indonesian soil.

"The government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been very courageous in raising the fuel prices. Can he be as courageous and thorough in battling terrorism? let us see," Wiratha said.

Anton

October 3rd, 2005, 11:02 AM

"There is no need to take them to prisons... they should be taken to Bali to be turned into skewered meat or be grilled," he said of the culprits.[/B]

Sure - dice and grill them. But i wouldn't even feed them to my dog. (actually, i don't have a dog)

Although, we could feed them to their colleagues in prison. :)

Sou-jiro

October 3rd, 2005, 11:41 AM

send out private assasins to personaly eliminate each one of them....specially those high up!!!!no mercy for these cave dwellers....

condolences to the balinese people and the innocent victims

henry tan

October 3rd, 2005, 11:50 AM

deep condolences to the victims...
don't want to say anything, just want peace in our beloved country...

Alvin

October 3rd, 2005, 12:08 PM

Sure - dice and grill them. But i wouldn't even feed them to my dog. (actually, i don't have a dog)

Although, we could feed them to their colleagues in prison. :)

funnily that's what one of the balinese drivers i met whilst in Bali told me...that a lot of Balinese feel that they want to "dice, grill and EAT" them....

Ara

October 3rd, 2005, 12:14 PM

That's interesting. Yucky, but interesting.

Alvin

October 3rd, 2005, 02:43 PM

Indonesia Seeks Public's Help to Identify Bali Suicide Bombers

Oct. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Indonesian authorities are seeking help from the public to identify the three suicide bombers who killed at least 22 people in the nation's famed beach resort of Bali, a police spokesman said.

``The police are now focusing on finding the identity of the three bombers,'' Sunarko, the national police spokesman, said at a briefing in Bali after showing photographs of the heads of the three terrorists to the media. Authorities are also speaking to 18 witnesses, he said, without elaborating.

The bombers detonated devices in two restaurants in Jimbaran, a popular beach where diners eat out on the sands in the evening, at dinner time on Oct. 1. A third bomb went off in Kuta, scene of October 2002 bombings in which more than 200 died. The bombs probably weighed about 10 kilograms, he said.

``The methods and patterns are similar to the past bombing,'' National Police Chief Sutanto said in Bali. The bombers may be linked to Jemaah Islamiyah, the al-Qaeda-linked group the government holds responsible for the previous attacks, he said.

Sanglah Hospital, where bodies are being kept, revised its estimated death toll to 22 from 27, including the bombers, after performing DNA tests on body parts, said Bagus Ferriyanto, a hospital spokesman.

The hospital's estimate agrees with that of Bali police. The devastation caused by the three packages of TNT packed with ball bearings have made it difficult for authorities to count the toll.

Four of the fatalities were identified as Australians and one as a Japanese citizen, said Jane Lumy, a spokeswoman for Sanglah hospital in Denpasar.

Increased Security

The Australian government is helping the investigation by providing technical assistance and analyzing the chemical material, Sunarko said.

Indonesia's police are deploying 200,000 personnel, or two- thirds of the total force, to boost security in public places across the world's largest archipelago, Aryanto Anang Budiarjo, a police spokesman, told reporters in Jakarta.

Trans TV showed film of a suspected bomber walking through a restaurant in Kuta before yesterday's explosions. Kuta is 30 kilometers (18 miles) away from Jimbaran. The three terrorists were between 20 and 25 years of age, Sunarko said.

Bali attracted 1 million tourists by the end of August, Indonesia's tourism ministry said. About 240 tourists from Germany, South Korea and Japan had canceled their trips to the island by Oct. 2, the ministry said. Tourism accounts for about 5 percent of the Southeast Asian nation's economy.

Alvin

October 3rd, 2005, 03:56 PM

Islam's leaders condemns Bali blasts
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Stringent condemnations poured in on Sunday over the latest blasts that killed at least 26 people on the resort island of Bali, with Muslim leaders appealing to authorities to avoid hastily linking the attacks with Islam.

Nahdlatul Ulama (NO) and Muhammadiyah, the nation's two biggest Muslim organization, said Saturday's powerful bombs were savage, uncivilized and inhuman.

"In fact, the explosions hurt people having no relation with the interests or targets of terrorists," NU leader Hasyim Muzadi said. The victims of the blasts were mostly Indonesians.

