On Bali, the Holiday Vibe Masks Memories of a Massacre

Bali, the Indonesian island synonymous with idyllic vacations, harbors a dark secret beneath its surface of beach clubs and luxury hotels. Construction projects intended to draw tourists to the island have, on occasion, unearthed human remains, stark reminders of a brutal past.

During the 1990s, workers building a five-star resort along a palm-lined beach discovered a substantial number of bones. According to a Hindu priest who was called upon to perform an exorcism, the remains filled about half of a pickup truck. Nearby, on land slated for a high-end nightclub, construction crews were shaken by the discovery of two human skulls. As recently as a few years ago, more human remains surfaced during the construction of a beach club featuring bamboo architecture and claiming to be "eco-conscious."

Sixty years ago, beginning this month, Indonesia experienced a wave of anti-communist massacres. At least half a million people were killed in one of the 20th century's most devastating, yet often overlooked, bloodbaths. Ordinary citizens, including neighbors and even family members forced to participate, carried out the violence through stabbing, strangulation, shooting, and other brutal methods.

The slaughter reached Bali with the arrival of the December monsoons. The island, now known for its tourism, suffered a disproportionately high number of deaths compared to other parts of Indonesia. Historians estimate that between 80,000 and 100,000 Balinese people were killed between December 1965 and early 1966. Many corpses were disposed of along the coastline, near cemeteries drenched by rain, and on beaches that were, at the time, untouched by the burgeoning tourism industry.

According to Wayan Badra, a Hindu priest, there's a desire to bury the past and forget the many bones scattered across Bali.

Memories of the massacres in 1965 and 1966 remain suppressed not only internationally but also within Indonesia itself. This amnesia is particularly pronounced in Bali, where reminders of the killings could negatively impact the tourist industry. Historians note that the Suharto regime, which seized power in 1966, deliberately promoted mass tourism on the island as a way to revitalize an economy crippled by the mass killings.