Free fights entertains, but protests abound

Free fights entertains, but protests abound

Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Jandi Werson Purba is a 24-year-old second brigadier police
officer. He is also an athlete specializing in wrestling and has
taken part in many national tournaments.

Although he has not won a tournament yet, the third place
status he has won many times requires only a little more effort
before he can turn it into a gold, which would usually guarantee
a place on the national team.

As an athlete dreaming of a run at the 2003 Southeast Asian
(SEA) Games in Vietnam, Jandi takes a few hours out of his week
to hone his skills.

However, for the past three months, Jandi, from North Sumatra,
has increased his training to seven days a week as he has gotten
involved in the TPI-Fighting Championship (TPI-FC), an ultimate
fighting contest aired on Saturday night on private television
channel TPI. Ultimate fighting means there are no rules in the
game, except that contestants cannot aim for the eyes or groin.

"I used to train only three days out of the week, for two
hours each time. Now I have added an extra hour onto each of the
remaining four days," he told The Jakarta Post in Tangerang,
Banten, while on duty recently.

Besides locks and takedowns, both an offensive and defensive
tactic used in wrestling, Jandi has also sharpened his punches
and kicks.

Watching the contest, people who call it cruel may hold their
breath in horror. The two fighters go at each other in the ring,
clamoring for blood, punching, kicking, bending and snapping at
one another. Rarely is a win decided on points. A win quite often
results from an opponent agonizingly screaming in submission out
of sheer pain.

But many wait for this final scene. "This is a real fight,"
said Sayuti, a student, from Jakarta. He compared it to another
fight on another TV channel, which, he said, was theatrical.

TPI-FC is not a new contest devoted to ultimate fighting.
Indonesian TV viewers have become familiar with the full-body
contact fighting through what they call the Ultimate Fighting
Championship (UFC) and Pride Fighting Championship (PFC), both
running on the same channel.

But unlike those two contests, TPI-FC matches participants who
are local fighters, which may make viewers more interested.

Thirty participants, who come from various martial arts, are
featured in the fight and are split into three weight divisions:
lightweight, under 65 kilograms, middleweight, 65 to 80 kg, and
heavyweight, over 80 kg.

Despite its rising popularity among TV viewers, the organizers
have encountered criticism. One was from the country's sports
authority, which claimed the contest violated the true essence of
sports.

"With fighters from different disciplines being pitted against
one another, the result can give a misperception about martial
arts," Arie Soedewo, the vice-chairman of the Indonesian Sports
Council (KONI), said at a media conference.

"People can make a blind conclusion that a certain martial art
is superior to another when its exponent wins," he said.

Media Watch slammed the contest as a "glorification of
violence".

"The spectacle is arranged in such a way that violence looks
glorious," Ade Armando, Media Watch director, told The Post.

Ade said that by allowing the program to continue signified
TPI's insensitivity toward the negative impact it would have on
society.

A moderate view was provided by sports psychologist Joe
Rumeser, who compared the program to a knife.

"A knife can help you cook and do anything useful. But it can
also be used to kill," he said.

"The question is how they can make the program benefit sports
development," he said, adding that sports organizations involved
in the program should be encouraged to do better.

TPI was quick to respond in an attempt to quell the criticism.

"Fighters come to the contest as an individual. They are not
supposed to represent certain disciplines or sports
organizations. They are only allowed to claim they come from a
martial arts club," Agus Syafrudin, the marketing manager, said.

The fighters are supposed to master more than one discipline.
"This is a mixed martial art showdown, not the kind that is
between two opponents in the same discipline," he said.

Agus also said candidates should follow strict rules,
including undergoing strict medical screening before there are
eligible for a match on the show.

In an attempt to appease critics, organizers have grouped the
martial arts into five categories, depending on the disciplines'
uniqueness: submission, grappling, kicking, punching and exotic.

Falling into the submission category are judo and jujitsu.
Grappling groups wrestling and aikido. Kicking sees tae kwon do
and kick-boxing. Punching includes boxing and karate, while
exotic means the traditional martial art of silat.

Despite the high risk, TPI-FC fighters do not seem taken
aback.

"We have got 120 applicants signed up for the second series
starting in October," Mara Bangun, the sports producer, said.

Jandi has become a true champion in wrestling. He said it was
his curiosity that first influenced him to take up the challenge.
Since he has made it to the finals, he said that he was even more
curious to prove that with wrestling he could defeat fighters
from other disciplines.

"As fighters become exhausted, the fight will be on the
ground. At this stage, wrestling will prevail," Jandi, who
eventually lost to Linson Simanjuntak in the final match on
Saturday, said.

Roy George Tangka, a 46-year-old middleweight judo fighter,
gave a different reason for doing ultimate fighting.

"It's all about money," the former national champion said.

A winner could take home as much as Rp 8.5 million (US$944) in
prize money.

Roy's fight for winning the money was stopped in the
semifinals. But he is determined to try again.

"I'm coming back. Two months will be enough to prepare for it.
I hope I can win in 2003," he said.