Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I, and also on behalf of Senator Birmingham, move:

That the Senate—

(a) acknowledges:

(i) 12 October 2022 marks 20 years since that terrible night in Kuta, Bali, when 202 innocent lives, including 88 Australians, were lost in the Bali Bombings, and

(ii) this date will be a difficult day for many Australians and Indonesians, as well as people around the world, whose lives were changed forever that night, and who continue to feel the impact of this senseless act;

(b) recognises:

(i) the brave efforts of first responders, whose instinct to run towards danger saved the lives of many, and

(ii) the professionalism of the Australian police, defence, diplomatic and medical staff who responded, alongside their Indonesian counterparts, with extraordinary courage and compassion in the aftermath of the attacks;

(c) notes the strength of our friendship with Indonesia, and the work we continue to do together, including to counter terrorism and violent extremism; and

(d) calls on all Australians to keep those whose lives were lost in our thoughts today, and over the coming weeks, as this sad anniversary is observed.

Can I start by also welcoming His Excellency Dr Siswo Pramono. You are very welcome in this chamber with your colleagues, Excellency, and we are very honoured to have you here today.

On 12 October 2002 terrorists attacked Paddy's Pub and the Sari Club in Kuta, Bali. They killed 202 innocent people, among them 88 Australians, 38 Indonesians and citizens of 20 other countries. Another 209 people were injured, many of them seriously, suffering severe burns and shrapnel injuries. Most of the victims who died were under 40, and nearly half were under 30. They were people of diverse faiths, ethnicities and nationalities from different walks of life: tourists and holidaymakers; teammates from rugby league, AFL and other sporting clubs celebrating or commiserating the season past; groups of friends and colleagues; young couples; and families on an evening out.

The attack was shocking not just because of who it targeted but because of where it happened. It happened on what the former governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika, called a small yet peaceful island. Bali has been treasured by generations of Australians. It has been a place that welcomed us, a place of culture and natural beauty, a place to rest and restore, a place of social ritual, memory and meaning. That night, it became a site of pain and of tragedy.

Twenty years on, the pain of that night is still with us and still with so many. We remember the victims: mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters and friends cruelly taken from us by an act of cowardice. We know that the survivors, the first responders and their families continue to live with the physical and mental scars. We continue to mourn the loss of the many victims and remember the heroes who risked themselves for others. As the then Governor Pastika said 10 years ago, 'That night we saw that there are angels living around us.' Survivors of the blast helped each other to safety in the face of extreme danger, extending caring compassion to perfect strangers. First responders—among them police, medical staff, embassy and consular officials and brave volunteers—ran towards the blast sites. Many worked throughout the night searching for survivors and administering critical care. Doctors and nurses at hospitals in Bali, Darwin and Perth treated the injured and comforted them through their pain. They showed the best of us. Australians and Indonesians working together.

We know the terrorists sought to divide our two countries and our peoples, to drive a stake into our multifaith and multicultural democracies, and we know they failed. Instead, our two peoples are united. We are bound together in a shared purpose. The spirit of friendship between our people and the cooperation between our two countries has been strengthened. Out of that loss and tragedy came strength and courage, a defiance in the face of terror: a refusal to be intimidated by those who seek to inflict harm on us, and a resolve that we would work together and face future challenges side-by-side.

That sense of cooperation continues to this day across the full breadth of our relationship. Australia and Indonesia are connected in almost every sphere of life: culture, education, trade, commerce and cooperation on many global challenges, including climate change. Together we built the Jakarta Center for Law Enforcement Cooperation, which has trained tens of thousands of police officers and strengthened our ties in so many areas. Its motto, 'Learning and understanding through shared experience', epitomises the approach we take together as partners.

Even when terror struck again, on 1 October 2005, killing 15 Indonesians and four Australians, we didn't lose hope. We redoubled our efforts. We looked for new ways to cooperate and solve our shared challenges. Programs like the Australia-Indonesia Muslim Exchange Program help us learn and understand each other through shared experience; and like the Australia-Indonesia Youth Exchange Program before it, which this year celebrates 40 years. These cultural exchanges showcase the things that make us each unique. Communities in Australia and Indonesia responded to the attacks not by withdrawing in fear or by being divided but by coming together in the pursuit of peace, forging a special connection that extends beyond governments and beyond politics.