NU deputy leader Masdar Farid Mas'udi expressed the NU's deepest condolences to families and relatives of the victims and prayed that they exercised "restraint" in facing the tragedy.

"The attack was a vicious, inhuman and cowardly act," he said, urging law enforcers not to hesitate in punishing the bombers severely.

"If the perpetrators are Muslims, their sentences must be multiplied because they have tarnished the sacredness of their religion and cornered its followers worldwide," Masdar said.

Muhammadiyah leader Din Syamsuddin said the blasts, which ripped apart three restaurants packed with Saturday night diners, had nothing to do with religion.

"The attacks were carried out by irreverent and inhuman people. I believe it was an attempt to discredit the government and create instability," he said.

Din, who is also the Indonesian Ulema Council's (MUI) deputy chairman, called on the public to avoid being "provoked or trapped into confrontation".

Former Muhammadiyah leader Ahmad Syafii Maarif said that if the bombers were Muslims, they should stop claiming to be Muslims because they had damaged the image of the religion.

"That was not an act of religious people because any religion prohibits such a savage act," he said.

Syafii expressed regret that the alleged masterminds of previous terrorist attacks in the country and key leaders of Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), fugitive Malaysians Azahari bin Husin and Noordin M. Top, had not been caught.

"If the ones responsible for these attacks are Dr Azahari and Noordin, why do they remain at large?" he asked.

Antiterror authorities said on Sunday that the fresh attacks on Bali were carried out by suicide bombers, citing similarities with the previous bombings on the paradise island three years ago.

However, Hasyim Muzadi said the latest attacks apparently differed from the 2002 explosions, in which 202 people were killed.

"The blasts were not as spectacular as the previous ones, the targets of which were clear. But now, the national and international context seems to be different.

"In my opinion, the latest incident appears more political," Hasyim said but would not elaborate.

He urged police to investigate the bombings thoroughly and objectively, and to refrain from reaching a hasty conclusion that the same bombers from Jamaah Islamiyah were the culprits.

A similar condemnation was voiced by People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid, who branded the bombers as "atheists" who wanted to divide followers of different faiths in Indonesia.

"We reject the accusation that Muslims are the bombers. That's not true. Islam does not allow violence that claims many lives," he was quoted by Antara as saying at a gathering of Muslims in Jakarta.

House of Representatives speaker Agung Laksono visited the bomb sites in Bali on Sunday, deploring the attack and mourning the deaths of the victims.

He promised to summon the relevant security forces soon to brief lawmakers on the progress of the investigation into the latest blasts.

XxRyoChanxX

October 4th, 2005, 12:24 AM

indo seriously need to do something about security....!!! they need to work FAST

Skyblade

October 4th, 2005, 06:14 AM

I apologize for my late reply but I wish to offer my condolences to those lost in this attack. I hope the best for Bali and for Indonesia!

Zorobabel

October 4th, 2005, 06:19 AM

Alvin

October 4th, 2005, 06:28 AM

Sometimes I wonder how delusional some people are. Some first thought it was a protest of fuel hikes, another man says it's a result of tourist industry rivalry. Are these people stupid? It happened near the anniversary of Bali I. Get these people out of power fast.

Yes, that guy who says its a result of tourist industry rivalry is Nur Hidayat Wahid, former leader of PKS (and speaker of MPR). I think he doesn't want to offend some of his colleagues in PKS, a party that many consider to be a right-wing leaning islamic party. I found his comments hillarious and delusional, as u said.

alb3rt

October 4th, 2005, 07:28 AM

i think JI must be banned in indonesia ......

corduroy

October 4th, 2005, 07:36 AM

Our intelligence organisation BIN is really crap! I read in the book BIN by Ken Conboy, even when BIN was chasing that Kuwaiti Al-Qaeda Omar al-Faruq back in 2002, BIN agents must pay for their accomodation, car, and fuel out of their own pocket because the organisation is short of money! How can one fight terrorism under such financial constraints? Even the CIA with all the money in its disposal still can't stop 9/11. If you pay peanuts, you get peanuts outcome. You get what you pay..

Zorobabel

October 4th, 2005, 07:47 AM

Yeah, it's pretty pathetic honestly. BIN agents are not provided with transportation (automobiles), and not even funds for transportation such as train tickets, etc. They need a top-down reform policy.

hadiwinata

October 4th, 2005, 09:16 AM

What the heck is in our government brain ? Why don't they just activate the UU Subversif or its kind to prevent this kind of acts ? Even Malaysia or US have this law to protect themselves...

