A Perth survivor of the Bali bombings who spent 44 days in a coma after he was buried alive is finally ready to tell his story.

Antony Svilicich has reflected on his near-death experience and determination to restore peace on the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attack.

Svilicich was at the Sari Club in Kuta on October 12, 2002, where one of the explosions went off.

“I was buried alive under the rubble of the Sari,” he said.

“I remember I was waking up and lying on my back.

“The smoke and the inferno just engulfed the rear of the Sari.

“I could hear screaming and shouting and arguing.

“It was just absolute chaos.”

Svilicich was in a coma for 44 days. By the time he woke up it was the end of November.

At his bedside, his brother told him what had happened.

“(He said) you were injured in a bombing in Bali,” he said.

“That was the first time I’d heard of this bombing.

“Up until then, all I knew was that it was a fire, you know.”

That night, 202 people were killed, including 16 Western Australians.

Svilicich underwent emergency surgery following the bombing.

His life was saved by Dr Fiona Wood and Dr Mark Duncan-Smith.

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He has had a total of 28 operations and was the last Western Australian to leave hospital in January 2003.

“Dr Dale Edgar, he taught me how to walk again and regain functional movement in all parts of my body,” he said.

Now 45 and working at Melville Council, Svilicich has dedicated the past 10 years to gathering support for the Bali peace park.

Despite millions in funding for the project, the owner of the land where the Sari Club once stood is still refusing to relinquish the majority of his share of the site.

“They’ve got their heart set on building a new nightclub on that site,” Svilicich said.

“I think they’ll probably get their wish.

“Building another nightclub on there isn’t really appropriate for that site.

“I think we need to remember those victims and people who were injured in a much more respectful manner.”

In his new book, Phoenix Rising, Svilicich details the hunt for the terrorists, including bomb maker Umar Patek, who could soon walk free.

“I’d be very disappointed in the Indonesian justice system if he is released,” Svilicich said.

“I don’t think that spending 10 years in jail is enough time to be fully rehabilitated.

“I think he’s just saying that to be able to get out.

“I think there’s a real chance that he may reoffend.”

Twenty years since the tragedy that rocked his world, Svilicich’s message is clear.

“The terrorists may have won the battle on that night but they certainly haven’t won the war,” he said.

“The Australian spirit has not been broken.”