Twenty years on, Australians continue to visit Bali, and the Balinese people welcome us again with generosity and with warmth. Before the pandemic, around a million Australians each year visited the beaches of Kuta or Seminyak, relaxed among the hills of Ubud or enjoyed a moment of quiet reflection at Pura Lempuyang. Many of those who were there 20 years ago continue to visit, and some continue to live in Bali.

On 12 October this year we will mark the 20th anniversary of the national memorial service in the Great Hall here in Parliament House and at a service being held at the Australian Consulate-General in Bali. These commemorations will offer an opportunity for all those affected to come together to remember, to honour, to pay tribute and to remember the lives of those lost that night; to stand with the survivors, their relatives and their families and support them at this time; to acknowledge the bravery and selflessness of those who assisted in the response; and to mark the ongoing spirit of friendship and cooperation between the Australian and Indonesian people.

I commend the motion to the Senate.

Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

ASH (—) (): I too rise to speak in support of the motion noting the 20th anniversary of the Bali bombings. I thank the government for the opportunity to co-sponsor this motion. I too, on behalf of the coalition, acknowledge the presence in the chamber today of His Excellency the Indonesian Ambassador to Australia. Thank you so much for honouring us with your presence.

It was one of those moments in history when Australians remember exactly where they were the moment reports came home of the Bali bombings. At 11.05 pm on 12 October 2002, a suicide bomber detonated at Paddy's Pub in Kuta, Bali, sending the injured and survivors out onto the street. Minutes later, another bomb detonated across the street, at the Sari Club. The attacks brought immeasurable emotions of anger and grief. Two hundred and two people, from more than 20 countries, died. Over 100 people suffered irreparable injury from the blasts and fire that followed. Australia suffered the greatest toll, with 88 Australians losing their lives.

This year we mark 20 years since that night occurred. We remember those lost, and we offer our deepest sympathies to the victims' families, those who still carry the scars. We also acknowledge the selflessness of the first responders in the wake of the devastation. Today, here, in this place, and on 12 October we will remember those 88 Australians.

The horror of that night is also a reminder of our resolute pledge against terrorism. Two days after the bombings, the then Prime Minister John Howard said this:

In many respects the word 'terrorism' is too antiseptic an expression to describe what happened. It is too technical and too formal. What happened was barbaric, brutal mass murder without justification. It is seen as that by the people of Australia and it is seen as that by the people of the world. It is a terrible reminder that terrorism can strike anyone anywhere at any time.

Coming only a little more than 12 months after 11 September, it is a sentiment that continues to serve as a reminder of events that changed the course of history. Sadly, the threat of terrorism persists. Australia has always been resolute in keeping Australians safe from terrorism. Successive governments have continued to work with international partners to prevent the devastation of terrorism and the ideologies that fuel it, and we recommit our bipartisan support to continue the fight against terrorism in all of its forms.

In the years following the Bali bombings, former prime minister Howard reflected, and he said this:

Those who were responsible for this terrible deed may have hoped a number of things; they may have hoped that they would have driven Indonesia and Australia further apart.

Instead of that, they brought Indonesia and Australia closer together.

Our two countries were thrust together beyond the shared connection of being Pacific neighbours, forging a united determination to eradicate the threat of violent extremism in the region and globally.

In the aftermath of the bombings, Australia responded without hesitation. Within 62 hours of the blasts, 61 injured victims were transferred to the Royal Darwin Hospital and to burns units across the country, with military and civilian flights aiding in the evacuation. Our Australian Defence Force launched Operation Bali Assist, evacuating Australians and foreign nationals, and providing medical assistance. The Australian Federal Police deployed a response team and assisted the Indonesian National Police with the immediate response and the investigation that followed. This cooperation meant that some of those responsible for the horrific attacks would be prosecuted for their crimes. Fourteen Australian Commonwealth agencies, as well as state and territory agencies, came together to help respond to the crisis. Non-government agencies, including St John, the Australian Red Cross and Qantas, also provided their support.