One thing that really make me shame as indonesian is the statement from KETUA MPR that saying BOM BALI 2 is purely tourism competition problem.. what the F#$K??? It doesnt make sense such coutnry recruit a suicide bomber to destruct Bali that currently already suffer from previous tragedy..

If you recall the statement from our leader in the previous BALI BOMB I : "THERE'S NO TERORIST EXISTS IN INDONESIA, I can guarantee with my life for that..."

Ara

October 4th, 2005, 09:34 AM

BIN is receiving million of dollars from foreign government for their anti-terrorism operations. I would like to know if the money are being used properly.

I'm not suprised that BIN agents are poorly paid. When Pak Kalla was in South Africa, I got to talk to the body guards. They were complaining about not receiving enough money to pay for their laundary. How are they expected to protect Pak Kalla when they're busy washing their cloth in the bathtub?

Alvin

October 4th, 2005, 02:29 PM

Thank God the Tourism minister is talking sense in denying ketua mpr's statements..

-----------------------------------------------------------

Selasa, 04 Oktober 2005, 19:19 WIB
Menbudpar: Bom Bali II Tidak Terkait Persaingan Bisnis Pariwisata

Laporan -

KUTA, investorindonesia.com

Menteri Kebudayaan dan Pariwisata (Menbudpar) Jero Wacik menegaskan ledakan bom Bali di Jimbaran dan Kuta tidak ada kaitannya dengan persaingan bisnis pariwisata internasional.

"Tidak ada. Tidak mungkin. Itu murni terorisme," kata Jero Wacik, di Media Center Kuta Bali, Selasa.

Dia menjelaskan tidak mungkin sebuah negara melakukan hal sekeji itu hanya demi persaingan bisnis.

Sementara itu Wakil Presiden Pasific and Asia Tourism Association (PATA) Peter Simone juga mengatakan hal yang sama.

"Saya tidak pernah mendengar hal itu. Pariwisata adalah alat untuk cultural understanding --memahami budaya,red-- dan kegiatannya adalah kegiatan leisure time--kegiatan di waktu luang, red," katanya.

Dia juga menyebutkan industri manapun di dunia, tidak akan berniat menghancurkan pariwisata di tempat lain dengan cara demikian.

Dia juga mengatakan ada industri pariwisata di sebuah negara yang diuntungkan oleh kejadian yang menimpa industri pariwisata di negara lain.

"Namun itu by accident seperti yang terjadi di Thailand ketika tsunami. Dia menjelaskan obyek wisata pantai di Phuket, Thailand, sempat terguncang akibat tsunami pada akhir desember 2004 lalu.

Dan karena Bali memiliki wisata pantai maka wisman kemudian memilih untuk pergi ke Bali daripada ke Phuket Thailand.

Sehari sebelumnya, Senin (3/10), Ketua MPR RI Hidayat Nurwahid menilai ledakan bom Bali II di Jimbaran dan Kuta yang menewaskan 22 orang --versi polisi, red-- diduga tidak terkait dengan agama melainkan lebih disebabkan persaingan pengembangan pariwisata antar-negara.

Menurut Hidayat, ada beberapa negara yang sekarang mengembangkan pariwisatanya dan mereka tentu tidak nyaman saat situasi Bali kembali pulih pasca ledakan bom 12 Oktober 2002.

Hidayat juga mengatakan ada informasi valid bahwa kekhawatiran bom Bali adalah akibat persaingan pariwisata antar negara namun mantan Presiden PKS itu tidak menjelaskan negara mana yang dimaksud. (ant)

Ara

October 4th, 2005, 02:34 PM

That was a very idiotic statement, especially from somebody high up in the legislative branch.

Blue_Sky

October 4th, 2005, 02:36 PM

Download to watch Bali suicide bombing video
http://rapidshare.de/files/5850359/b..._2005.zip.html

David-80

October 4th, 2005, 02:43 PM

What can you expect? he is from PKS. Thats what the attitude of most politicans, they dont like if someone else guessing the motive behind the bombing but yet they also guessing it. If they dont know what they are talking about, just shut up, no need for defending his religion or political party, the police is still working out to find the clue.

cheers

Alvin

October 4th, 2005, 04:22 PM

Here are two contradictory articles on Bashir's attitudes to bombings:
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Indonesian cleric Bashir condemns Bali blasts
04 Oct 2005 08:47:27 GMT

Source: Reuters

Background CRISIS PROFILE: Deadlock in Indonesia's Aceh conflict

MORE
JAKARTA, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Jailed Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, believed to be the spiritual leader of the al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiah militant network, on Tuesday condemned the Bali blasts and said innocent people had died.

