Watch: Approximately 129 people killed as a stampede breaks out in a domestic football game in Indonesia
Football is often considered to be a sport where emotions run high among the fans, especially when their favourite teams are involved. Most of the time, this comes as an advantage to the home teams as they love playing in front of roaring spectators. However, it might come as a disgrace as has been the case here in Indonesia during a domestic match.
As many as 129 people lost their lives during a stampede after the clash between Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya on October 1, Saturday. Regarding the incident, Arema FC’s 3-2 loss against the rivals in their backyard, Malang, prompted a pitch invasion and thus resulting in the stampede. The cops, who tried to control it, had to open tear gas at one point and it resulted in suffocation.
However, as cops said, many people who lost their lives were either choked or trampled. The police further clarified that they opened the tear gas owing to the killing of two cops by uncontrollable fans. East Java police chief Nico Afinta said that spectators died as they were crushed while they ran towards the exit. This will go down as one of the worst incidents in the history of Indonesia and football.
#WATCH | At least 127 people died after violence at a football match in Indonesia, last night. The deaths occurred when angry fans invaded a football pitch after a match in East Java
(Video source: Reuters) pic.twitter.com/j7Bet6f9mE
— ANI (@ANI) October 2, 2022
The Indonesia government regrets the incident
The Indonesian government quickly took cognizance of the incident and expressed its regret on the same. Indonesia’s Sports and Youth minister Zainudin Amali said that the government will investigate the case to the fullest. He assured to prevent such incidents in the future and promised the safety of the players.
“This is a regrettable incident that ‘injures’ our football at a time when supporters can watch football matches from the stadium. We will thoroughly evaluate the organisation of the match and the attendance of supporters. Will we return to banning supporters from attending the matches? That is what we will discuss,” the Sports and Youth minister was quoted as saying in the Times of India.
In a shocking revelation, Indonesia’s coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs Mahfud FD said that the government had ordered to print only 38,000 tickets for the game. However, he backed up his statement by revealing that a total of 42,000 tickets were printed for the game.
“The government has made improvements to the implementation of football matches… and will continue to improve. But this sport, which is a favourite of the wider community, often provokes supporters to express emotions suddenly,” Mahfud said on his Instagram post. The football fraternity has been saddened by the incident, it will take some time before they recover from the horror.
