PSI Suggests Heru Budi Offer Jakarta To Be The Venue Draw For The U-20 World Cup To Replace Bali

Acting Governor of DKI Jakarta Heru Budi Hartono. (Diah-VOI)

JAKARTA - Chairman of the PSI faction of the DKI Jakarta DPRD, Anggara Wicitra Sastroamidjojo, suggested that the Acting Governor of DKI Jakarta Heru Budi Hartono offer that Jakarta be the U-20 World Cup drawing venue to replace Bali Province. Anggara said that this suggestion was intended so that the DKI Provincial Government could play a role in offering solutions to the rejection of the Israeli national team which will compete in the U20 World Cup in a number of areas. "As the nation's capital, we encourage the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government to take the role of offering itself as a minimal alternative venue for delayed drawing events," Anggara said in his statement, Tuesday, March 28. Anggara admitted that he was surprised by a number of regional heads who expressed their rejection of their territory to become the location for the U-20 World Cup match, including Bali Governor I Wayan Koster and Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo. Both are PDIP politicians. "I personally question the attitude of a number of regional heads who expressed rejection in the midst of the ongoing U-20 World Cup series," said Anggara. Ia meminta para kepala daerah menahan diri untuk tidak memilitasi perkara ini. “ Saya pikir pertama-tama karena urusan diplomasi bukan kewenangan Pemerintah Daerah. Bersikosnya besar jika kita bolang jadi tuan rumah, akan mempertahkan nama baik bangsa juga,” lanjutnya. Moreover, Anggara views that Indonesia has been participating in the bidding several years ago as the host of the event. Supposedly, since the beginning Indonesia has accepted whatever the consequences are. “ In fact, Israeli athletes have competed in Indonesia several times, for example in the BWF championship, rock climbing world championships and so on. This shows that these sporting events have nothing to do with our political stance,” said Anggara. Indonesia has been designated as the host of the 2023 U-20 World Cup. The Israeli national team as one of the participants will appear in the U-20 World Cup event. In this event, the government has designated six provinces as places of implementation, namely DKI Jakarta, South Sumatra, West Java, Central Java, East Java, and Bali. Ahead of the event, there was a refusal from Bali Governor I Wayan Koster to submit a letter to the Minister of Youth and Sports containing the rejection of the Israeli national team to compete in Bali in the U-20 World Cup on March 14, 2023. Following, the rejection of Israel's return came from the Governor of Central Java Ganjar Pranowo and the Mayor of Bengkulu Helmi Hasan. Helmi Hasan emphasized that he refused to participate in Israel's U-20 World Cup in Indonesia because the country was a colonialist. Meanwhile, Ganjar Pranowo revealed that he was following President Soekarno's mandate which was committed to providing support for the Palestinian struggle to liberate himself. This rejection also made FIFA finally decide to cancel the drawing agenda which was actually held in Bali, March 31. Currently, PSSI is lobbying a number of institutions to find solutions to overcome the rejection of Israel at the 2023 U-20 World Cup.