The Kanjuruhan tragedy that claimed hundreds of lives was an extraordinary incident. So, don’t waste Aremania’s life with endless coachman debates.
So far, official government data says the death toll after the Arema FC vs. Persebaya Surabaya match has reached 131 people.
Youth, mothers, and minors are also included. Two police officers were also victims. It is a sad event for this nation.
Those lives were not lost because of clashes between supporters. Most of them died from overcrowding and asphyxiation. Not a few are trampled.
This incident was triggered by a handful of Arema fans who entered the field. TNI and Police officers reacted strongly to block the movement of the masses and fired tear gas.
Not only targeting the masses on the ground, tear gas was also fired at the stands. This is what makes the masses panic and jostle to claim hundreds of lives.
The actions of Arema fans taking to the field cannot be justified whatever the motive. However, the overreaction of the authorities was also a sharp spotlight. Moreover, the polemic of the use of tear gas is an illegal item in the stadium.
Door 13 is a silent witness to the terrible tragedy that occurred at the Kanjuruhan Stadium. A number of eyewitnesses said the tear gas shot was the trigger for the crowd at the exit. This location is even described as a mass grave.
Many parties accuse the security forces of being the most guilty party in this case. The police are considered to have failed to carry out crowd control, resulting in hundreds of deaths.
Some parties also said Aremania’s action to the field could not be justified. PSSI and PT Liga Indonesia Baru (LIB) were also urged to take responsibility for failing to organize a football match that was safe for all.
PT LIB’s decision to hold a number of matches at night was also questioned. This policy is considered to perpetuate orders from broadcasting rights holders.
Security Officer of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Nugroho Setiawan told ABC News that there were three important points in organizing the match.
“The first point is the common perception of security among all stakeholders. The second is the condition of the infrastructure, this must be assessed. The third is the supporter behavior itself, which we must engineer,” said Nugroho.
“These three aspects must be synchronized, and when we carry out a risk assessment, we will produce a security plan that is mutually agreed upon, so an agreed behavior and procedure. Well, this synchronization may not happen,” he explained.
Regarding the shooting of tear gas, which is clearly prohibited by FIFA, Nugroho believes that the Indonesian police cannot be fully blamed.
“We cannot directly blame the officials because this FIFA regulation is made as neutral as possible, as generic as possible to accommodate all the interests of association members.”
“There are now more than 200 members, each country must have a different approach. Now, we are talking about the authority of the public authority, in this case the police, which has its own legal basis,” said Nugroho.
While FIFA, continued Nugroho, also has its own limitations. FIFA’s perception of the handling of crowds in stadiums must be equated with that of the police.
“Perhaps this communication, the common perception that I conveyed earlier has not been achieved properly,” he said.
Nugroho supported the government in forming the Joint Independent Fact Finding Team (TGIPF) led by the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD.
“Of course it’s an independent body. You can ask for help from our parent organization, there are AFC and FIFA which have disciplinary committees and can also make emergency committees because this is a fatality.”
“For me, just one person [killed] is extraordinary, especially if this is more than 100 people. So it must be a higher or independent body,” said Nugroho.
Now, TGIPF has started working. Mahfud MD targets that in the next three weeks he will be able to convey the results of his work to President Joko Widodo.
“God willing, in three weeks this team will be able to convey the results of its work to the President, and it is hoped that it can be faster than that target,” said TGIPF Chairman and Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD in his statement, Wednesday (5/10).
Mahfud said TGIPF would look for the root of the problem and provide recommendations to stop the problems that often occur in the world of Indonesian football.
“So that the root of the problem must be put forward by this team, then it is recommended what to do so that it does not happen again in the future,” said Mahfud.
“The team will recommend the imposition of sanctions for those who commit violations,” he said.
A total of 131 fatalities is not a small number. This is the biggest death toll in the dark history of Indonesian football.
In addition, the Kanjuruhan Tragedy is also listed as the second deadliest event in the history of world football.
The highest number of deaths due to football riots currently occurs at the Estadio Nacional Disaster, Lima, Peru. The tragedy occurred on May 24, 1964, killing 328 people.
This incident proves that the implementation of Indonesian football competitions is far from being optimal. Most of the immature supporters accept defeat while the authorities also do not understand how to control crowds in stadiums, which are not criminals.
This extraordinary tragedy is expected to be a moment of improvement for Indonesian football. Don’t let any more victims lose their lives in vain because of the negligence of the Panpel and the mistakes of the officers in handling security.