But he said the attacks were a warning from Allah.

Indonesian investigators in Bali have said they suspect Jemaah Islamiah of being behind Saturday's suicide bombings that killed 22 people and wounded 135.

"I very much disagree with any bombings, regardless of the reasons, in safe areas which are aimed at sacrificing the innocent," Bashir said in a statement read to Reuters by his assistant, Hasyim Abdullah.

"I am sorry for the bombing victims, who essentially know nothing, especially the Muslims," he said.

Bashir was sentenced to 30 months in jail in March for involvement in a conspiracy to carry out the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists. The sentence was later reduced by 135 days in an annual prisoner remission scheme.

"I call on the government to bring themselves closer to Allah by obeying his laws. These events essentially are a warning from Allah to all of us for not obeying enough of his teachings."

A lawyer for Bashir told Reuters the cleric had not been visited by police or questioned in relation to the latest blasts.

Police and intelligence officials in Indonesia and other countries have said they believe Bashir was the spiritual leader, or emir, of Jemaah Islamiah.

They say the network, which has been linked to al Qaeda and seeks to set up a pan-Southeast Asian Muslim state, is responsible for a string of bombings in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

Bashir denies being a Jemaah Islamiah leader, and says he does not believe the group even exists. Efforts in court to prove he led the militant network have failed.

Embrace N-weapons: Bashir
Samantha Maiden
October 04, 2005
ABU Bakir Bashir, the spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah, has outlined the religious justification for terror attacks in Bali, London and New York and urged jihadists to embrace nuclear weapons "if necessary".

In a chilling interview last month in the Jakarta cell where he remains after his conspiracy conviction in relation to the 2002 Bali bombings, the radical Muslim cleric also warned of a clash of civilisations that would not end until the West "accepts to be governed by Islam".

The alleged terrorist leader speaks of his hopes of meeting Osama bin Laden if he is released from prison and explains the justification for suicide bombers and terror attacks. "During battle it is different. Still, the whole notion revolves around martyrdom," he says. "But in places like London and in America there must be other calculations. In battle it is best to cause as many casualties as possible."

Published a fortnight ago by the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation, the interview was conducted by Scott Atran on August 13 and 15 at Cipinang Prison in Jakarta.

Asked about his personal views regarding the bombings in his homeland, including the Bali bombings in 2002 and the Marriott bombing in 2003, Bashir praises the bombers. "I call those who carried out these actions all mujahid," he says.

"They all had a good intention, that is, jihad in Allah's way, the aim of the jihad is to look for blessing from Allah.

"They are right that America is the proper target because America fights Islam. So in terms of their objectives, they are right, and the target of their attacks was right also.

"No, they didn't attack because they defended themselves. They shouldn't be punished."

In the interview, Bashir urges parents to understand the reward their children will secure if they join the jihad against Westerners.

"If the martyr's family understands Islam deeply, they will obtain many rewards," he says.

"Their reward will come, if they understand. A martyr must have ikhlas (sincerity). The parent who understands this concept must be thankful to Allah.

"This is the spirit of jihad that most scares the infidels. This is a moral force."

Bashir also describes one of the 2002 Bali bombs as "a Jewish bomb". "That bomb was a CIA Jewish bomb. You are stupid to punish Amrozi if he really knows how to make such a bomb," he says. "You should hire him to be a military consultant, because there is no military or police person (in Indonesia) who can make such a bomb. If Amrozi really did make that bomb, he deserves the Nobel Prize. So, the death penalty is not fair."

However, he argues there is little Westerners can do to avoid further conflict.

Bashir also says he recently sent a letter to US President George W. Bush via the US embassy in Jakarta.

"They have to stop fighting Islam, but that's impossible because it is sunnatullah (destiny, a law of nature), as Allah has said in the Koran," he says.

"They will constantly be enemies. But they'll lose. I say this not because I am able to predict the future but they will lose and Islam will win. Islam must win and Westerners will be destroyed. If they refuse to be under Islam, it will be chaos. Full stop. If they want to have peace, they have to accept to be governed by Islam."

bahar

October 4th, 2005, 05:23 PM

what is the source of the second article?

