Nickdfresh
10-12-2005, 12:59 PM
Protesters Storm Bali Jail on Blasts Anniversary
By REUTERS
Published: October 12, 2005
Filed at 7:56 a.m. ET
KEROBOKAN, Indonesia (Reuters) - Protesters stormed an Indonesian jail on Wednesday where many bombers behind the 2002 Bali nightclub blasts are incarcerated, just hours after somber ceremonies to mark the third anniversary of the atrocity.
Skip to next paragraph Reuters
Frustration boiled over at Kerobokan prison, where 500 Balinese demanding immediate execution of three militants on death row for the bombings that killed 202 people destroyed part of the outer wall and knocked down a steel door into the jail.
Wearing traditional Balinese headbands and sarongs, the protesters shouted ``Kill Amrozi! Kill! Kill! Kill!'' and ``We have been waiting for three years.''
Citing security concerns amid rising public anger, especially after fresh suicide bombings on October 1 which killed 20 people, authorities had moved the three inmates on Tuesday to a penal island off Java. But a number of other convicted bombers are still in the jail on the famous resort island.
Riot police blocked the entrance to the prisoners' cells and later pushed the protesters out.
The three death row militants are Imam Samudra, Amrozi and his brother Mukhlas, also known as Ali Gufron.
Amrozi was the first militant arrested and was dubbed the smiling bomber for his expressions of delight during court appearances. To many Balinese, he has become the focal point of their anger.
Earlier, survivors and relatives of victims of the 2002 nightclub bombings mourned their lost loved ones.
About 400 Indonesians and foreigners paid their respects at a monument near Kuta Beach, where the names of the 202 dead are etched in stone near the two nightclubs that Islamic militants linked to al Qaeda blew up three years ago.
Amid tight security, family members placed flowers at the base of the granite memorial. Some wept.
HORRIFIC
``The horrific attack in Bali was committed by people who preached a twisted ideology of hate ... an ideology which is opposed to all religions,'' visiting Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in a speech.
Most of the dead were tourists, including 88 Australians.
Authorities blamed Jemaah Islamiah, seen as the regional arm of Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda, for the 2002 blasts. Suspicion has also fallen on Jemaah Islamiah or a splinter group for three suicide bombings at crowded Bali restaurants on October 1.
Bali is a Hindu enclave in overwhelmingly Islamic Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.
Natalie Juniardi, from Sydney, lost her Indonesian husband while she was three months pregnant with her second son.
``It's hard but my kids keep me going. They put a smile on my face. But after the last bombing, it's been hard,'' said Juniardi, who owns a surf shop in Kuta and has seen her sales plummet since the latest attacks.
Armed with rifles, hundreds of police mingled with the crowd at the memorial just across from where a car bomb destroyed the packed Sari Club three years ago, incinerating the surrounding area. A second bomb destroyed another nightclub across the road.
The solemn occasion was marked by 202 seconds of silence to honor the dead from 20 nations.
In Australia, wreathes were laid at a memorial garden at Parliament House in Canberra.
Downer later told reporters in Jakarta that Australia would soon send a team of experts in counter-terrorism laws to Indonesia to help the government revise its anti-terrorism regulations. He did not elaborate.
Indonesian officials have long said they wanted to strengthen the country's anti-terrorism laws.
Indonesian police said on Tuesday they had made their first arrest in connection with the October 1 attack, picking up a man believed to have shared a house in Bali with one of the bombers.
Four Australians were among the dead in the latest attacks. The others were 15 Indonesians and one Japanese.
Authorities have arrested and convicted some 30 militants over the 2002 blasts. Several key suspects remain at large.
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/international/international-security-indonesia.html
By REUTERS
Published: October 12, 2005
Filed at 7:56 a.m. ET
KEROBOKAN, Indonesia (Reuters) - Protesters stormed an Indonesian jail on Wednesday where many bombers behind the 2002 Bali nightclub blasts are incarcerated, just hours after somber ceremonies to mark the third anniversary of the atrocity.
Skip to next paragraph Reuters
Frustration boiled over at Kerobokan prison, where 500 Balinese demanding immediate execution of three militants on death row for the bombings that killed 202 people destroyed part of the outer wall and knocked down a steel door into the jail.
Wearing traditional Balinese headbands and sarongs, the protesters shouted ``Kill Amrozi! Kill! Kill! Kill!'' and ``We have been waiting for three years.''
Citing security concerns amid rising public anger, especially after fresh suicide bombings on October 1 which killed 20 people, authorities had moved the three inmates on Tuesday to a penal island off Java. But a number of other convicted bombers are still in the jail on the famous resort island.
Riot police blocked the entrance to the prisoners' cells and later pushed the protesters out.
The three death row militants are Imam Samudra, Amrozi and his brother Mukhlas, also known as Ali Gufron.
Amrozi was the first militant arrested and was dubbed the smiling bomber for his expressions of delight during court appearances. To many Balinese, he has become the focal point of their anger.
Earlier, survivors and relatives of victims of the 2002 nightclub bombings mourned their lost loved ones.
About 400 Indonesians and foreigners paid their respects at a monument near Kuta Beach, where the names of the 202 dead are etched in stone near the two nightclubs that Islamic militants linked to al Qaeda blew up three years ago.
Amid tight security, family members placed flowers at the base of the granite memorial. Some wept.
HORRIFIC
``The horrific attack in Bali was committed by people who preached a twisted ideology of hate ... an ideology which is opposed to all religions,'' visiting Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in a speech.
Most of the dead were tourists, including 88 Australians.
Authorities blamed Jemaah Islamiah, seen as the regional arm of Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda, for the 2002 blasts. Suspicion has also fallen on Jemaah Islamiah or a splinter group for three suicide bombings at crowded Bali restaurants on October 1.
Bali is a Hindu enclave in overwhelmingly Islamic Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.
Natalie Juniardi, from Sydney, lost her Indonesian husband while she was three months pregnant with her second son.
``It's hard but my kids keep me going. They put a smile on my face. But after the last bombing, it's been hard,'' said Juniardi, who owns a surf shop in Kuta and has seen her sales plummet since the latest attacks.
Armed with rifles, hundreds of police mingled with the crowd at the memorial just across from where a car bomb destroyed the packed Sari Club three years ago, incinerating the surrounding area. A second bomb destroyed another nightclub across the road.
The solemn occasion was marked by 202 seconds of silence to honor the dead from 20 nations.
In Australia, wreathes were laid at a memorial garden at Parliament House in Canberra.
Downer later told reporters in Jakarta that Australia would soon send a team of experts in counter-terrorism laws to Indonesia to help the government revise its anti-terrorism regulations. He did not elaborate.
Indonesian officials have long said they wanted to strengthen the country's anti-terrorism laws.
Indonesian police said on Tuesday they had made their first arrest in connection with the October 1 attack, picking up a man believed to have shared a house in Bali with one of the bombers.
Four Australians were among the dead in the latest attacks. The others were 15 Indonesians and one Japanese.
Authorities have arrested and convicted some 30 militants over the 2002 blasts. Several key suspects remain at large.
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/international/international-security-indonesia.html