Fans blame police for Indonesian soccer riot

It was supposed to be a joyous occasion for fans of Arema FC, the most beloved soccer team in Malang.

Tens of thousands of young people — who call themselves “Aremania” — had packed the Kanjuruhan Stadium on Saturday night, hoping to watch their team beat Persebaya Surabaya, a club it had defeated for 23 years running.

But Arema lost, 3-2, and angry fans began rushing the field. What unfolded next became one of the deadliest sports stadium disasters in history: Police officers began shooting tear gas canisters into the crowd and beating fans with batons, witnesses said, and in a rush to flee the stadium fans piled up against narrow exits, crushing each other. At least 125 people were reported dead as of Sunday night.

The disaster has focused attention on the use of tear gas by local police in such a tightly packed stadium. On Twitter, one of the top trending topics in Indonesia was “National Police Chief,” with many Indonesians calling for his removal. A spokesperson for the national police said that in addition to the huge death toll, there were reports that at least 300 people had been injured.

Violent, often deadly rivalries between major teams are common in Indonesia. But Indonesia has never before seen a sports stadium disaster on this scale. Saturday’s tragedy appeared to be a perfect storm of everything that could go wrong at a soccer match.

Indonesia’s president, Joko Widodo, has asked the police chief for a thorough investigation into the cause of the incident. In a televised speech to the nation, he said he had also ordered the minister of youth and sports and the chair of Indonesia’s football association to evaluate security at soccer matches.

Police defended their use of tear gas, which they said was necessary to subdue aggrieved fans. East Java’s police chief, Inspector General Nico Afinta, said the gas was deployed “because there was anarchy.” He said the fans “were about to attack the officers and had damaged the cars.”

But witnesses dispute Afinta’s account, saying that police officers fired tear gas indiscriminately into the stands, causing a stampede and many people to suffocate. Videos circulating on Twitter showed fans scaling a fence as they tried to flee the clouds of tear gas. Other videos showed security forces with shields and batons kicking and hitting fans who had rushed onto the field.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.