Is There Any Other Way To Dispel Football Riots: Sports Communication
In Malang, a heartbreaking tragedy hit the Indonesian football arena. Tear gas shot at the Kanjuruhan Stadium after the Arema versus Persebaya match on October 1, 2022. On October 13, 2022, 754 victims and 135 spectators died. At this point, fans were seen on the pitch as the game ended. Then gradually enter the other supporters. The police then suddenly released tear gas.
There have been riots at football matches. In the Kanjuruhan case, tear gas was fired by the police to drive away the crowd. Many parties point to this as the main reason for the high number of victims. Is there an alternative to dispel the riots? The answer to this question emerged in the student Press Kognisia discussion organized by Podcast, which aired on October 31, 2022.
Narayana, a UII Communication Lecturer, also thought it was time for politics to enter. “Managing society is politics,” said Nara. In a football context, this attendance must be managed. So, according to Nara, conditions at Kanjuruhan are over capacity. Second, it is also about disaster mitigation. There are social disasters, but so far, natural disasters have been mitigated. “But a disaster at a football stadium like this has not been properly planned,” said Nara, Narayana’s nickname. There should be a mitigation plan and political considerations in holding the match.
Based on a short brief tracking by Nara related to this incident, there were 10 cases of tear gas. Nara traced from the data so far that there have been tear gas incidents to disperse stadium crowds since 2010. This violated FIFA rules. So since 2010, there have been violations,” said Narayana. Even though PSSI understands these rules, said Nara, Narayana’s nickname.
“Tear gas is not allowed; weapons are not allowed either. Attributes should also be as minimal as possible; even police uniforms with badges are also recommended to wear brown shirts,” said Alif Madani, a PSS Sleman supporter. Alif, a 2016 batch of UII Communications students, added that security must consider the masses under normal conditions. there were so many, especially if the masses were about to leave the stadium. So many people would take a long time to leave. Especially in the Kanjuruhan incident, tear gas was fired at the spectators. Moreover, someone was fired at the exit,” explained Alif. Victims fell inevitably amid the panic.
According to Alif, another thing that can be done is to use an alternative to tear gas. For example, bringing K9 dogs and an appeal issued by club officials. “K9 dogs , there was it yesterday in Malang. They were backwards when released. It could also be, for example, for example, club officials or team captains are given a loudspeaker and told to speak; it can slow down,” suggested Alif. This suggestion does not mean it is not based on experience.
PSSI and activity managers can learn from what has happened before. “Once in Sleman, it was crowded; we fans suggest that later there will be Bagus Nirwanto, the captain of the PSS Sleman team. Bahdim take a role, can be used to calm the masses. Which is respected by the elder supporters,” said Alif Madani.