In 2003, the Australian government honoured 199 individuals for their selfless acts of bravery and dedicated service in the wake of the bombings. Two Australians were awarded the Cross of Valour, our highest civilian honour. Senior Constable Timothy Britten and Mr Richard Joyes, upon hearing the bomb explosions, both made their way to the Sari Club and, whilst unknown to each other at that time, together repeatedly went back into the club, risking their lives to rescue the injured. In the continuing grief that we hold, it is these examples that etch into history the strong and resilient Australian spirit.

This anniversary will be difficult for many. Ceremonies will be held here in our nation's capital and across our great country. Many Australians, including the families of victims, survivors and first responders, have made the pilgrimage back to Bali each year for the anniversary, and each year they are welcomed by Indonesia, as they will be this year. An emblem adorning these services each year are the arrangements of wattle and frangipani flowers—a symbolic tribute uniting two countries.

Australia and Indonesia would be again bound together, unfortunately by grief, following the second Bali bombings not three years later in 2005. Of the 20 casualties, four Australians lost their lives. The Bali Memorial Package, established in 2003 and concluding in 2008, honoured those Australians who died. During its effective phase, the package strengthened health services in Bali, including provisions for Bali's main teaching hospital, the creation of the Australian Bali Memorial Eye Centre, and multiple medical scholarship packages here in Australia.

As our relationship has continued to deepen with Indonesia so has our cooperation since 2002, with a range of strategic, security, defence and economic partnerships, and, most recently, in 2021, the renewal of our Australia-Indonesia Memorandum of Understanding on Counter Terrorism. Our relationship with Indonesia is one of great importance—it defies those who sought to cause long-lasting chaos on that day—and our ties remain strong.

As a consequence of these attacks and others, which we see all too often around the world, we do live in a very different world today. We acknowledge and we give thanks to our police, our security agencies and our defence forces. They work every single day to keep Australians safe.

Today in the Senate, in recognition of the 20th anniversary, let us remember the 202 souls, including the 88 Australians, who lost their lives in the Bali bombings on 12 October 2002, and those who still bear the scars of that night. Let our thoughts be with them and their families, for they will never forget and neither should we.

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I firstly acknowledge the Indonesian ambassador and his counterparts and welcome them to the chamber with our heartfelt condolences. I rise on behalf of the Australian Greens to support this motion, which commemorates and remembers the 202 victims, including 88 Australians, of the bombings of Paddy's Bar and the Sari Club in Bali, and of course the at least 200 others who were also injured by the blast and the fires that followed.

Parents farewelled their children at the airport, waving them off for their first solo holiday in Bali, and never saw them again. Partners, parents, siblings, friends and teammates were lost. The tragedy involved victims from more than 20 countries and many Balinese locals. We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of those who were lost and to those who survived. We extend our thanks to those who assisted in the immediate aftermath and those who are still supporting those affected.

The immediate response in the hours and days after the bombing were a reminder of how we can come together. Doctors and nurses holidaying in Bali rushed to help victims, along with local firefighters and first responders. People opened up their homes and took the injured to find help. The tragedy of the Bali bombings was a reminder of how small and connected our world can be, of the overwhelming humanity and community that binds us together and of the importance of global efforts to broker peace. Let us never forget this as we fight for a safer and better world for everyone.

Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Nationals I join with my parliamentary colleagues in placing on the record our heartfelt condolences to the families, friends and loved ones of the victims on the 20th anniversary of the Bali bombings. I also welcome His Excellency to the chamber and share our heartfelt condolences, which I'm sure he will reiterate back to Indonesia and the Balinese community more broadly on our behalf.

Bali is indeed a beautiful island paradise that has for decades offered a spiritual retreat and escape, especially for Australians. Many Australians take their first overseas holiday to Bali, and it is a mecca for families, surfers, and is accessible to so many across Australia.

