'We must kick violence out of football for good'

In the wake of the acid attack on a Selangor FC player, the club’s CEO Johan Kamal Hamidon has urgently called for the authorities and football’s governing bodies to get serious about addressing violence and assault cases involving players and fans.

“We need to make football a peaceful place and kick violence out for good,” he said.

The assault on striker Faisal Halim, where he suffered severe burns after being splashed with corrosive liquid, was the latest in a disturbing string of incidents blighting Malaysian football over the past year.

“Let’s pray for Faisal’s safety and that he fully recovers from this attack,” Johan (above) added.

Assault by security forces

When asked if designating private security forces to control fans at stadiums could fuel violence, Johan urged the Malaysian Football League (MFL) and relevant authorities to think of a suitable solution for crowd management.

“I think that’s something the league governing body should look into as they set the regulations.

“The intention may be for safety reasons, but the police are very aware of reported cases involving these (private security) personnel, so it needs follow-up.”

The concern came after Malaysiakini enquired about a notable case in July last year, where spectators of a match between Johor Darul Ta’zim FC (JDT) and Kuala Lumpur City FC (KL City) claimed that members of the Johor Military Force (JMF) assaulted supporters.

Seri Iskandar district police chief Rahmat Ariffin confirmed that he had received a report from a victim saying that JMF personnel had assaulted him.

The JMF operates as a private security entity under the jurisdiction of the Johor sultan. Its primary responsibilities revolve around guarding the Johor royal family and providing protection at ceremonial state events.

Reports indicated that the JMF played a supplementary role in maintaining security at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, collaborating with police officers and venue marshals to oversee crowd management and monitor supporters during matches.

Their involvement was mainly to bolster manpower for supervising fans and spectators.

Johan stressed that safety for all is a priority.

“Football is for all, and we want everyone involved to feel safe and able to play freely without fear.

“As stakeholders, from fans to management, we must take a stand together against these unacceptable acts,” he said.

With national outcry growing, the Selangor FC chief’s plea heaped further pressure on the authorities to ensure the perpetrators of the acid attack on Faisal must face the law and that such cases cannot simply go cold.

MFL’s next steps

On MFL rejecting Selangor’s request to postpone the Charity Shield match with JDT, Johan said he believes the league had acted according to its capacity as it has many stakeholders to answer to.

“I understand their challenge to find the right balance when managing all the different stakeholders as a governing body.

“For now, they are looking into the matter and coming up with potential strategies moving forward,” he said.

He noted that coming up with solid security measures with a coordinated nationwide approach will have to wait until the authorities have completed their investigations.

“The incident is only about one week old. They have to look at the bigger picture nationwide, and I think they are also waiting for the police reports before adopting more concrete safety measures and strategies,” he added.

On May 5, Faisal suffered fourth-degree burns in an acid attack by an unknown individual at a mall in Petaling Jaya, restricting his movement and speech.

The player, who won the Best Goal award at the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar in January, is expected to be sidelined for five or six months, causing him to miss the two second-round 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup qualifying matches against Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan next month.

This incident was the second to befall a national football player after Terengganu FC’s on-loan player Akhyar Rashid sustained head and leg injuries from robbers at his residence in Kuala Terengganu on May 2.

Assaults on footballers entered a new episode on May 7 when two men on a motorcycle smashed the rear windscreen of JDT club player Safiq Rahim’s car with a hammer in Johor Bahru. - Mkini