Australia marks 20th anniversary of Bali bombings

STORY: Eighty-eight white doves were released into the Sydney sky on Wednesday (October 12), in a memorial marking 20 years since 88 Australians died in the Bali bombings in Indonesia – one of the world’s deadliest militant attacks.

Jan Roberts, whose son Ben died that night, spoke on behalf of families who lost their loved ones.

202 people died in total.

“Everyone deals with grief in different ways. It left me weak at the knees and needing silence. I existed but was not present for two years.”

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the country would hold onto the victims’ names and faces, and never let them fade.

“Twenty years on, the ache does not dim.”

Commemorations were held in Australia’s Parliament House in Canberra.

Australian officials placed flowers on a wreath in memory of the victims.

Indonesian diplomat to Australia Siswo Pramono, said the two nations will prevail over challenges, especially terrorism.

“As we commemorate the 20th year of the Bali bombing in Australia and in Indonesia, we call for a strengthened partnership between the two great nations so that the heinous crime will not be repeated again in the future.”

Memorial activities were also held in Bali.

Tourists and locals on the Indonesian island visited a memorial at the site of the blasts, where names of the victims were inscribed.

The two, almost simultaneous blasts hit Bali’s Kuta strip late at night on October 12, 2002.

An Islamic militant group was blamed for the bombings.

After the attacks, Indonesia set up an elite anti-terrorism unit that resulted in scores of suspected militants being arrested or killed.