Did the Oct. 12 inferno really change Australia?

Rob Goodfellow, University of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia

How to cope with proximity to Asia has been Australia's dilemma since the World War II. Four events have framed Australian national perceptions of the countries near north: The defeat of the invading Japanese Army in New Guinea, the Vietnam War, Indonesia's annexation of East Timor and the 12 Oct. 2002 bombings in Bali.

Australia's often-turbulent relationship with the region is entering a new phase. This is because as a nation Australia is in the process of transforming itself into neither a "European" nor an "Asian" society, but rather something uniquely "Australian".

More than any event since the Japanese Army were turned back on the Kakoda Trail above Port Moresby in January 1943, the bombing of the Sari Club and Paddy's Bar in Kuta and the death of 202 people (including 88 Australians) has defined what this emerging sense of "Australian-ness" is.

World War II, Vietnam and East Timor were interpreted by various Australian governments as confirmation of Australia"s territorial vulnerability. The Bali bombings on the other hand have revealed a depth of national character that has demonstrated the maturity to recognize the hopes, fears and aspirations of Australia's Indonesian neighbors -- as they too confront the reckless evils of intolerance, racial hatred and militant fundamentalism.

Indeed the small but dangerous minority of zealots that threaten Indonesia's emerging democracy also threatens the entire region, of which Australia is increasingly, "the odd man in".

There is ample evidence of an unprecedented level of official cooperation between Australia and Indonesia following Oct. 12. Despite the great differences between cultures, the police in Bali and their Australian counterparts -- in particular the Australian Federal Police, made astonishing progress in bringing the bombers to justice.

Further, intelligence organizations in both countries are sharing counter-terrorism expertise in a manner that would have been unthinkable prior to the tragedy. (This cooperation was quickly mobilized to respond to the August bombing of the Marriott Hotel in Jakarta.)

However the greatest impact has been in the way the tragedy has brought ordinary Australians and Indonesians in closer contact with each other.

This relationship is exemplified by Perth roof tiler Peter Hughes who suffered horrendous burns in the blast. Hughes now spends much of his time raising funds to support victims in both Australia and Bali. (The courage of Hughes and others on the night of the disaster moved the Chief of the Australian Defense Force, Maj. Gen. Peter Cosgrove, to describe survivors and volunteers on the scene as "diggers [the traditional word for Australian soldiers] without a uniform on".)

It was this determination to be part of a solution, rather than surrender to terror tactics, that inspired Hughes to present a "victim impact statement" to the court in Denpasar.

This set a precedent in the development of the Indonesian justice system, but it also supported a surprisingly open and workable system of jurisprudence -- at a critical period in Indonesia's social and political reconstruction.

In Bali, funds raised by millions of ordinary Australians and hundreds of community and service groups have been spent on developing an ambulance service, establishing a blood bank, on modernizing emergency facilities and on improving disaster preparedness in both Indonesia, and in Australia's most northerly capital city -- Darwin.

Hundreds of smaller organizations around Australia, such as the "Zero to One Foundation", which supports victims of terrorism, are assisting students affected by the Bali tragedy with school fees, books, uniforms and other educational costs in a program that organizers hope will run over a 20-year period.

In sport, a nine-a-side version of "Aussie Rules" football, and the Bali International Rugby Tens, were set to commence their respective competitions in Denpasar on Oct. 11 as part of activities to memorialize last years bombing victims.

Many of those participating lost friends and teammates in the tragedy and have expressed determination to commemorate Oct. 12 in Bali despite the Australian government's travel advisory.

My city of Wollongong New South Wales, has hosted three high level Indonesia delegations -- one each from Denpasar, Jakarta and Medan. Last week, Wollongong City Gallery Director Peter O'Neill, summed up this new approach during the visit of a delegation to organize an exchange of staff from the Museum of North Sumatra: "Relationships between countries are too important to be left solely in the hands of government. [The Australian] media focuses on government-to-government relationships but ... there is an enormous series of relations -- people-to-people -- that exceed government relations a hundred times over".

Like Australians observance of "Anzac Day" (an Australian military defeat in Turkey during World War I) the commemoration of the Oct. 12 bombings demonstrates Australians celebrate character rather than cause.

What Australian's call "mateship" in the face of adversity has again ennobled us. Bali has not only confirmed our integrity but also demonstrated a growing desire to imaginatively engage Indonesia at many levels. For this reason, historians of the future will see Oct. 12, 2002 as a turning point in Australia's national journey.

The writer has recently completed his PhD in Indonesian history and politics. He is the author of a number of books on Australian relations with the region.