Sister leads tribute to Bali bomb victims

A permanent London memorial to the victims of the Bali bombing is being planned by the families of the dead.

Behind the plans is the architect sister of one of the 28 British victims.

The stone globe and wall - pictured here for the first time - could be in place by October, the third anniversary of the terror attack which killed 202 people, mostly young holidaymakers and sportsmen.

The designs are being submitted for approval to Westminster council. The Foreign Office has offered £100,000 to the project and will give the memorial a prominent space on Horse Guards Road.

"It's colossally important for the families. It gives us something to focus on here," said Susanna Miller, who lost her 31-year-old brother Dan in the attack. She, along with other members of the UK Bali Bombing Victims' Group, has selected the globe with 202 doves carved on it - one for each victim.

Behind the 5ft granite globe is a 20ft Portland stone wall carved with each name. Mr Miller, a lawyer, was in Bali for an amateur rugby tournament. He died instantly when the bomb ripped through the Sari nightclub. Ten of his friends were also killed and his wife, Polly, suffered serious injuries.

" They had only been married for five weeks," said Ms Miller, who lives in Bloomsbury. Her brother's body was not identified for three weeks and Ms Miller, 36, travelled to Bali to collect it.

"It's unbelievably hard to accept that someone as fit and healthy and accomplished and extrovert can just be blasted off the face of the earth.

"Seeing the bomb site was an extraordinary agony. You can't believe that people could deliberately plan something like that. There were still some body parts and the smell and impression of destruction was unbearable."

If Westminster council planners approve the scheme it will be the first memorial to the bomb victims in Europe. "There were 57 Europeans killed," said Ms Miller.

Artist Gary Breeze said: "The doves taking off represent hope and peace and the spirit of each person who died."

About 36 alleged members of extremist group Jemaah Islamiyah - linked with al Qaeda - were arrested over the attacks but only five have been convicted. Three were sentenced to death, one was jailed for life and the other for two and a half years.