Unfortunately, Mengganyang Malaysia Is Not The Most Appropriate Solution

Flag of Malaysia (Aaron Lee/Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Indonesian football supporters are not the only ones who have experienced violence by elements of Malaysian football supporters. Some supporters from Myanmar and Vietnam have experienced physical violence as well. Meanwhile, Singapore has experienced verbal abuse by supporters of the neighboring country.

The violence that befell Indonesian supporters angered the Indonesian people. On social media Twitter, the hashtag #ganyangmalaysia soared. It seems that the Malaysian supporters who violate these rules must be crushed.

The incident experienced by an Indonesian citizen occurred before the 2022 World Cup Qualification match which was held on Tuesday (19/11) at the rolling Bukit Jalil Stadium. At that time the victim had just had dinner at Jalan Alor with his colleagues at around 02.00 in the morning. After eating, they walked to a fast food restaurant located in the Bukit Bintang area.

Arriving at the location, the victim and a man named Fuad began to separate from the other groups because of different places to stay. Maybe after finding out that they were not Malaysian citizens, the mob dragged the victim to a place.

But the victim refused. This refusal led to a group of Malay-speaking people committing acts of violence. They ganged up on, kicked, and dragged the victim and took Fuad's bag.

Luckily the victim managed to save himself to his colleague who was staying at the Wang River Hotel. They also received help from other supporters of the Indonesian national team and two famous fans. They were then escorted to the hospital and reported to the local police.

The Head of the Indonesian Embassy for Indonesian Citizen Protection Task Force for Malaysia, Yusron B Ambary, confirmed the incident. In fact, apart from the beatings, there are also suspected cases of stabbing Indonesian supporters.

"His name is Fuad, I've met the person. His passport was confiscated, Fuad's bag was confiscated," said Yusron when contacted by Sesmenpora Gatot S Dewa Broto in front of reporters, Thursday (21/11).

Responding to this incident, the Chairman of the Indonesian National Team Supporters Association, Ignatius Indro, said that the Indonesian side could report this objection to FIFA, but according to him it would not solve the problem.

"Only if this is the case, it will eventually become an act of retaliation, this has no end," he told VOI today (22/11).

According to him, what needs to be done more is that the two governments, in this case the Indonesian and Malaysian Sports Ministers, sit together to find a way out. One of the things that can be done, according to Indro, is to create a fixed procedure (PROP).

"The protocol is not only at the stadium mas. Maybe from the airport to the hotel, the hotel to the stadium, the stadium behind the hotel, then from the hotel to the airport again. That's what we need to do in the future," he explained.

Felt by other countries

Indonesian supporters are not the only ones to have been attacked. Last year, Myanmar football club fans were reportedly attacked by a group of Malaysians. Similar to what happened to Fuad. The incident occurred during the AFF Suzuki Cup match which was held in November 2018. It was unclear what the motive was, even though the Malaysian team managed to win the match over Myanmar with a score of 3-0.

As reported by foxsportasia.com, as many as 20 Myanmar fans, including women, who were waiting for a bus in Kuala Lumpur, were attacked by about 30 Malaysians who were physically and verbally.

According to Myanmar fans, the attackers shouted "pigs" at them as some of them fled the scene. Several other people were injured in the incident and had to be rushed to the hospital.

According to reports, three female Myanmar fans were kicked until they suffered serious injuries and needed medical attention. In addition, the cellphones of Myanmar supporters were also stolen by the attackers.

The three women who were injured, Nyi Nyi, Myint Soe, suffered injuries while Aung Myo Thu suffered injuries to the hands and feet. "It's very bad. It happens every time we play in Malaysia and even if we lose," said one Myanmar fan.

Apart from Myanmar, Vietnamese supporters have also experienced the same thing. They were attacked by Malaysian supporters in the 2014 Suzuki Cup semifinal match. From these cases, five Malaysian supporters were arrested for assaulting Vietnamese supporters.

The attack made Malaysian Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin apologize for the incident at Shah Alam Stadium. He witnessed first-hand how Vietnamese supporters were attacked by a group of Malaysian fans.

"There is no excuse for this violent behavior. The fan who committed the violation does not represent Malaysia. My sincere apology on behalf of Malaysia is due to the actions of this small group of irresponsible criminals," said Jamaluddin as quoted by straitstimes.com.

Singapore supporters have also experienced non-wearing treatment. At the 2017 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur Malaysian supporters angered Singaporean supporters by chanting "Singapore dogs" during the match.

This was regrettable by the Malaysian Organizing Committee (Masoc) itself. The reason is that the recording is circulating on the internet and it is very regrettable, because it goes against the spirit of sportsmanship of soccer.

"Any incidents which go against this spirit of togetherness and unity, especially those that insult the other participating countries in whatever form, are deeply regrettable," the committee said in a statement quoted by Straits Times.

"Fans are urged to refrain from uttering religious slurs or racial slurs at any time," he added.

Returning to the case of the attack of Indonesian supporters, the General Chairman of the Indonesian National Team Supporters Association, Ignatius Indro, encouraged the Indonesian Government and PSSI to cooperate with the Malaysian government to carry out an investigation. "To severely punish whoever is responsible for the incident," said Indro to VOI.

In addition, he also encouraged Commission X DPR RI, PSSI, and Kemenpora as well as all stakeholders to sit together to create a legal umbrella for supporters. "One of the urgencies is to force all Indonesian soccer stakeholders to educate supporters down to the grassroots," he said.