Bomb Season in Jakarta: A personal account of a turbulent period in Australian diplomacy

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Grant Dooley

Bomb Season in Jakarta

A personal account of a turbulent period in Australian diplomacy

Grant Dooley

$36.99

Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

Affirm Press
29 July 2025

Memoirs; Politics & government; Biography - Australian

In the history of Australian diplomacy, the Jakarta post between 2004 and 2007 looms larger than any other. In the span of just a few years, a terrorist bomb attack partially destroyed the Embassy compound, killing eleven; the Boxing Day tsunami wreaked havoc on an almost incomprehensible scale; a bombing in Bali killed twenty, including four Australians; Schapelle Corby divided public opinion; members of the Bali Nine were arrested and convicted; and a Garuda flight crashed and exploded in Yogyakarta, killing twenty, including members of the Australian diplomatic corps.

Working in a diplomatic posting in Jakarta at the time, not only did Grant Dooley bear witness to these events, but he was also a first responder in the Embassy bombing and plane crash. And when he wasn't dealing with emergencies and constant terror threats, he had to delicately manage Australia's political leaders, from Alexander Downer to John Howard to Bronwyn Bishop. Somehow, Grant and his wife, Kristan, who worked on the consular staff, kept it all together for themselves and their young family. Or did they?

Bomb Season in Jakarta is an incredible up close and personal account of an unparalleled period in Australian diplomacy.

By: Grant Dooley
Imprint: Affirm Press
Country of Publication: Australia
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 153mm,
ISBN: 9781923293021
ISBN 10: 1923293028
Pages: 288
Publication Date: 29 July 2025
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Grant Dooley had a distinguished career as a foreign affairs and trade official for the Australian Government, including two years as the Australian Consul General in Guangzhou, China, and postings to Shanghai, China, and Jakarta, Indonesia.