Indonesia will tear down and rebuild a football stadium where a stampede kills more than 130 people This month, President Joko Widodo said on Tuesday as he vowed to “radically transform” the sport in the football-mad nation.
The president, commonly known as Jokowi, spoke to reporters at the state palace after meeting Gianni Infantino, the head of world football’s governing body FIFA.
“The Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang … we will demolish it and rebuild it to FIFA standards,” he said.
The deadly stampede following a match in the city of Malang on October 1 has been attributed to police firing tear gas at the stadium, a crowd control measure banned by FIFA.
The president said he agreed with Infantino on significant changes to the way the sport is governed in Indonesia.
“We agreed to radically transform Indonesian football,” he said. “Every aspect of the preparation … needs to be based on FIFA standards.”
The meeting between Jokowi and Infantino comes after Indonesia and FIFA agreed to form a joint task force following the stadium tragedy, and as the country prepares to host the Under-20 World Cup next year.
Speaking alongside Jokowi, Infantino said FIFA’s top priority is to ensure the safety of both players and fans in the Southeast Asian country.
“This is a football country, a country where football is the passion of more than 100 million people,” he said. “We owe them that when they watch a game, they are safe and secure.”
Infantino, who presented the president with a red FIFA jersey with his name printed on it, said the global soccer body would work closely with the government to Ensure all stadiums meet safety requirementsand the U20 World Cup goes smoothly next year.
Under pressure to explain what caused one of the world’s deadliest stadium disasters, a fact-finding group set up by the government released a report last week, concluding that the “Excessive” and “indiscriminate” use of tear gas are the leading causes of death.
When fans tried to leave the stadium after their loss to home team Arema FC to Persebaya Surabaya, they fell into a deadly state, with many, including more than 40 minors, dying of asphyxiation. breathe.
The report also identifies other contributing factors, including over-filled stadiums, The exit door is lockedand the push by federation officials to hold the match at night to secure better ratings for a local broadcaster, despite a police request to host a match between the rivals. fierce during the day.
The fact-finding team also said that more than 3 CCTV footage about an hour after the match was deleted. The team asked the police to provide this video.
The team also called for the head of the Indonesian Football Federation to resign.
