ABC AUSTRALIA, 17/10/2002 13:12:17
Australia's Prime Minister enroute to Kuta
The Australian Prime Minister John Howard and the opposition leader Simon Crean
have left Australia for Bali.
Their departure comes amid increasing calls for an inquiry into why Australians
weren't warned that Bali had been listed as a possible terrorist target.
Mr Howard says a decision was made not to highten travel warnings to include Bali
despite US intelligence information listing the tourist destination as a possible target.
"Does anybody seriously imagine tha if we'd had a credible warning of the bombing we
wouldn't have moved heaven and earth to stop people going there," he says.
Simon Crean says Parliament must invetsigate the information that was available,
"Certainly the survivors and the relatives of the victims have a right to know."
National mourning
Mr Howard has called for all Australians to observe a minute's silence on Sunday to
pay tribute to those killed or injured by the bomb attacks in Bali.
The minute's silence will take place at 12 noon eastern standard time.
Mr Howard has encouraged people to wear a piece of wattle during Sunday's National
Day of Mourning, and to plant wattle seeds as a gesture of remembrance.
The government will shortly announce arrangements for a national memorial service.
17/10/2002 13:12:17 | ABC Radio Australia News
© 2001 Australian Broadcasting Corporation |