Alvin

October 4th, 2005, 05:26 PM

what is the source of the second article?
The Australian (newspaper)

bahar

October 5th, 2005, 02:48 AM

I read from a Singapore newspaper today that Bashir condemned the attack.

Alvin

October 8th, 2005, 07:48 AM

Good news for Bali, impact to tourism seems to be no where near as great as 2002.
---------------------------------------------------------

Bali hotels hopeful as reservations continue
Chisato Hara, The Jakarta Post/Denpasar

As Hindu Balinese observed the Galungan festival and Muslim Balinese welcomed their fasting-month of Ramadhan, shops, restaurants and cafes -- excepting those closed for the dual holidays on Tuesday -- were open for business as usual.

While the bombings of Oct. 1 at Kuta Square and Jimbaran Bay in Bali have had an impact on hotel and tourism, the general effect has been minimal relative to the devastation of Oct. 12, 2002, that nearly incapacitated the industry, and the overall feeling that prevails appears to be one of cautious optimism.

"The psychological effect of this bombing is completely different from the bombing of 2002," said on Tuesday Bali Tourism Board chairman Bagus Sudibya.

"There has been no sudden rush in departures within the last three days; only about a 5 percent increase in the departure rate. It seems the world can accept more that terrorism is a part of our lives .."

In 2002, the industry experienced a drop in occupancy from 90 percent to 10 percent over the three days immediately following the bombings at the Sari Club and Paddy's Caf‚.

The industry has also experienced a 10 percent to 15 percent decline in arrivals. But perhaps more indicative of the tourism response including domestic tourists is that reservations continue to come in for October, the Idul Fitri (Lebaran) holiday season in November and even for December.

Siswo Susetyo, director of rooms at Hard Rock Hotel, Kuta Beach, said the 418-room hotel, which caters mainly to domestic guests, had experienced only a 5.5 percent increase in short-term cancellations. "This is very unusual ..." noted Siswo. "While we have had some cancellations, we still expect 85 percent occupancy (for the Lebaran period)."

The hotel has steadily upgraded its security system since 2002, expanding their security force and installing additional equipment, such as metal detectors at every entrance and installing 9 CCTV security monitors. It will also soon have sniffer dogs specializing in bomb detection.

"The government must do more to secure Bali and the livelihood of the Balinese, which is 85 percent dependent on tourism; Bali is not owned by Indonesia, but by the world," Siswo said.

At the five-star Hotel Padma, located along Legian Beach about 2 km north of Kuta Square, the figures were slightly different, considering its 90:10 ratio of foreign to domestic guests.

Director of Sales and Marketing Wiwin Ong said, "Only three of 405 rooms left early," but only to relocate to a "quieter" establishment in accordance with advisories issued by the guests' respective governments.

However, their cancellation figures stood at 15 percent, and the hotel expected to see a 20 percent increase in cancellation by the week's end. Meanwhile, they are still receiving about 50 new bookings a day for the October to November period, compared to a rate of 100 prior to Oct. 1.

The Hotel Intercontinental Jimbaran, located a few hundred meters to the north of the bombing at Jimbaran Bay, also recorded very few early departures.

For two days immediately following the blasts, the Intercontinental waived Internet and international calls for all guests, so that they could let their families know they were safe; three days later, Director of Marketing Heather Cornish noted that staff and guest morale was "good".

At Discovery Shopping Mall, a mall and beachfront arcade known as the leading shopping complex in Kuta, all shops were open for business. Tenancy and communications manager Willem Andry said the complex had increased the number of security personnel by 100 percent and limited the number of entry points. It had also implemented regular checks of visitors through the metal detector, whereby previously, these were conducted at random.

At the popular Water Bom recreational park, about 500 meters from Kuta Square, families could be seen enjoying a respite from the tropical heat.

The turnout "has been surprising", commented Director Sales and Marketing D. Riana Bismarak. "Today, about 400 foreign tourists have come," she said.

On a normal day, the park sees an average of 500 visitors, both foreign and domestic.

It, too, has raised its security measures, although mandatory baggage and car checks have been in place for the past years.

Travel agencies were also doing their part to ease the impact by taking measures, such as delaying the cut-off date for resale of canceled packages.

