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Richard C. Paddock

KUTA, Indonesia-Rock music pulsates from open – air Nightclubs as foreign tourists shuffle from one Packed bar to another. Some stop to take selfies against a pair of bright led towers that flash a constant stream of changing colors.

This is ground Zero, the site of the deadliest terrorist attack in Indonesia. The light towers are a recent addition to what was once a grim memorial, giving it a strangely festive air.

In 2002, Islamic extremists linked to al Qaeda detonated a car bomb here in Kuta, on the popular island of Bali, killing 202 people, mostly foreign tourists. Among the dead were 88 Australians.

Today, the nightclub scene along the street, Jalan Legian, is back bigger and louder than ever with one exception: the Sari club site, where most of the victims died, remains a wasteland since the explosion.

Now, controversy has erupted over property owners ‘ plans to build a five-storey restaurant complex on the site. The owners received a building permit in December, allowing them to begin construction at any time.

They began preparing last week by clearing a food stall that operated rent-free and holding a Hindu cleaning ceremony before construction began.

But the restaurant plan has met with opposition, most notably from the Bali Peace Park Association, a group representing Australian survivors and family members of victims who have long wanted to build a memorial Park on the site. The group says the former Governor of Bali, I made Mangku Pastika, promised it would become a Park.

Antony Svilicich, 42, the Association’s communications Manager, survived the blast, which burned more than 64 percent of her body. He said he was surprised and disappointed to learn that the restaurant complex was planned for a lot.

“Some people who have lost loved ones consider it sacred, given that many people have died at this site,” he said. “Some of their bodies have never been found.”

Mr Svilicic, a resident of Perth, Australia, said survivors had been repeatedly assured by Indonesian officials that the property would be turned into a Park.

After the furore erupted, the owners agreed last week to talk to Park advocates about a possible compromise.

Rini jaja, a member of the family that owns the property, says her family will delay construction indefinitely to allow parties to calm down and consider alternatives.

“We will give him some space and time,” she said, noting that one of her family members was also killed in the blast.

In the past, the two sides have never come close to agreeing.

The Bali Peace Park Association offered the equivalent of $ 350,000 for the land when it seemed it could only be used for the Park, said the group’s Chairman, David Napoli.

The owners objected with an asking price of $20 million, he said, and then offered to sell them the restaurant’s top floor as a Park lot for $5 million.

“They were outrageous and very difficult,” Mr. Napoli said.

Mr Napoli said Balinese officials who supported the idea of the Park had recently resigned, clearing the way for a building permit to be granted.

MS reaney said that after more than 16 years of letting the property sit empty, it was time to use a rare open plot in Kuta’s crowded commercial area.

She said there were no plans for a nightclub in the complex and part of the top floor would be dedicated in honor of the club’s Sari victims.

Lila Tanya, another family member, said the owners never agreed to transfer the land to the Park.

“If they want to buy land according to the market price, they are welcome,” she said.

Mr. Napoli said he would fly to Bali this week to begin talks with Ms. Lila.

For decades, Bali has thrived as a tourist destination where almost everything goes.

Predominantly Hindu in a country that is almost 90 percent Muslim, and more permissive of Western-style drinking and partying than much of Indonesia, Bali is hugely popular with Australians who have been coming here for decades. Some joke that Bali is a Northern suburb of Perth, a Western Australian city less than a four-hour flight away.

Some Indonesians bridle at Australia’s oversized influence on the island and at any hint of interference in Indonesian Affairs. At a ceremony last week to clear the site before construction, Ms. Rini keenly led participants in singing Indonesia’s national anthem.

For the bombers in 2002, the decadent entertainment district of Kuta was the perfect target.

They struck on October 12, one year, one month and one day after the September 11 attacks on America.

The Kuta bombers detonated a backpack bomb at paddy’s club, across the street from the Sari club. When the visitors ran out into the street, a powerful bomb exploded in a parked van.

Among the dead are 23 countries, including 38 Indonesians. Hundreds more suffered burns and other injuries.

Like the recent bombings that devastated Sri Lanka, the Bali bombings rocked Indonesia, which until then had been largely unaware of the extremist threat ,and of the radical group, Jemaa Islamiya.

The main organizer of the attack, Indonesian terrorist Hambali, was a key link with al-Qaeda and helped plan the September 11 attacks. He was arrested in Cambodia in 2003 and handed over to the United States. He has been in the WOW Bay prison since 2006.

Shortly after the explosion, a Ground zero memorial was erected on the original site of Paddy’s Club, which was rebuilt nearby.

A black marble plaque lists the names of 202 victims.

Last year, Bali officials added a bright touch with the installation of two tube-shaped light towers, each about 15 feet tall. The top of the memorial is also decorated with a string of flashing colored lights.

Along with the memorial, the narrow Jalan Legian is Packed with tourists. Bars and Nightclubs line the streets and the music is so loud that even on the sidewalk people scream to be heard.

The street is more popular than ever with young foreigners, many of whom are only vaguely aware of the tragedy that has happened – or that people like them have been targeted.

Some analysts fear the party scene could make the area a target again.

Today the site of the Sari club is a dirt lot used primarily for Parking. Several businesses operated there, including grocery stores, a money changer and a tiny massage parlor.

There was little enthusiasm for another restaurant among Balinese who work on packaged commercial strips. Some preferred the Park, others the Parking lot.

At the nearby memorial cafe, Putu Barista Elma Maheni said she disagreed with the owners ‘ plan for a memorial on the top floor as it would not offer easy access to visitors.

“The monument should be public, and putting it on the top floor doesn’t seem like a public place,” she said.

Her Manager, KADEK agus Jayadi, 25, said he thought the Museum would be more appropriate.

“There are already so many restaurants,” he said. “The Museum will tell a story for our children.”

Vicki Xiuzhong Xu contributed reporting from Sydney, Australia.