How Bali came together after the Oct. 12 tragedy<\/p>\n
I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali<\/p>\n
As the enormity of the events of the night of Oct. 12, 2002,
\nslowly began to sink in the following morning, phone lines across
\nthe island buzzed with news of the casualties.<\/p>\n
Underlying the frantic conversations, there was also a growing
\nsense of dismay and apprehension about what could lie ahead. Many
\nfeared that it would trigger a backlash of interfaith violence,
\ndestroying the harmonious relationship between the majority Hindu
\ncommunity and minority Muslims.<\/p>\n
\"We must act, and act with such a speed that our actions will
\nextinguish the problem even before it starts coming to the
\nsurface,\" noted intellectual LK Suryani stated firmly in a phone
\nconversation with a journalist on Oct. 13.<\/p>\n
And act swiftly they did.<\/p>\n
By 9 a.m., a large group of intellectuals, religious leaders,
\nhigh-ranking security officers and government officials had
\ngathered in the Bali governor's office in the Renon area.<\/p>\n
It was an emotional gathering. There was anger in the air, but
\nit was directed at those responsible for the bombings, not at any
\nminority communities.<\/p>\n
Toward the end of the meeting, the then Bali police
\nchief, Brig. Gen. Budi Setyawan, pledged that the police would
\napprehend the perpetrators in less than a month or he would
\nvoluntarily resign his post.<\/p>\n
Bali governor Dewa Made Beratha extended his condolences to
\nthe victims' families and urged the Balinese to stand united.
\nReligious leaders from all major faiths condemned the terrorist
\nattack, stressing that no religion condoned such cowardly and
\ninhumane actions.<\/p>\n
Tellingly, they also urged their followers to maintain order.<\/p>\n
Later in the evening, various student groups and NGOs held a
\nspecial meeting in the Sanglah area and agreed to conduct
\ncoordinated efforts to tackle two issues of priority: assisting
\nthe victims and preventing a conflict from breaking out in
\nsociety.<\/p>\n
The following day, local and national newspapers, as a result
\nof hastily coordinated efforts by several field reporters,
\npublished bombing stories, in which the exploits of Kuta's Muslim
\ncommunity leader Haji Agus Bambang Priyanto and his Fardhu
\nKifayah volunteers in helping evacuate the victims were given
\nprominent space.<\/p>\n
A year on, the much feared conflict among religious groups has
\nthankfully failed to materialize.<\/p>\n
Contrary to what many people believe, or like to believe, the
\nabsence of violence was not due to the Balinese's obedience to a
\nnoble culture upholding peace at all costs. In fact, it was the
\nresult of several factors, noble and otherwise, that merged and
\ngave birth to a momentum for peace.<\/p>\n
\"The government and various local organizations managed to act
\neffectively and quickly in providing the public with outlets,
\nthrough which they could channel their emotions and strengthen
\nthe cohesion between different communities,\" sociologist I Gde
\nPitana said.<\/p>\n
\"That's one of the reasons why the conflict did not take
\nplace.\"<\/p>\n
He recalled that in the weeks following the bombings, the
\nlocal government and social organizations held numerous public
\nprayers and vigils, at which people from different religions and
\nethnic backgrounds were united in the sacredness of the events --
\nand the shared feeling of community.<\/p>\n
\"Balinese Hindus are firm believers in Karma Pala, the law of
\ncausality, that the good will be rewarded and the bad punished,
\nno matter what. Through all those prayer events and rituals, they
\nplaced the matter of vengeance in the hands of the gods.\"<\/p>\n
Another factor was the pragmatic nature of the Balinese in
\nlooking to the future.<\/p>\n
\"The Balinese were very aware that the bombings would
\ndamage the tourist industry, the island's economic backbone,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"They also knew that any ensuing violent conflict would
\nfurther aggravate the economic problems and might virtually
\ndestroy the island's small chance of getting tourists back. So,
\nthey wisely chose to control their anger.\"<\/p>\n
Cultural observer I Ketut Sumarta attributes pointed out that
\nno sacred areas were attacked and that relatively few Balinese
\nwere among the victims.<\/p>\n
\"Can you imagine what would have happened if the bombs had
\ndestroyed a Hindu temple or if hundreds of Balinese had been
\nkilled in the attack? The Balinese would have surely run amok,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
For the chairman of the hard-line Dharma Study Institute
\n(LKSD), Jondra, the police's seriousness and effectiveness in
\ninvestigating the bombings played a vital role in defusing the
\nemotion-filled situation.<\/p>\n
True to Budi Setyawan's promise, the police succeeded in
\narresting the first suspect, Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, less than a
\nmonth after the bombings.<\/p>\n
\"The arrest also reinforced the Balinese people's faith in
\nKarma Pala and the spiritual power of this island. Those
\nterrorists had conducted terror attacks in various places in
\nIndonesia before and they had never got arrested, until they
\nbombed Bali,\" Jondra said.<\/p>\n
\"It was also reported that the arrest was made possible after
\nthe chief of the investigation team, Inspector General
\nMade Mangku Pastika, received 'divine guidance' from
\nthe gods in the island's biggest temple of Besakih.\"<\/p>\n
He quipped: \"Moreover, the Balinese have always been very
\nreluctant to be violent toward non-Balinese. It's the
\ncharacter of the Balinese that we love to beat our fellow
\nBalinese around instead of engaging in conflict against
\noutsiders.\"<\/p>\n
Haji Agus Bambang Priyanto has his own theory.<\/p>\n
\"The Hindu and Muslim communities in Bali have a very strong
\nhistoric and emotional bond that goes back to the 14th century.
\nWe are brothers, and that's the most important reason why this
\nhorrendous tragedy has failed to destroy and to break down our
\ncommunities along the lines of religious and ethnic differences,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Bambang stressed that Islam came to Bali through peaceful
\nmeans. Balinese Hindu kings showed generosity to Muslims,
\nproviding them with land and assisting them in building mosques.
\nSeveral kings even gave financial assistance to Muslim subjects
\nwho wanted to take the pilgrimage to Mecca. In return, the
\nMuslims provided the kings with loyal guards and fierce warriors.<\/p>\n
\"For instance, the Muslim villages of Kampung Bugis in Tuban
\nand Kampung Kepaon were built upon the spacious plots of land
\nbestowed by the royal family of Pemecutan,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"We will never let ourselves be carried away by fleeting
\nemotions, such as anger, that might jeopardize the bond between
\nHindus and Muslims, the legacy of our forefathers.\"<\/p>",
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