BANGKOK. At least 129 people died after police fired tear gas to disperse rioting football fans following a football match in the Indonesian province of East Java. Among the victims are two policemen. Most died from lack of oxygen during the crush after fans invaded the pitch at Kanjuruhan stadium as hosts Arema Malang lost 3-2 to East Java rival Persebaya Surabaya on Saturday night. said provincial police chief Nico Afinta.
“We regret and deplore the tragedy,” said the provincial police chief, Nico Afinta, at a press conference. There were few Persebaya fans for the match because they were banned from watching the match, given the fierce rivalry between the two clubs in the country’s top league. “We had suggested that only Arema fans could attend the match,” explained Afinta. The estimate of the casualties was made by Malang’s head of health, Widjanto Widjoyo, based on information gathered from the city’s hospitals. “We will create a call center to provide information to families who are looking for their loved ones,” he said. All remaining matches were suspended for a week following the incident, while the Indonesian Football Association (Pssi) said Arema will not host any more matches for the remainder of the season and that a commission will investigate the incident.
“We regret the action of the Arema fans at the Kanjuruhan stadium – said the head of Pssi Mochamad Iriawan – we offer our condolences and our apologies to the families of the victims and to all parties involved in the accident”. Afianto, the police chief, said security personnel followed the procedures when he fired tear gas after some 3,000 fans invaded the field. “If the fans had followed the rules – he underlines – this incident would not have happened.”
According to FIFA safety regulations, security personnel are not allowed to use crowd control gas and firearms in stadiums. “The Indonesian Football Federation – he added – may have been negligent in not informing the police that the security procedures during a football match are not the same as in a demonstration”. Some witnesses said the fans weren’t attacking rivals. Rather, they were showing their displeasure with the players and match officials as they left the pitch.
President Joko Widodo has called for an investigation into the matter. “I would like to express my condolences for the death of 129 of our compatriots in the Kanjuruhan football tragedy,” he said in a statement.