“They loved football but had never watched Arema live at Kanjuruhan Stadium. It was their first time,” she added at the brothers’ funeral on Sunday, referring to the home team they supported.
On Monday, Indonesian daily Koran Tempo carried the words “Our football tragedy” printed in red on its front page in black, along with a list of the dead.
The tragedy in the city of Malang on Saturday evening, which police said left 323 people injured, was one of the deadliest sports stadium disasters in the world.
Arema FC fans at the Kanjuruhan Stadium stormed the pitch after their team lost 3-2 to visiting team and bitter rivals Persebaya Surabaya.
On Monday, Arema president Gilang Widya Pramana said he was ready to take “full responsibility” for the events and that “we deeply apologize to the victims of the stampede at Malang Stadium.”
Police, who described the unrest as a riot, said they tried to force fans back into the stands and used tear gas after the deaths of two officers.
According to police, many of the victims were trampled or strangled.
Arema soccer coach Javier Roca said on Sunday that fans “died even in the players’ arms” after some of the team remained on the field after the match ended.
“Coming back from the press conference, I saw the tragedy,” he said, adding that “the boys passed by with victims in their arms.”
“I think the police overstepped their limits, even though I wasn’t there to see what happened,” the Chilean coach told Spanish broadcaster Cadena Ser.
Survivors described panicking onlookers gathered in the crowd as tear gas rained down on them.
“The officers used tear gas and people automatically started leaving, pushing each other, which caused many deaths,” Doni, a 43-year-old viewer who declined to give his surname, told Agence France-Presse.
“Nothing happened, there were no riots. I don’t know what it was about, they suddenly fired tear gas. This is what shocked me. Didn’t they think about the children, the women?”
People carried injured spectators through the chaos, and survivors dragged dead bodies from the stadium.
“It was so horrific, so shocking,” said 22-year-old Sam Gilang, who survived and lost three friends within the accident.
“People were pushing and… many were trampled on the way to the exit gate. My eyes burned from the tear gas. Fortunately, I managed to climb the fence and survived,” he said.
At least 125 people have died, East Java deputy governor Emil Dardak told broadcaster Metro TV on Sunday evening, significantly lowering the previous death toll given by officials of 174 due to double counting.
“Some names were written down twice because they were referred to another hospital and then written down again,” he said, citing data collected by local police from 10 hospitals.
Indonesia on Monday established an independent team to research the disaster.
The joint independent fact-finding team will consist of presidency officials, football association officials, experts, scientists and journalists, Senior Security Minister Mohammad Mahfud said.
“The team is predicted to finish their work inside two or three weeks,” Mahfud said after a gathering of senior ministers and security officials to debate the tragedy.
He said the federal government had also ordered the national police to research those found chargeable for the incident “in the following few days” and assess security measures.
Video circulating on social media showed people shouting obscenities at police, who held up shields against the rioters and wielded batons.
Photos taken from contained in the stadium in the course of the stampede moreover show police firing huge amounts of tear gas and folks climbing over fences.
Amnesty International called for an investigation into why tear gas was utilized in a confined space, saying it should only be used “when other methods have failed.”
On Sunday morning, torched vehicles, including a police truck, littered the streets outside the stadium.
The stadium has a capability of 42,000 and officials said it was sold out. Police say 3,000 people stormed the pitch.
Fan violence is a persistent problem in Indonesia, where deep rivalries have previously escalated into deadly confrontations.
Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya are long-time rivals.
Persebaya Surabaya fans were unable to purchase tickets for the match attributable to fear of violence.
However, Indonesia’s coordinating minister for politics, law and security, M.D. Mahfud, said organizers ignored a suggestion to print fewer tickets and hold the match within the afternoon relatively than within the evening.
On Sunday, Arema fans, in tribute to the victims, threw flower petals on the monument of the club’s lion mascot situated in front of the stadium.
In turn, in Jakarta, as many as 300 football fans gathered for a candlelight vigil in front of the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.
Manchester United and Barcelona posted tributes online, while Spanish football clubs were required to look at a minute’s silence.
The Asian Football Confederation, in addition to the German Football Association and Italian Serie A expressed their regret.
The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) contacted FIFA concerning the panic and hoped to avoid sanctions, PSSI secretary general Yunus Yussi told a news conference.
FIFA safety guidelines prohibit police or stewards from carrying crowd control gas on the pitch.
The FIFA U-20 World Cup can be held in Indonesia next 12 months. Indonesia has also applied to host the 2023 Asian Cup.
Additional reporting Reuters, dpa
