BAt least 174 people have died in serious riots following a soccer game in the Indonesian province of East Java. 34 people died on the field of Kanjuruhan Stadium, all others in hospitals, local police chief Nico Afinta said, according to radio station Elshinta and broadcaster tvOne. Two police officers were among the dead, the Indonesian police said. Most people died from lack of oxygen. According to Afintas, around 180 people are still in clinics.
Police used tear gas to disperse rioting spectators in the city of Malang, Afinta said at an impromptu press conference on Sunday. The riots broke out after the first division game between Arema FC and Persebaya FC. After the 3-2 defeat in Malang, thousands of spectators stormed the pitch.
Stormed space after defeat
The tragedy in Malang is one of the worst sports stadium disasters in the world. The Kanjuruhan Stadium holds a total of 42,000 spectators and was sold out according to the authorities. According to the police, 3,000 people stormed the square. “We would like to point out that not everyone was anarchic, there were only about 3000 who entered the field,” said Afinta.
The police response to the riots has been criticized on social media. “The tear gas was used because anarchy had broken out,” Afinta said, according to the New York Times. Some photo and video footage of the events at Kanjuruhan Stadium circulated. A video shows football fans climbing the security fences in front of the stands in front of clouds of smoke. Another video shows people running across the field being chased by police officers with shields and hitting them with sticks.
Other pictures also show fans attacking the police officers. Some showed wrecked, overturned and burned police cars. A total of 13 vehicles are said to have been damaged, including ten belonging to the police. A local health worker told The Guardian newspaper that people died as a result of chaos, overcrowding, trampling and lack of oxygen.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has ordered a security review of the country’s football games in the wake of the disaster. The country’s sports and youth minister, the national police chief and the head of the Indonesian Football Confederation have been ordered to “carry out a thorough assessment of football matches and security procedures,” Widodo said in a televised statement.
The involved football clubs Arema and Persebaya expressed their condolences to the victims and their families. “Arema FC extends its deepest condolences for the disaster in Kanjuruhan. Arema FC’s management is also responsible for dealing with the casualties, both dead and injured,” said club boss Abdul Haris.
The club will set up a crisis center and a victim information center. “To the families of the victims, the management of Arema FC sincerely apologizes and stands ready to provide compensation. Management stands ready to accept proposals for how to deal with the disaster so that many will be saved,” Haris said.
Games suspended
The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) suspended play in the first division for a week. Arema were banned from playing home games for the remainder of the season. In addition, the association had set up an investigation team that was supposed to start work on Sunday. “PSSI regrets the actions of Aremania supporters at Kanjuruhan Stadium. We are sorry and apologize to the families of the victims and to everyone involved in the incident,” said Mochamad Iriawan, President of the Association. The police will be assisted in the investigation.
The accident in the British Hillsborough stadium in 1989 was considered one of the most devastating worldwide so far, when 97 fans of Liverpool FC were killed when the stands collapsed. In 2012, 74 people died in a stadium riot in Port Said, Egypt, after a football match. In 1964, a stampede during an Olympic qualifying match between Peru and Argentina at the National Stadium in Lima killed 320 and injured more than 1,000.