Grieving Musu says Manuela is his daughter

Grieving Musu says Manuela is his daughter

Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post/Tangerang

The body of Maria Eva Komalawati, one of the nine fatalities in
the bomb blast outside the Australian Embassy on Jl. Rasuna Said,
Kuningan, South Jakarta, on Thursday, was buried on Saturday at a
Catholic cemetery near the Binong Permai housing complex in
Curug, Tangerang.

The family waited for two days for the arrival of her Italian
husband Emanuel Musu before conducting Eva's funeral. Musu
arrived at Eva's sister house on Saturday morning and immediately
rushed to Eva's coffin and kissed his wife several times. He also
asked the press to give him space to be alone with her.

Musu looked calm during the funeral. When most people had
already left the cemetery, he was seen speaking to Eva's picture
in tears for a few minutes. He also embraced the picture of their
only daughter Elisabeth Manuela Bambina Musu.

Five-year-old Manuela was flown to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in
Singapore on Friday to receive specialized treatment after being
treated at the Metropolitan Medical Center (MMC) Hospital near
the embassy. Her aunt Hesti accompanied her to Singapore.

"Manuela no longer has her mother now. I will take her with me
to Italy. I will take care of her. Her condition is still
critical. If the hospital allows me to transfer her to a hospital
in Italy, I will do so," Musu said, adding that he had stopped in
Singapore before arriving in Jakarta to check on his daughter's
condition.

"I managed to see my daughter there before I continued my
flight to Jakarta."

Musu dismissed the Australian government's statement that
Manuela was the daughter of David Norman, a policeman in suburban
Sydney, Australia, and was granted Australian citizenship on
Sept. 1.

"Manuela is my daughter. She was born in Indonesia, but she is
Italian. I married Eva in 1998 and we have lived in Italy ever
since," he said.

"If you want to know more details about my daughter's
citizenship, you can contact the Italian government. You will get
clear information that Manuela is indeed my daughter and she is
Italian."

On Friday, Norman released a statement that he was going to
Singapore to be with his daughter, whom he affectionately called
"Manny".

Manuela and Eva were at the Australian Embassy when a car
bomb, which police believed to be carried by a white Daihatsu
Zebra van, exploded. Eva died instantly along with eight others,
but Manuela survived although she was critically injured.

Doctors at the MMC Hospital managed to remove two large pieces
shrapnel from her abdomen.