Anger bubbles in Bali as bombing trial for first suspect begins<\/p>\n
Achmad Sukarsono and Dean Yates, Reuters, Denpasar, Bali<\/p>\n
From craftsmen to waiters, taxi drivers to hawkers, it seems many
\nof Bali's gentle people want one thing from the opening trial
\ninto bomb attacks last October that killed more than 200 people
\n-- vengeance.<\/p>\n
In the dock on Monday and the focal point of their hatred will
\nbe Amrozi, a fresh-faced Indonesian militant who was the first
\nsuspect caught by police after the October 12 blasts.<\/p>\n
Amrozi's apparent giggling delight at the attacks, broadcast
\nin a public police interrogation a month after the bombings,
\nshocked people across this Hindu island and around the world.<\/p>\n
\"He should be chained and dragged up this street so we can all
\nhave a go at him. Then he can be put in a cage for exhibition,\"
\nsaid Wayan, a surf shop attendant speaking near a vacant lot that
\nused to be the popular Sari Club.<\/p>\n
A massive car bomb, one of three separate blasts, tore through
\nthe Sari Club and other bars on a typical Saturday night here
\nseven months ago, devastating Bali's tourism industry and leaving
\nwounds that have yet to heal.<\/p>\n
At a recent event, Balinese paraded a giant papier mache
\nfigure of Amrozi through local streets before burning it as part
\nof ceremonies to cleanse the island of evil spirits.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors have charged the 40-year-old mechanic from
\nadjacent Java island with helping plot terror acts under new
\nanti-terrorism laws. He faces the death penalty.<\/p>\n
Amrozi's lawyers were not available to comment on the charges
\nbut have said the Bali trials showed Indonesia, the world's most
\npopulous Muslim nation, had succumbed to international pressure.<\/p>\n
Some 30 militants are likely to be tried over the attacks,
\nwhich police have blamed on the radical Southeast Asian terror
\nnetwork, Jamaah Islamiah.<\/p>\n
Many of the dead were foreign tourists. Several dozen Balinese
\nalso died.<\/p>\n
\"I want to have piece of him but it will be better to stay
\nhome and watch the trial on TV,\" said student Dewa Made Suartana.<\/p>\n
\"The most I can do is kick the TV set.\"<\/p>\n
Added Ni Wayan Rasni, wife of a Sari Club security guard who
\ndied: \"Death seems too easy for him.\"<\/p>\n
With emotions running high, police are taking no chances over
\nsecurity, although they have said the main source of unrest could
\ncome from elements who sympathize with the bombing suspects.<\/p>\n
Sharp shooters on rooftops will be among 3,000 police and
\nother security officials guarding a makeshift court venue in the
\nlocal capital Denpasar, normally a building used by the wives of
\ngovernment officials, and chosen partly because of its size.<\/p>\n
At stake for Jakarta is its chance to show the international
\ncommunity, already surprised by the thorough probe, that its
\noften unreliable courts can hand down tough verdicts and uncover
\nclues about bombing masterminds believed to be still at large.<\/p>\n
Police have urged relatives of the victims not to attend the
\ntrials, saying it might be too emotional. While some are expected
\nto turn up, Australian Geoffrey Thwaites, whose 24-year-old son
\nRobert was killed, said it would be too traumatic to appear.<\/p>\n
Indeed, Thwaites was in Bali when he said a police convoy
\ncarrying Amrozi went past the office of the Zero to One
\nFoundation, an organization set up by Thwaites and others in
\nmemory of his son to help the victims of terror attacks.<\/p>\n
\"Did I get upset when they drove past me in Bali the other
\nday? Yes. Did it make me cry? Yes. Why would I do it again?\" the
\nIndonesia-based Thwaites asked.<\/p>\n
About 90 Australians were among the victims from 20 countries.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/anger-bubbles-in-bali-as-bombing-trial-for-first-suspect-begins-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }