Bali greets executions with apathy

The Jakarta Post ,  Denpasar,  Mon, 11/10/2008

There were no celebrations or cheers as the Balinese and tourists spent their lazy Sunday at the island's tourist spots, despite the finality of the execution of the three perpetrators behind the 2002 Bali bombings.

Sanur area was relatively quiet, with most tourists preferring to spend their day relaxing at resorts and hotels, while Kuta was as busy as ever as tourists browsed shops or sunbathed on the beach.

The bombing memorial monument in Kuta, where the victims names are inscribed, received a steady stream of tourists and sightsee-ers, many of whom simply accepted the fact that the bombers have been executed.

Balinese Adi Wiraguna said he was happy that the bombers had been executed.

"All Balinese have been waiting for their execution. We're just glad that it's over and done with," he said.

"I reckon it's a good thing," said Chris Hargreaves, an Australian who has been in Bali for a week with his family.

"It's about time, isn't it -- for the victims' families, I mean. It's finally finished," he said, adding that he'll probably spend another week on the island.

Mandy Carter, a tourist from the UK, said she had not been surprised by the execution but that it was not something she had been looking forward to.

"I don't believe in the death penalty. It's not going to end (violence), is it," she said.

The 2002 Bali bombings were the deadliest terrorist attack in Indonesia. At least 202 people died in the incident, most of whom were foreigners.

The Denpasar District Court gave the three perpetrators -- Amrozi, Ali Mukhlas and Imam Samudra -- the death penalty in 2003, the first death sentence ever given by the district court. Their lawyers tried to appeal several times to the Supreme Court, all of which were rejected.

After much media speculation, the bombers were finally executed by firing squad at shortly after midnight on Sunday in a place called Nirbaya, not too far away from Nusakambangan prison, where the three prisoners had been held in isolation.

At the Anand Khrisna Center in Denpasar, at least 50 people -- including victims of the Bali bombings -- gathered to pray for world peace on Sunday.

The event was not held because of the execution, due to the uncertainty of its exact timing, said event coordinator Sayoga.

But in lieu of the execution, he said the people at the event would pray for the victims, bombers and other victims of violence.

"We are praying for them not because we agree with them but for everyone's peace of mind. Let this execution be an end to all violence," Sayoga said.

Tumini, a victim of the bombings in 2002 who attended the mass prayer, said she harbored no hatred for the bombers.

Tumini, who received plastic surgery after her face and hands were burnt in the bombings, was an employee at Paddy's Pub where the first bomb exploded.

"I hope their spirits will be accepted at God's side. I don't hate them -- I just don't want anymore bombings," she said.