Minister threatens to drop finals after city fan killed

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Fri, 02/08/2008 12:28 PM | Headlines

State Minister for Youth and Sport Affairs Adyaksa Dault said Thursday the government would possibly drop the final match of the Djarum Indonesian Premier League following the death of a supporter during the semifinals on Wednesday.

"There will be no final match if the committee cannot guarantee that (a similar) accident will not happen," he said.

He said he was still waiting for a report from the city police chief as to whether they were ready to secure the final match scheduled for Saturday.

Sriwijaya FC of Palembang is to take on PSMS Medan in the final. A final announcement as to the fate of the match is expected for Friday afternoon.

Danang Ismartani, a coordinator of Jakmania, the Persija fans club, said 27-year-old Fatul Mulyadi was attacked on a Metromini bus on his way to the stadium.

"(He was on a) Metromini on Jalan Sudirman on the way to watch the Persija match at 7 p.m. when several men jumped inside the bus, forced him out and beat him on the sidewalk," Danang said.

The clash flared up again in the stadium as the Persipura and PSMS squads were about to execute penalty shootouts.

Persija supporters, whose team was to play later against Sriwijaya, began to throw projectiles, mainly empty plastic bottles, at the Persipura's supporters, who numbered around 600.

A Metro TV cameraman was also hurt in the brawl, while his camera, along with a car belonging to SCTV and two other vehicles were damaged.

"I am very disappointed that rioting by fans happened again while we are doing our best to promote Visit Indonesia Year 2008," said the sports minister.

Violence also marred quarterfinal matches last month in Kediri, East Java, after Arema fans, angry at the referee, invaded the pitch.

The Indonesian Soccer Association relocated the rest of the serie's matches to nearby Sidoarjo.

City police spokesman Sr. Comr. Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said Thursday that the police were yet to arrest anyone as they were still investigating the case.

"We're trying to find witnesses to the incident to make sure we know the timeline," he said. (ind/dre/nkn)

Comments (0) | Post comment

A | A | A |