"It is because of this positive attitude (among visitors and industry players) that we have to do whatever we must to create a new security for Bali," said industry head Bagus.

Under this initiative, based on a traditional, grassroots security system residents and staffers from establishments in tourist areas will be trained by the police to monitor their areas. The pilot system is set to be implemented in Badung regency, comprising Kuta, Legian, Seminyak and Nusa Dua -- home to 80 percent of all tourism on Bali -- and in Denpasar regency, which includes Sanur.

In addition, the industry has proposed that 50 percent of the expected Rp 300 billion (US$30 million) in visa-on-arrival earnings be channeled toward the island's security.

"The Minister of Home Affairs has fully agreed to this idea, and is set to propose this to the legislature," Bagus said.

Meanwhile, the heads of flagship Garuda and the Japanese Association of Travel Agencies is en route to the island to discuss recovery, looking at the next three months; and the government is shifting many functions to Bali, as it did in 2002.

Anton

October 8th, 2005, 08:18 AM

cOcO_cHaneL

October 11th, 2005, 01:59 PM

my korean friend cancelled her flight to bali for this december cuz of the second bombing!!! damnitttt.. what should i do to convince her that IT IS okay to go there???

Fir3blaze

October 11th, 2005, 02:35 PM

my korean friend cancelled her flight to bali for this december cuz of the second bombing!!! damnitttt.. what should i do to convince her that IT IS okay to go there???

I guess she've never been there before. Tell her that it's a beautiful place, and she should go and see it. When else would she be able to do that? Now is about the safest time to go Bali, cos security is tightened and by right there shouldn't be bombing two times in a row.

But then again, if she's really concerned about her safety, respect her wish not to come. Well, we can't really guarantee that everything will be okay, can we? I went to Bali with a friend of mine about a year after the first bombing, and I'm still here. :)

Alvin

October 11th, 2005, 02:49 PM

But then again, if she's really concerned about her safety, respect her wish not to come. Well, we can't really guarantee that everything will be okay, can we?

true, but the chance of anyone caught in any incident is, I dare say, remote. Say 100 people in Bali get caught up in the latest explosion(s) - out of which 5 tourists died - out of tens of thousands tourists in bali in one time (or 15 Balinese out of the 4-5 million).

So mathematically, it doesn't make sense for anyone to not travel to places they wanna go be it New York, Bali, London, or Madrid just because they're scared terrorist attack, to do so would let the terrorists win..

Fir3blaze

October 12th, 2005, 05:09 AM

Yes, I'd agree with you Alvin. What i meant was not to be too forceful in persuading people to come. Acting like a drug pusher would not be good publicity as well, right?

But yeah, the main point is do not let these terrorists win. I think I will be travelling to Jakarta and West Java at the end of the year with a few friends of mine. :)

Zorobabel

October 12th, 2005, 05:51 AM

To me the problem is not an immediate drop in tourist arrivals. The major issue is that even without the attack tourist arrivals in Indonesia were not increasing very much. In fact, because of the tsunami they have been flat with no growth this year compared to last year. It looks like to me this year will end with tourist arrivals in Indonesia basically flat, or possibly down 1-2%. So, what's happening in the long term? Because of all these insecurity issues Indonesia is not even reaching 25% of its tourism potential. Look at Malaysia. It has maintained social security and its tourist arrivals this year are expected to be around 18 million, while Indonesia will have about 5.5 million.

Foreign tourists are good for the economy. 1 foreign visitor usually pumps in around $1,000 into the local econmy. It's good for the government because for countries like Indonesia they represent the vast majority of foreign exchange earnings, helping in many macroeconomic situations (propping up the Rupiah for example). Some are saying the effects of this bombing won't be as bad as last time. That's true, but it plays into a broader string of problems that are just sucking the life out of Indonesia's tourism potential. In my opinion, Indonesia could easily be pulling in 15 million visitors annually considering it is definitely one of the most beautiful nations on the planet. Under a stable situation, Indonesia's tourism sector would be growing at 25-30% annually.

Alvin

October 12th, 2005, 09:47 AM

cOcO_cHaneL

October 12th, 2005, 10:04 AM

I guess she've never been there before. Tell her that it's a beautiful place, and she should go and see it. When else would she be able to do that? Now is about the safest time to go Bali, cos security is tightened and by right there shouldn't be bombing two times in a row.

