The calls for signing the petition to ban the use of tear gas are mounting on Twitter following the deadly football crush that killed more than 120 people at Kanjuruhan Stadium, Malang, East Java, on 1 October.
As of 2 pm Jakarta time, the hashtag #Tandatangani Petisi (Sign a petition) earned 7,753 tweets on Twitter, and more than 40,000 signed the petition—initiated by Blok Politik Pelajar—to halt the use of tear gas at Change.org.
The tragedy occurred when several Arema supporters—known as Aremania—stormed the pitch after the disappointing loss by the Indonesian professional football club on their home ground to the visiting team Persebaya from Surabaya, the first defeat after 23 years.
Police officers tried to prevent the disappointing supporters from entering the pitch while firing what appeared to be tear gas up in the air, which led to one of the world’s most disastrous events in soccer history.
The tear gas caused panic, and supporters pushed each other to leave the stadium, leading to a deadly crush that killed 125—according to the latest data from the Indonesian Police.
As many as 33 children died in the incident, an official at the Ministry of Women and Children Empowerment (PPPA) told AFP, as cited in Detik.
Many survivors questioned why Police rained tear gas on supporters in the upper tribune who were not involved in the riot on the pitch.
One of the Twitter users, who had already signed the petition, called all related parties responsible for hundreds of deaths.
“Who must be responsible for hundreds of deaths? Support the petition!!! The Police must stop the use of tear gas. Sign the petition chng.it/DWmCNKRw via @ChangeOrg_ID,” said @win17agustus.
Twitter user @Bimantara25 posted a video from his brother, who watched the match in the stadium.
“The video is from my brother at the tribune section 12 in the stadium. The supporters there did not trigger any riot. They were not anarchists. Why did the police fire tear gas on us?” he tweeted.
Video dari adik saya yg nonton di tribun 12 kanjuruhan. Mereka ga rusuh di tribun. Mereka ga anarkis di tribun. Tapi kenapa ditembak bangsaatttt
ACAB !! pic.twitter.com/2wc6b8ieAy
— • (@Bimantara25) October 1, 2022
Bagus Putra Pamungkas, a journalist at Jawa Pos, expressed his grief over what happened in Kanjuruhan, questioning why the Police did not learn from a similar tragedy in 2012 —when the Police fired tear gas to disperse the crown at the Gelora Bung Tomo, Surabaya.
“The middle-aged woman ran and shouted,” Oh My God. My kid went missing.” She broke out in tears after losing her kid, who is under five years old. And lots of victims in the derby. Tear gas was shot right over the tribune section. Why did this happen?” Pamungkas expressed his anger in his tweet.
The journalist who was at the stadium covering the East Java derby stated he lost his desire to write after hearing many people cried looking for their missing relatives, siblings, and friends.
“I lost my desire for writing after hearing cries broke up. Mothers lost their children. Elder brothers lost younger ones. Friends lost friends. We, journalists, were stuck. We helped those who lost their loved ones,” he added in his tweet.
One of the viral videos of the incident came from the Twitter account @adilah_iqbal where it showed a supporter being hit by a police officer at the head after asking the police officer not to use tear gas.
https://twitter.com/adilah_iqbal/status/1576791834130452481
“One of my friends spoke to the Police, begging him not to fire tear gas over the tribune as many small children were there. But what did he get? He got scolded, hit and forced to leave the pitch!” @adilah_iqbal tweeted.
Europe’s top leagues also expressed condolences by performing a minute of silence ahead of matches, as shown in English Premier League (EPL) and Spain’s La Liga.
World’s football association FIFA prohibits using tear gas to dispel riots as stated in its Safety and Security Regulations.
The FIFA Stadium Safety and Security Regulations. Article 19 b) reads: ‘No firearms or “crowd control gas” shall be carried or used.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino, in a statement, said that the Kanjuruhan incident was a dark day in football history, adding that such a stampede was “beyond comprehension”.
“This is a dark day for all involved in football and a tragedy beyond comprehension. I extend my deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims who lost their lives following this tragic incident,” the former UEFA General Secretary stated.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo has been instructed by President Joko Widodo to conduct a thorough investigation on 2 Oct.
The Indonesia Police will summon the Head of PT Liga Indonesia Baru (PT LIB), the competition’s operator, the Head of Indonesia Football Association (PSSI) East Java Chapter, and other parties related to the incident.
The Indonesian government has also established a fact-finding team (TGPF) to probe the tragedy. The team comprises football experts, former football stars, academicians, and government representatives. Coordinating Minister for Politics, Legal, and Security Affairs, Mahfud MD, leads the team.
Just yesterday, the Malang Police Chief AKBP Ferli Hidayat and nine Brimob (Mobile Brigade) commanders were sacked by the Chief General — two days following the tragedy.
