Probe into Moses death urged

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

An urgent investigation is needed into the death of Antonius Moses to stop further fatalities in Indonesian professional boxing, commentators said.

"There should definitely be an investigation into the case," Martinez, a boxing observer and commentator, told The Jakarta Post here on Tuesday.

Martinez said the Indonesian Professional Sports Supervisory Board (BPOPI), a government-affiliated body which supervises professional sports, should handle the investigation.

Moses, 20, was knocked out unconscious by Thai Kaichon Sor Vorapin on Tuesday last week and died on Monday from a brain hemorrhage.

The BPOPI and the Indonesian Boxing Commission (KTI) have so far refused to investigate the case, dismissing it as an unfortunate incident. This is despite Indonesian professional boxing's sorry safety record, with seven deaths since 2000.

The grim list of boxing victims includes Moses along with Dipo Saloko, John Namtilu, Bayu Young Iray, Donny Maramis, Muh. Alfaridzi and Johanes Bones Franciscus.

While he said he was not blaming the referee for Moses' death, Martinez said the fight should have been stopped when Moses sprawled onto the canvas after being hit in the lung in the seventh round.

"The referee should have stopped the fight because Moses did not seem to have power any more," he said.

"The referee did not even count. Assuming that it was a low blow, he allowed Moses a three-minute break to steady himself," Martinez said.

In the eighth round, Moses took a combination of powerful jabs and straights, which apparently decided his fate.

Earlier, Syamsul Anwar, a former national champion, said that when a boxer was hit straight on the lung he should not continue to fight.

"An investigation should be done for the sake of the national boxing interest," Syamsul said, adding that failure to tackle the case would probably lead to a permanent banning of professional boxing in Indonesia.