Seventeen youths were the victims of the Indonesian football stampede

October 4, 2022: -Seventeen children were among at least 125 people killed in a football stampede in Indonesia at the weekend, officials stated, as pressure builds on the Southeast Asian nation to tell how one of the world’s worst stadium disasters unfolded.

Violence and hooliganism are features of Indonesian football, especially in places like Jakarta, the capital. Still, Saturday’s disaster in a similar town in Java has spotlighted the problem.

“My family and I did not think it would turn release like this,” said Endah Wahyuni, the sister of two boys, Ahmad Cahyo and Muhammad Farel, aged 15 and 14, dying following being caught in the melee.

“They loved soccer but have not watched Arema live at Kanjuruhan stadium; this was their initial time,” she further said at her brothers’ funeral on Sunday, related to the home side they supported.

The boys were among 17 children killed, added state news agency Antara, which cited figures from the women’s empowerment and child protection ministry.

“Seventeen children died, seven were, but there is a possibility that could rise,” said Nahar, a ministry official.

On Monday, an Indonesian daily Koran, Tempo, ran a black front page centered on the words “Our soccer Tragedy,” printed in red along with a list of the dead.

Saturday’s deadly crush panicking spectators tried to escape the overpacked stadium following police firing tear gas to disperse fans to lose home side running onto the pitch at the end of the match.

Home side Arema FC is losing the match 3-2 to Persebaya Surabaya, though authorities had added tickets were not issued to Persebaya fans more than the security concerns.

The situation was a “dark day for all involved,” said FIFA, the governing body for world soccer, asking Indonesian football authorities for a report on the incident.

Its safety rules added that firearms or “crowd control gas” should be used at matches.

Police and sports officials have been sent to Malang to investigate an incident that ranks among the deadliest stadium disasters in the world.

“All those responsible should be held responsible for this disaster, regardless of their position,” Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of New York-based Human Rights Watch, said.

“It’s not over for the national police and the Football Association of Indonesia to conduct their investigation as they may be tempted to downplay or undermine full accountability for officials involved,” he further said.