Thursday, December 30, 2010
Scary Stuff?
Apparently there was an e mail doing the rounds among some expats telling them to stay away from the Senayan area. The reason? There was a big football match taking place there and there was potential from disturbances given a number of factors colliding.
- Some Indonesians don't like Malaysia
- Possibility of extremists 'sweeping' for Malaysians
- Possibility of trouble because of laser incident in KL
Plus others.
Expats are a funny breed. I don't get this particular e mail from whatever outfit or embassy it is and wouldn't even know how to go about receiving it but it does show a total lack of understanding of what goes on 'on the ground' in football matches in Indonesia. As the events of the evening proved.
It was very unlikely there would have been any real disturbances last night beyond the normal things you might expect when well over 100,000 people gather in one place. The reason why is because the lads who may have 'gone on one' were priced out the game from the start.
Normal tickets prices at Indonesian games are from 10,000 to 35,000 IDR. Last night the cheapest was 50,000 IDR which bluntly speaking is beyond the means of many of the urchins who could have responded negatively.
It is very unlikely there would have been any sweeping for Malaysians last night. The people who do these type of things huff and puff for headlines. Given the human congestion in and around the stadium last night they would barely have caused a ripple thereby nullifying their cause and whole raison d'etre. And don't underestimate Indonesian's propensity for street justice when they see things they don't like.
As it happened the streets in and around the malls of Senayan were delightfully quiet as Jakartans heeded their own warnings in local media to stay away from the logjam that would occur.
Given the fact that the people who draw up these 'warnings' of dire reactions are on pretty big salaries I have decided that I need to get in on the act so there now follows my own risk assessment of watching football in the region I cover.
Singapore - if you do decide to take some football in Singapore be prepared for some seriously monotonous chanting along the lines of Go Go Go Lions Go, Win Win Win Lions Win. If you read the Straits Times don't expect any coverage of the game at all unless a player or players have been in trouble in which case expect self righteous chest thumping letters from folk in the heartlands saying football was never like this under Uncle Choo. Don't worry, the whining stops once you take off from Changi!
Malaysia - very real danger of boredom perhaps leading to sleep as you wait for the 8.45 pm kick off. If you use public transport to go to a game bear in mind you won't be able to use it after 'cos Malaysians go to bed early so you will be stuck with Malaysian taxi drivers, a fascinating, loathsome species who combine ignorance with arrogance and the ability to bleed their own sick mother dry if there is a few ringitt in it for them
Thailand - Thai football, like Thailand is a laugh. If there are red and yellow shirts in the stadium, don't worry, this is called sanuk, it means fun, and that is what Thailand is all about. Fun. The people smile alot because they are so friendly and there is no danger of violence anywhere 'cos the who country has this idea of 'mai pen rai' or no problem. If there are disturbances you will see how people are still smiling and wondering where they can have lunch.
Indonesia - it's a war zone out there. If the fans don't get you with their non stop rioting then extremists will try and make you convert or a tsunami will wash away your parked car. Somebody will blow cigarette smoke in your face, fans walking along the footpath will move very slowly as they communicate with their friends using text messages.
Alternatively ignore the charlatans and their fear mongering and get off your arse and find things out for yourself.
# posted by Me @ 4:51 AM 
Comments:
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singapore - this whining team however won the ASEAN three times, albeit all their players using passport to register during the tournament.
thailand- this funny and laughing team as you label it, also won the trophy three times. i bet, their laughing game plan is not as bad as it sound.
indonesia - never won! i don't know. perhaps war zone, terrorist and all these craps might be true.
malaysia - boredom, sleeping or whatever you want to label it, they won the SEA games and just won the ASEAN with the average players age of 23. yes 23.
my point is, lu pikirlah sendiri!
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thailand- this funny and laughing team as you label it, also won the trophy three times. i bet, their laughing game plan is not as bad as it sound.
indonesia - never won! i don't know. perhaps war zone, terrorist and all these craps might be true.
malaysia - boredom, sleeping or whatever you want to label it, they won the SEA games and just won the ASEAN with the average players age of 23. yes 23.
my point is, lu pikirlah sendiri!
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