Kamal Ahmed Bamadhaj (23 December 1970 – 12 November 1991) was a

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

student and

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

activist, who was killed in the Dili Massacre in

East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

on November 12, 1991. Of

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

n and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

parentage, he was the only foreign national to be killed when

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

n troops opened fire on a funeral procession at the Santa Cruz cemetery in

Dili Dili (Portuguese language, Portuguese and Tetum language, Tetum: ''Díli'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Timor-Leste. It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed in by mountai ...

. He attended the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and worked as an interpreter for Australian aid agencies working in East Timor. The Indonesian military commander in

, Sintong Panjaitan, who was removed from the post, later went to study in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. In 1994, Bamadhaj's mother, Helen Todd, sued Panjaitan for punitive damages in a US court. However, he dismissed the court's decision as 'a joke' Defense Aide Responsible for 1991 Massacre
June 19, 1998 and returned to Indonesia. A 1999 film, called ''Punitive Damage'', tells the story of Todd's legal battle.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bamadhaj, Kamal 1970 births 1991 deaths New Zealand people of Indian descent New Zealand people of Malaysian descent New Zealand human rights activists Protest-related deaths New Zealand expatriates in Indonesia New Zealand expatriates in Timor-Leste Deaths by firearm in Timor-Leste Deaths by firearm in Indonesia Malaysian people of Indian descent