T

he district court in Bogor, West Java, sentenced on Friday three participants in a brawl that led to the death of a 10th-grade student in one of the many cases of brutal violence among students in Greater Jakarta.

The three teenagers were found guilty of orchestrating a one-on-one “gladiator” fight during which Hilarious Christian Event Raharjo of senior high school SMA Budi Mulia in Bogor sustained fatal injuries in January last year.

BV, who fought Hilarius, was sentenced to two years and six months, less than the four-and-a-half years demanded by prosecutors. The initiator of the fight, HK, got two years, also lighter than the prosecution’s sentence demand of four years.

MS, who acted as a referee of the fight, was sentenced to one-and-a-half years in prison and three months of compulsory work training.

Disappointed by the lenient sentences, Maria Agnes and Vinansius Raharjo, the parents of Hilarius, said the judges’ decision was painful for them.

“We are really disappointed. Our struggle to get justice for 20 months has ended in a poor result. With such a decision, we will strive to file an appeal,” said Vinansius after the hearing at the court on Thursday.

Maria could not stop crying after hearing the sentence.

“It seems to me that this ruling has belittled the life of our son. Since the very beginning, we objected to the actions of several parties who tried to connect the legal process with donations we had received after our son’s death.

“We needed them to cover our son’s funeral costs and for ceremonial meals. They have always pointed to the donations to lessen the sentences for their children,” she said.

The one-on-one fight between Hilarius and BV, a student at private high school SMA Mardiyuana, took place at around 3 p.m. on Jan. 29, 2016, at a location away from either school.

During the fight, Hilarious fell unconscious and his friend rushed him to Azra Hospital. At 4:30 p.m. a doctor pronounced him dead.

The case had dragged for a year as his parents had refused to allow an autopsy on Hilarius’ body.

Violence and other forms of bullying among students have become major concerns for local administrations and parents.

The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) has received 2,875 reports on bullying since 2011, around half of which occurred in Jakarta.

Reports of bullying had increased to almost 100 cases in the last two months, said KPAI commissioner Retno Listyarti. “Jakarta schools have expelled most bullies on the back of a city regulation,” she said.

In July, nine junior high school students in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, were expelled by their schools for their involvement in a bullying incident that sparked outcry from the public.

The nine students, from several junior high schools in Central Jakarta, were recorded in a video, which went viral on social media, reportedly bullying a female elementary school student in an empty hallway at the Thamrin City shopping center.

The troubling footage opened with a long-haired female student in a white school uniform surrounded by a group of students.

As she leaned against a wall, a girl’s voice in the background could be heard counting to three, giving a cue for another female student to suddenly yank the victim’s hair causing her to fall facedown on the floor.

In addition to expulsion, the Central Jakarta Education Office cut the students’ Jakarta Smart Card education funds. (dis)