Police watch over Arema soccer fans

JAKARTA: Pasar Senen train station in Central Jakarta will cooperate with Gambir Police in anticipation of the coming and return of Malang soccer fans to their hometown in East Java, Tempo Interaktif reported on Friday.

The fans were in Jakarta for the final round of the Coppa Dji Sam Soe 2005 soccer match in which the Malang soccer team, Arema, will play Persija Jakarta on Saturday evening.

Head of the Pasar Senen station, Sutarto, said some 600 soccer fans had arrived on the Matarmaja economy train from Malang on Friday afternoon. But more fans were expected to arrive on Saturday morning, he said.

"We will make sure that arriving fans are quickly transferred out of the station, and later when they are going home for them to quickly board the trains," Sutarto said, adding that he will make sure that fans do not spend the night in or around the station. --JP