text / Xiao Junyu
Indonesia's football match on October 1, fans were dissatisfied with losing and causing trouble. The police fired tear gas to drive away the crowd, but it caused panic and stampede. (AFP)
(Jakarta/Malang Comprehensive News) Football match riots and stampedes occurred in Malang County, East Java, Indonesia on Saturday night, killing 125 people, including two police officers and several children; another 323 were injured.
In an Indonesian Super League match held at the Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang County on Saturday (October 1), the Arema team lost 2-3 to Surabaya. About 3,000 Arema fans broke into the stadium and caused trouble. Several players who were still on the stadium were attacked. The police fired tear gas to drive away the crowd, which caused panic and then stepped on.
East Java Sheriff Kooni explained to the media Sunday that the police fired tear gas to control the scene, but it caused panic. In the chaos, fans rushed out of the gymnasium, and a stampede occurred at one of the exits, causing multiple casualties.
After a large number of fans flocked to the game site, the police fired tear gas to control the scene, which caused panic. The picture shows people transferring injured people. (Xinhua News Agency)
Koni confirmed that 34 people died in the stadium, including two policemen. Hundreds of injured were taken to several nearby hospitals, but many died during transport or during treatment. The youngest deceased reportedly was only five years old.
A fan present tweeted to describe the situation at the time. A shout came from the exit of the stadium where the incident occurred, and a woman and a child were trampled during the escape. At the same time as the riots occurred on the field, conflicts broke out between the police and fans outside the field, and a total of 13 police cars were set on fire and destroyed.
At the same time as the riots occurred on the court, conflicts broke out between the police and fans outside the court. The picture shows a damaged vehicle outside the stadium. (Xinhua News Agency)
The number of admissions is seriously exceeding
FIFA's safety regulations state that stadium security personnel or police should not carry or use guns or tear gas. Indonesian Football Association said that the FIFA has requested the submission of an incident investigation report.
The Indonesian branch of Amnesty International criticized the police for their security measures, saying that "the state uses excessive force... to curb or control such people is unreasonable."
Injured person received treatment in a hospital in Malang City, East Java, Indonesia on October 2. (Xinhua News Agency)
Indonesian legal and security affairs coordination minister Ma Fude posted on Instagram after the incident that the authorities suggested a competition be held at noon, but the organizer did not accept it. In addition, the number of spectators on that day also seriously exceeded the capacity of the stadium. The Kanjuluhan Stadium can only accommodate 38,000 people, but 42,000 tickets were sold on the same day. After the
accident, the Indonesian government apologized and promised to review.
Indonesian President Jokovic delivered a TV speech on Sunday, saying: "I regret this tragedy and hope it is the last football tragedy in Indonesia."
Jokovic ordered the authorities to thoroughly investigate the incident and re-evaluate the safety of the football match. The Indonesian Football Association must stop the football league before the investigation is completed.
Arema supporters placed candles, petals, etc. outside the stadium on October 2 to commemorate those who died in the stampede. (Reuters)
Indonesia will host the FIFA Under 20 World Cup in May and June next year, and is also competing for next year's Asian Cup hosting rights.
Previously, there were many violent and mismanagement incidents in Indonesian football matches. According to ABC , between 1994 and 2019, 74 fans died in violence related to Indonesian football matches.
The tragedy that took place on Saturday was also the worst football game riot in the world since 2001. That year, African Ghana fans were dissatisfied with the team they supported and caused trouble. Police fired tear gas and caused a stampede accident, killing 126 people.
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