May Day celebrations in Jakarta last Friday were generally orderly, except for one incident in which a man, identified by the police as Sebastian Manuputty, lit himself on fire during Ahmad Dhani’s concert at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Senayan in the afternoon.
Bystanders say they saw a ‘fireball’ coming down from the stadium’s roof near Sector 24 when Ahmad Dhani was up on stage at around 5 pm.
That fireball turned out to be Sebastian, who the police say deliberately lit himself on fire.
“The victim committed suicide by burning himself and jumping [off the roof]. He previously doused himself with fuel,” said Jakarta Police Spokesman Budi Widjanarko, as quoted by Vivanews yesterday.
Budi said they suspect Sebastian used his motorcycle’s fuel to light himself on fire. The police also believe that his action was planned ahead of time. Though authorities haven’t officially determined his motive for suicide, police say Sebastian posted this status update on Facebook at 4 pm, just before he lit himself on fire:
“Continue the struggle for workers, farmers, and fishermen. I’m happy to do this.”
Sebastian’s body was returned to his family in Pekayon, Bekasi on Saturday after an autopsy.
