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PSSI, FIFA go ahead with stadium audit amid calls for PSSI’s accountability
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Residents and football supporters offer prayers to remember the victims of the stampede outside the Kanjuruhan stadium in Malang, East Java, on Oct. 3.
(AFP/Juni Kriswanto)
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IFA and the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI) will go ahead with plans to ensure Indonesia will still be able to host the U-20 World Cup and any future matches safely, despite calls for accountability over the PSSI’s role in the Kanjuruhan tragedy.
FIFA’s development-project coordinator Niko Nhouvannasak said that currently, the world soccer’s governing body was still in the middle of gathering data on the tragedy that killed 132 people in Malang, East Java, two weeks ago.
“We’ll use this data to draft a working plan to ensure this tragedy will never happen in the future,” Nhouvannasak said in a joint press conference held at the Gelora Bung Karno sports complex in Central Jakarta on Wednesday, as quoted by Kompas. “Hopefully, the [Liga 1] competition can resume and the 2023 U-20 World Cup in Indonesia can go ahead as safely as possible.”
Aside from Nhouvannasak, several delegates from FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) were also present at the press conference. Among them was FIFA’s stadium consultant Serge Dumotier, who will personally evaluate the six stadiums that are going to host the biannual youth soccer tournament in May of next year where 24 participating countries, including Indonesia, are set to compete.
Although the Kanjuruhan Stadium is not among the six stadiums to be used for the coming U-20 tournament, the disaster has called into question Indonesia’s capability to ensure safety at soccer matches.
PSSI chief Mochamad Iriawan expressed his gratitude for the support of FIFA and AFC, and emphasized that PSSI’s cooperation was instrumental in reforming Indonesian soccer. “Their support is the result of President [Joko] ‘Jokowi’ [Widodo]’s efforts. [...] FIFA and AFC are here to accompany PSSI in mending Indonesian soccer, especially after the Kanjuruhan tragedy,” said Iriawan, who is a retired three-star police general.
However, Wednesday's press conference made no mention of reviewing the security protocols used in Kanjuruhan, in particular the use of tear gas and the heavy security presence on the pitch, both of which were in breach of FIFA security protocols.
