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Seite 4: I don't want to die!

We set off at around 7pm. There’s a prayer as we get underway. The fans ask god to grant the Per­sija players strength and speed. You’ll Never Walk Alone blares from the spea­kers – it’s a cover ver­sion by the Indo­ne­sian punk band Keotik. Next up is Oasis’ Live Forever – the ori­ginal this time. Maybe I just want to fly,” sings Liam Gal­lagher, Want to live, I don’t want to die…” For these fans, it’s the per­fect sound­track. We make our first stop after 17 kilo­me­tres, at a rest area, and for the first time I get a sense of how big this tour is. It’s not just the Crazy Boys hit­ting the road to Sura­karta; there are hundreds, thou­sands of people, a whole convoy tra­vel­ling down the highway tonight. Some are even making the journey by moped. Fans stumble out of buses and cars and head towards the satay seller. Ciu bot­tles are passed from hand to hand. Mister, mister, drink!” They won’t touch beer. It costs too much – and has too little effect.

In 30 kilo­me­tres, it’s going to get dan­ge­rous.” Where’s the police escort, I ask. The police? They’re not coming any­more.”

Before we drive off again, Rifki Haikal checks the route on his phone. The 20-year-old is wea­ring a wind­breaker and Bri­tish flat cap – Leeds in West Java. We’re still safe for now,” he says. But in 30 kilo­me­tres, it’s going to get dan­ge­rous.” Where’s the police escort, I ask. The police? They’re not coming any­more.” Rifki used to work in a local super­market, but curr­ently he’s unem­ployed. He dreams of having his own com­pany, wants to pro­duce his own clo­thes, print cool slo­gans on T‑shirts, like he ima­gines young people in Eng­land do. He was pre­sent last year, when Persib fans atta­cked a convoy with stones, kil­ling two of his fri­ends. One of them was already on the ground, when an atta­cker took an axe to him until he stopped moving. No mercy. Rifki stares out of the window. He can’t explain how the inci­dent has affected him, nor why he’s making a similar journey tonight. I’m fol­lo­wing my heart,” he says. May god pro­tect me.” Then he falls silent.

The first sign of trouble comes at kilo­metre 39. A bus has been atta­cked and one of its win­dows is shat­tered. Thank­fully, no-one is hurt. We make a quick stop, in the middle of the motorway. Dinar and Raina take a seat on the nea­rest crash bar­rier. They are 15 and 16 respec­tively and the only girls on our bus. They’re still at school and aren’t keen to talk about their fears either. They’d rather talk about their hopes for a strong Per­sija per­for­mance. What about their par­ents? Hati-hati, they say, be careful. Near them Anas sits on the tarmac, a 17-year-old, who is also still at school. He’s wea­ring an extra-small Oasis T‑shirt over his tiny frame; he’s like a half-por­tion, so skinny, you worry the next gust of wind might blow him back to Jakarta.

Action!”

That’s just how it is with rivals, like Liver­pool and Everton, West Ham and Mil­wall. It’s the same ever­y­where,” he says, trying to look tough. It’s about life and death.” He takes a swig from a bottle of Ciu, washing down some crisps. Does he know any Persib fans per­so­nally, I ask? Sure,” he says. A lot of my class­mates are Persib fans, even some of my fri­ends.” So what hap­pens if he encoun­ters them tonight? They’ll have to die.” He smiles. His fri­ends smile with him and from out of the bus Liam’s voice sings, Lately, did you ever feel the pain?”

Even­tually, a couple of poli­cemen do make an appearance. They stroll along the roadside bar­riers at a lei­su­rely pace, with their pump-action shot­guns in hand, as if they were actors playing poli­cemen, wai­ting for someone to yell, Action!” What’s real here? What’s fic­tion? Where did the atta­ckers dis­ap­pear to? Who knows any­more?

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