Daily Times

An Indonesian court on Thursday jailed two football match officials for negligence over one of the worst stadium disasters in the sport’s history. The crush in October at a venue in the East Java city of Malang killed 135 people after police fired tear gas into packed stands when supporters invaded the pitch. Hundreds of people fled for narrow exits, resulting in a stampede that left many trampled and suffocated to death, including more than 40 children.

Abdul Haris, the head of the organising committee for the match, was found guilty of negligence and handed 18 months in prison. Prosecutors had sought a sentence of six years and eight months. “The defendant did not read the situation and played down the possibility of an emergency situation or chaos,” presiding judge Abu Achmad Sidqi Amsya told the court in the city of Surabaya. The verdict is Indonesia’s first ruling on the tragedy.

Moments later, security official, Suko Sutrisno was also found guilty of negligence and sentenced to one year in prison. Prosecutors had also sought six years and eight months in his case. The judge said Sutrisno “did not anticipate the chaos because there had never been an emergency situation before”.

He also “did not understand his job as a security official well”, the judge added. Cholifatul Noor, a mother who lost her 15-year-old son in the tragedy, said the sentence was too lenient and was hurtful to the families of the victims. “I am not satisfied with the verdict because this concerned many lives, not just the life of one or two people,” she told local channel Metro TV tearfully.

A lawyer representing another family who lost two children told AFP that prosecutors must appeal. “If they don’t it will prove that justice is out of reach for the families,” Imam Hidayat said. Sutrisno’s lawyer denied his client did not do his job properly and said he is an expert in his field who had been working in the profession since 2008.

The security official has previously said he did not have the authority to open the doors of the stadium when the crush took place. Both men, dressed in white shirts in court, have seven days to appeal.