But then again, if she's really concerned about her safety, respect her wish not to come. Well, we can't really guarantee that everything will be okay, can we? I went to Bali with a friend of mine about a year after the first bombing, and I'm still here. :)

i read in a website (forgot what the address is) it says there;s a woman in bali she got possessed and she keeps mumbling words "there are still 12 more bombs waiting to be blast in bali" but im not sure.. no scary.. hmphphh..

Alvin

October 12th, 2005, 02:23 PM

^^ Scary...but what is the timeframe?? if it's 12 bombs in the next 10,000 years, then I suppose it is "ok". But if it is 12 bombs in the next 12 months...definitely NOT OK. :bash:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
www.laksamana.net

October, 12 2005 @ 02:30 pm

Busy Week For Police & Media

What a busy week for the police and the media. First there were the bombings. Then the three heads, the raid that was too late, the big rally plan, the identification of one of the heads, and the prisoners transfer.

Political commentator and former presidential spokesman Wimar Witoelar told an American TV station just hour before the Bali bombing that “when terrorists struck the World Trade Center, the whole world sympathized, but when terrorists struck Bali, the world criticized”. He said Indonesians do not need that. Indonesians need support so that they stick together and rally behind the leaders in difficult times. He said even the Democrats rallied behind Bush at the initial New Orleans destruction by Katrina, only after the situation calmed Clinton started to voice his disappointment of Bush’s respond. That was October 1, 3pm Jakarta time.

Media coverage of the bombings was varied to say the least (particularly on the first few days). The wire services got the news out first, followed by Indonesia’s CNN – Metro TV. Other Indonesian TV stations came later, and like usual, most were deep into whatever footage they can get. Grisly bloodied and burned bodies or body parts were always fine for family entertainment (many kids have already been trained by watching the various criminal programs on TV).

The American stations were of course desperate to get “American faces” to talk about their ordeal (preferably victims). There were a number of Americans who were inured, but no American killed. There were four Aussies killed (88 Aussies & seven Americans killed in 2002 blasts). Unfortunately for these stations, many Americans do not mix with Australians at bars and restaurants in Bali. And Bali is just like another state of Australia. So, little chance of getting American survivors in a place flocked with Aussies.

Then the familiar name Jemaah Islamiah, or simply “JI”, resurfaced. An Australian TV showed over and over the footage a few days earlier of former Australian Foreign Minister (now President of the International Crisis Group) Gareth Evans saying in public that “JI is a spent force”. And in an unusually rational state, the current Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer explained that the fight against terrorism is not a matter of banning JI. For once, he educated the public that JI is not a registered organization with registered members. The fight indeed requires a whole lot more complicated tasks than banning. Perhaps a change of foreign policy? Lose the Bush grip a little? Look at New Zealand, not a Bush colony and the country seems safe from terrorism.

Late last week, people in Bali were getting the SMS inviting everyone to hold a big mass rally on October 12 in front of the Kerobokan Prison, Bali to commemorate the third anniversary of the Bali 2002 bombings and to demand the government to get on with executing the first Bali bombers (Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, Mukhlas and operation commander Imam Samudra). “This event will be covered by five local TV stations and CNN,” says the message at the end. Does it come to this now? People need CNN and the gang to lure demonstrators? Can’t imagine what ANTV will become after Rupert Murdoch began his magic (a Fox TV version in Indonesia?) Police did not think the rally was such a good idea though. On October 11, police transferred the Bali I bombers from the Kerobokan Prison to Indonesia’s Alcatraz – Nusakambangan (also the home of Tommy Soeharto, son of former President Soeharto who was convicted for ordering the murder of his judge). Head of the prison authority denied it had something to do with the planned rally, saying the transfer was already long planned, due to structural damage of the prison (nothing to do with bombing activity).

We have to give the Balinese credit though. Compared to the bombings in 2002, the Balinese responded this year’s blasts with more calmness (although the previous destruction was larger). The Kuta streets remain crowded. Several Balinese said that security effort was stepped up after the first bombings. More police and a whole lot more intelligence officers. Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group also said the latest bombings were not a sign that the Indonesian government failing its counterterrorism efforts. But the bombers still managed to carry out the acts. It would be foolish if we think the bombers are just a bunch of fools (certainly way smarter than the Indonesian prankster jailed in Malaysia for sending SMS bomb hoax). Busy week, hope we are not just busy criticizing.

* See Profiles of Victims

By: Enrico Aditjondro | Category: Current Affairs