Bali victim's cousin begins 2,000 km walkathon

Bali victim's cousin begins 2,000 km walkathon

Agence France-Presse, Brisbane, Australia

A relative of a Bali bomb victim set out on Sunday on a 2,100- kilometer (1,320-mile) trek from the Queensland resort of Gold Coast to Melbourne to raise money for Bali.

Stuart Mayne, who five months ago made the heart-breaking journey to Bali to search for the remains of his cousin Belinda Allen, 23, left with his friend Howard Battye on a journey to honor the nearly 200 victims of the Oct. 12 terrorist attack on the Indonesian resort island.

They plan to spend 88 days on the road to commemorate each of the Australians who lost their lives.

Mayne said that rather than be consumed by anger over the death of his beloved cousin, he wanted to do something positive.

"We're a pretty tight-knit family and it just devastated the whole family," he said on Sunday.

"Obviously you've got that chain and a very important link's out of it now. Her parents are still absolutely wrecked over it.

"Instead of getting angry and all that I've decided to... walk to raise money."

Mayne and Battye hope to raise A$100,000, covering about 24 kilometers a day in a trek taking them through 225 towns and villages.

The money raised will go to the Rebuild Bali Appeal, which has already collected A$500,000 (US$300,000) for survivors and for the Bali community.

In a ceremony on Bali on Saturday, more than 180 body parts belonging to victims of the bombing were cremated in a Hindu ceremony aimed to "purify the souls" of the bombing victims.