JakartaPost-Aug 26, 2022
Almost two decades after the Bali bombings left Thiolina Ferawati Marpaung with permanent eye injuries, news that one of the masterminds could be released early has caused fresh trauma. The latest reduction to Umar Patek’s prison sentence – revealed last week by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and confirmed by AFP – means the bomber could be released on parole before the island marks the 20th anniversary of the attacks in October. That is a galling prospect for survivors of the attack, which killed 202 people. “It is not that I don’t respect other people’s rights, but he has hurt the survivors and families with his evil and inhumane acts,” Thiolina told AFP by phone from Denpasar. The smell of smoke triggers vivid memories of the blasts that sent shards of broken glass tearing into her eyes, Thiolina said. Patek – a member of an al-Qaeda-affiliated group who was captured in the same Pakistani town where Osama bin Laden was killed – should be kept locked up, she said. “Please let him serve what he deserves as a terror convict, not like a chicken thief whom we can easily forgive,” the 47-year-old said. But the government says Patek has given up his extremist beliefs after completing a deradicalization program. He was granted a sentence reduction on Aug. 17 because he had served two-thirds of his 20-year prison term and shown progress toward reform, said Teguh Wibowo, spokesperson for the East Java Law and Human Rights Office. Australia has also been angered by the news of Patek’s sentence reduction. The country lost 88 of its citizens in the attacks, the most of any of the 21 countries whose nationals were killed. Read more at: https://www.thejakartapost.com/paper/2022/08/25/survivors-pained-as-bali-bombers-term-cut.html.
