Bali cautions against ISIS on bombing anniversary

With the history of the island’s terrorist attacks in mind, Bali’s governor addressed the Islamic State (ISIS) threat yesterday. Nine years have passed since the second Bali bombing in 2005 and October 12 will mark the 12 year anniversary of the first bombing in 2002.

Bali’s governor I Made Mangku Pastika took the anniversary as an opportunity to publicly warn against ISIS, a group that has pressed for violence against American, Australia, French and Canadian citizens. Bearing in mind that Bali is such a hot spot for international tourism among these nationalities, Pastika stated, “We cannot stop people coming to Bali, we do not know exactly what is in their hearts,” as quoted by the AAP. “However, we owe it to the community to be more careful,” he added.

Although Pastika believes Bali is safe for foreigners, extra security precautions are being taken, like more vigilant passport checks. This comes after four foreigners believed to be connected to ISIS were stopped in Sulawesi with forged documents.

Pastika has experience in dealing with terror on the island. He was police commissioner and chief investigator of the bombings. His approach now, to keep at ISIS at bay is to deal with the motivations for terrorism. “Poverty, injustice, democracy and so many things I think are related to this movement, this problem,” Pstika said.

“I hope that all Indonesian people, especially those who are in Indonesia but are not necessarily Indonesian, and who are living, especially in Bali, I hope they will continue tolerance, democracy, brotherhood and solidarity.”