On June 22nd, Jakarta celebrated its 497th anniversary. Unfortunately, the celebration was marked by a brawl that went viral on social media. The fight took place in Jatinegara, East Jakarta. Despite the advancements in technology such as big data and artificial intelligence, the culture of brawling persists.
Student brawls remain common, with numerous viral videos circulating regularly; at least one student brawl video goes viral each month in Indonesia. It is intriguing to analyze how this brawling culture continues to exist in the era of social media.
Youth Brawls Through the Ages
No one knows for sure when the first brawl occurred, but media reports indicate that the first recorded brawl in Jakarta took place on June 29, 1968. The daily newspaper Kompas documented it in an article titled “Bloody Student Clash.”
Literature research reveals that Jakarta has long been a city with a high incidence of brawls. Each school began to have its own nicknames, typically derived from the name of the area or street where the school was located. For example, “Boedoet” is a nickname for SMK Negeri 1 Jakarta, formerly STM 1 Jakarta, and it refers to the school’s location on Jalan Budi Utomo, Central Jakarta.
Another example is “Camp Java 1918,” the nickname for SMK Negeri 35, formerly STM Negeri. This name, like “Boedoet,” is derived from the name of a street in West Jakarta, where the school building for STM PGRI 6 and STM Negeri 7 (later renamed SMK Negeri 35) is located.
STM Era: Poor Street Security and Criminal Influences
The early period from 1969 to 1990 is known as the STM era, specifically the era of STM Boedoet. Boedoet became a common enemy for many schools in Jakarta. Brawls during this era were extremely frightening, with students genuinely intending to inflict harm and not hesitating to cause fatalities.
During this time, the security situation on Indonesian streets was quite poor, vastly different from now. Extortion and pickpocketing were common in public transportation and on the streets.
This led to a high presence of thugs, and students often hung out with these local criminals in ‘warung’ (local traditional minimarkets). Consequently, school children or students get carried away by criminal activities such as extortion, which eventually leads to brawls.
Because of the danger, students would gather together before and after school to ensure their safety, forming groups known as “Basis” (Student Line), each with its own name. For example, Basis 106 EXS covered the route from Boedoet to Lebak Bulus, and 806 MOM covered Boedoet to Gambir, Manggarai, and Pasar Minggu.
The brawls were so terrifying and disruptive that in July 1986, a special operation (opsus) was launched, leading to the formation of the Jakarta Special Capital Region School Security Council. This body identified street vendors and kiosks near schools as hotspots where students gathered to plan brawls.
The Post-STM Era
In the 1990s, STM schools were officially abolished and transformed into SMK (Vocational Schools). However, this change did not mean an end to brawls; they continued to occur.
During this era, high schools (SMA) began to show their teeth in brawls, and new nicknames for high schools emerged, no longer based on street names. For instance, “Gor A Six” became a nickname for SMA 6 Jakarta. Meanwhile, SMA 70 Jakarta had different nicknames for each batch.
The motivation for brawls shifted towards identity exploration and school pride. Those who participated in hanging out and brawling were seen as cool or socially adept at school. Thus, the reasons became more psychological, aimed at gaining respect and a sense of belonging among peers.
In this era, the role of alumni is also very important. In the previous era, during the STM period, it was local criminals who played a significant role. In this era, alumni often come to instill hostility towards other schools, especially those considered long-standing rivals.
The negative doctrines from these alumni, combined with stories of gang fights from their school days, are perceived as motivation by current students, enhancing their strength and courage to engage in brawls.
The Social Media Era
In this era of social media, brawls have become showcases for showing off toughness and coolness. Nowadays, brawls are organized and scheduled by the students themselves.
They arrange to clash at agreed times and places. In this era, brawls are even planned for midnight when the streets are quiet and there are no residents or police around to intervene easily.
Today’s youth also prepare for brawls to avoid injury by wearing helmets, wrapping their hands in cardboard or bandages, and wearing multiple layers of thick jackets.
These brawls are often recorded and proudly turned into content to be shared on each student’s social media. Many viral brawl videos circulate on social media platforms as a result.
In this era, a school zoning system has also been implemented. What does the school zoning system mean? Based on its definition, the school zoning system refers to a system aimed at ensuring equitable access to education for all members of society. The purpose of the school zoning system is to ensure that prospective students do not have to choose schools that are far from their homes, allowing them to select schools within their nearest zone or area.
Thus, the considerations are distance from home and age. Older students will be given priority. This results in some students being significantly older than their peers, such as students entering junior high school at the age of 15, but there may be students who are 18 years old. It is not uncommon for older students to influence younger ones to engage in negative behaviors, such as student brawls.
The resurgence of youth brawling trends warrants government vigilance
This has been examined by us as an example of the phenomenon of nostalgia among youth. The resurgence of brawling trends, which had declined among the millennial generation, has revived following the reopening of schools post-COVID-19.
The pandemic isolated Generation Z and shortened their crucial developmental experiences, prompting them to seek refuge in values, lifestyles, and consumption patterns from previous decades.
This has allowed them to relive their teenage years—a critical period towards early adulthood that now extends into early adulthood.
This resurgence is reinforced by other factors such as the lack of open collective spaces and insufficient programs or facilities for channeling youthful energy.
Coupled with the social media era’s fear of missing out (FOMO), young people strive to maintain their relevance to fulfill their self-actualization needs, which further drives the increase in brawls. This is particularly evident in non-metropolitan areas where student brawls are becoming more prevalent.
As we know, Indonesia is entering a demographic bonus phase with a larger youth population. This poses a risk of increasing and spreading brawls across various regions of Indonesia.
Looking towards Indonesia’s development goals, the government must implement appropriate policies to curb youth brawling, taking into account the aspirations of young people themselves rather than relying solely on legal approaches.