Police fired tear gas fuels Indonesia’s disaster

Criticism is rising that the police’s excessive crackdown has increased the number of crushing accidents at soccer fields in Indonesia. At least 125 people were killed in the accident at the Malangsi soccer field in eastern Indonesia on the 1st, including 17 children.

On the 2nd (local time), foreign media such as the AP and the New York Times (NYT) pointed to tear gas fired by the police as the cause of the accident. Violence began when the away team supporters broke into the stadium, angry at the loss, and the police fired tear gas to quell the chaos. Some witnesses testified that police fired tear gas into the stands for nearly an hour, and hundreds of people in fright ran to the exit. At least 34 people were killed in the process, and the death toll rose to 125 as more injured and transported people died.

Experts point out that tear gas should not be used in closed spaces such as stadiums. Owen West, a security lecturer at Edge Hill University in the UK, said, “In this case, it is extremely dangerous to use tear gas, a long-range weapon, to disperse crowds. “Tear gas should only be used when there is no other option, and the crowd should be warned in advance,” said Usman Hamid, Amnesty International Indonesia’s managing director, in a statement. The International Football Association (FIFA) bans the use of tear gas in stadiums.

The stadium was already overcrowded on that day as the local soccer committee sold 42,000 tickets, which is more than the 38,000 seat capacity. As the unrest outside the stadium, officials closed some of the exits, further increasing the number of victims. It is also pointed out that the fact that the police entered armed with riot gear and tear gas was itself counterproductive.

On the 2nd day after the accident, the NYT reported that more than 11,500 tweets including the Indonesian word ‘pembunu’ were posted on Indonesian social media.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said in a televised speech, “I hope this will be the country’s last football tragedy,” and called for a thorough investigation.

The accident is the largest football-related accident in Indonesia. Soccer is the second most popular sport in Indonesia after badminton, and related violence is frequent. More than 70 people died in soccer-related violence between 1994 and 2019, according to the Australian Broadcasting Association.

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