It's Saturday night, 12 October, a warm 24 degrees, and the city centre is bustling. Some are heading home after dinner and others are heading out to start their night partying. Then at 11.05 pm a suicide bomber detonated inside Paddy's pub, in Kuta. Minutes later, another bomb detonated across the street at the Sari Club. Those explosions that night killed 202 people from 20 countries. Australia suffered the largest loss, with 88 fatalities and hundreds more left wounded. We can only imagine the utter distress of losing a loved one under such horrific circumstances, and we can only imagine the ongoing distress experienced by those injured and those who witnessed the carnage and human suffering. This cowardly and despicable bombing has tragically affected families not only in Australia but also in Bali. This was an attack on both Australians and Balinese, an attack on the Australian way of life and the Balinese way of life.

In the wake of the attacks the Australian Defence Force immediately mobilised, launching Operation Bali Assist just 17 hours after the blast. The first RAAF plane arrived to evacuate injured Australians in the largest aeromedical evacuation since the Vietnam War. At least 66 badly injured people were flown to Darwin for treatment. The military then assisted in secondary transfers of people from Darwin to medical centres around the country. Hours after the attacks the Australian Federal Police organised a team to go to Bali. It included disaster victim identification staff, forensic investigators, intelligence officers, administrators, security staff, and IT and comms staff to assist the Indonesian National Police investigation. Over 10 days, AFP members interviewed 7,000 Australians about their experiences as they returned to Australia after the attack. The AFP was instrumental in identifying and returning victims to their families, and provided extensive investigative support that led to the capture of the perpetrators.

Out of the destruction of the bombings came many stories of ordinary people making extraordinary efforts to help those affected. People who were injured in the blasts stayed to assist others, and locals and foreigners went to the site to help. Tourists with medical skills worked with overwhelmed Indonesian medical staff at the bomb sites and local hospitals. Nearly 200 Australians received formal recognition for their bravery and for the assistance they provided both immediately and in following months.

On the 10th anniversary of the attacks, the then Labor minister and leader of the government in this place at the time, Senator Chris Evans, echoed the sentiment of many:

They took many lives but they failed in their mission. October 12 2002 was also a day of great heroism. Of selfless acts of courage. Of remarkable emergency response. What was a terrible day of shared grief for Indonesia and Australia became a day of great shared resolve.

Joe Frost spoke at Newcastle Sacred Heart Cathedral in a special service to acknowledge the victims of the Bali bombings, and encapsulated what many Australians were feeling:

That bomb hit us that night and it has hit all of our community.

Those words ring true because, irrespective of where we live in Australia, whether we visit Bali, whether we know anybody directly associated with the bombings—victims or relatives—we can empathise with the ongoing hardship and distress they still experience.

In these continuing uncertain times we must be vigilant in being even more aware of our surroundings and ensure we take every necessary measure to fight against such acts of terrorism that aim to bring down our very way of life. It is regrettable, yet a reality, that we are in the midst of a war that has no boundaries, whose victims are random and the perpetrators of which are devoid of the basic decency found in most human beings.

Sadly, the word 'Bali' became synonymous with this bloodshed. This tiny idyllic paradise was drawn into the maelstrom of intolerance, ignorance and hate. The irony is Bali is a beautiful place that, sadly, was associated with this terror. I recall watching television footage of people at the airport. One man interviewed said: 'Of course I'm going to Bali. If I don't go they will have won.' This is what we must all do, and we have done. Our love for the Balinese people, the country's landscape, the surf and the bintang has not waned, and Bali today is one of our favoured holiday destinations. It is also a strong partnership between the federal government of Australia and the Indonesian government of strategic, economic and people-to-people relationships being so important.

I reiterate our condolences to the victims, their families and those who still live with what they experienced on that fateful October night. Our thoughts and prayers in the National Party are with them during these most difficult times, and we support the motion.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will ask that the motion be agreed to as moved by Senator Wong. I thank His Excellency the ambassador for coming to share with us today. We will stand for a moment's silence.

Question agreed to, honourable senators joining in a moment of silence.