The tragic death of 23-year-old Persija Jakarta fan Haringga Sirla has undoubtedly upset and angered supporters of the capital’s soccer club, but nobody could feel his loss greater than the members of his immediate family.
That includes Haringga’s older sister, Mayrisa Sirawati, who, despite the great sorrow she’s experiencing, still had the grace to warn Persija fans not to seek revenge for her brother, who was killed by a group of rival team Persib Bandung’s fans right before the two teams faced off in the West Java Capital on Sunday.
“I implore you not to be vengeful. If you take revenge then you’d be as brutal as they were, and there will be no end to it,” she told Tribun yesterday.
“Losing a loved one really hurts. Don’t let it happen again [to anyone else]. This is enough.”
Mayrisa’s plea will hopefully help calm angry soccer fans, because the threat of further violence is very real given the bloody history of the Persib-Persija rivalry. Since 2012, seven people from both sides have been killed in attacks by rival supporters.
The Indonesian Sports and Youth Ministry has suspended Indonesia’s premier soccer competition indefinitely in light of Haringga’s death, but Mayrisa believes that’s not the best solution.
“I told the Minister [of Sports and Youth] earlier that they should organize supporters more so that there are no more brutal acts. They (the supporters) should be allowed to watch the games peacefully and happily, don’t create trouble.”
The Bandung Police have so far named eight people suspects for being involved in the death of Haringga, who was beaten to death by Persib supporters right outside their home ground just because they found out he was a Persija fan. The suspects could each face at least five years in prison for aggravated assault leading to death.
