4 Soldiers Confess of Committing Violence in Recent Football Tragedy, Says TNI Commander

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) Commander Andika Perkasa during the 77th TNI commemoration on Wednesday said that the military has questioned 5 personnel in relation to the deadly football match at the Kanjuruhan stadium on October 1 which claimed the lives of over 130 people.

He said that four out of the five soldiers stationed at the stadium for crowd control admitted to committing violence against fans of Arema FC who invaded the field. The Commander said this is based on an ongoing internal investigation. 

“We will not give up [on continuing to investigate the case],” said the Commander on October 5. 

"We are also checking their supervisors, what procedures they were carrying out, whether they have warned them, and so on," said the former Commander of the Presidential Security Forces (Paspampres).

According to Andika Perkasa, this inspection was carried out by TNI down to the level of the battalion commander at the scene. This, according to him, was carried out as part of a comprehensive evaluation within the TNI.

A total of 131 people died in the Kanjuruhan Tragedy after the match between Arema FC vs. Persebaya Surabaya on Saturday, October 1. Violence from the authorities and the use of tear gas came under the public spotlight as many blamed the latter as the main cause of the mass stampede.

FAJAR PEBRIANTO

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