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A survivor of the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda in 1994, Eric Murangwa Eugene remains a beacon of hope and a dominant figure in Rwanda’s sports fraternity as he continues to champion togetherness through football related activities in this era where the country is making giant strides and becoming a reference point in Africa in various fields.
Murangwa who was a goalkeeper for Rayon Sports and the Rwandan national team had 83 members of his family (Extended and Nuclear) murdered during the genocide but he survived and has remained prominent in educating people about the effects of ethnicity, division and separatism in the country.
The head of the former Amavubi players union who also has a sports foundation named “Ishami” had an exclusive interview with Sportsworldghana on the history of football in Rwanda as well as its impact before and after the genocide.
Why is football/sport so important in Rwanda?
We say, “Football in Rwanda is not just a game!” Since it was introduced to Rwanda by Catholic Church missionaries in the 1920s football has made a huge influence on many Rwandans, and the role it has played in the rebuilding and reconciliation process of Rwandan society since the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi is very special. Football in Rwanda is a powerful story of colonialism, political struggle, friendship and solidarity!
King Mutara III Rudahigwa (1931-59) endorsed football and turned it into the nation’s number one sport. The first ever football clubs were created from the traditional “Itorero” cultural schools. Rwandans adopted the game of football, and made it a symbol and vehicle of their culture. Each encounter was accompanied by a folklore that used the Rwandan traditions. Each team had a specific song, sung by both the players and the public as a way of showing support and courage.
Vigils were organised before and after football matches, during which the players had traditional dances and proclaimed their great deeds. These practices were all over the hills of the country of thousands of hills.
How was football in the Social Revolution?
The year 1959 marked a radical turning point in the history of Rwanda and Football was not spared by the turmoil that characterised the social revolution. Most Tutsi players went into exile, and others were murdered. Championship teams like Amagaju, Amaregura, Amasata, Byumba, Gasoro, Ngabonziza and others disappeared after independence.
The new political powers introduced new football teams that were used to expand the influence on the population. The likes of Demar FC which had a huge support from influential people from Gitarama (the home of new regime under Gregoire Kayibanda) and Garde Nationale which later became Patheres Noires (a military football club) were created and supported by government or prominent officials in the government. Other football clubs like Etincelles and Mukungwa FC were also introduced in the early 80s to promote a new political phenomenon of regionalism that was part of Habyarimana’s regime.
Etincelles FC became an all powerful football club with the support of many influential people in the government who were close relatives or friends of President Habyarimana. Mukungwa FC had also a similar status as Etincelles FC under the leadership of the most feared and powerful man in the country then known as Z or Zigiranyirazo Protais who was the brother-inlaw of President Habyarimana and the governor of Ruhengeri/Musanze. Other clubs with regional ID such as Flash FC from Gitarama/Muhanga, Zebre FC from Byumba/Gicumbi and Espoir FC from Cyangugu/Rusizi were also established but never reached the same level of respect and success as the Mukungwa, Etincelles or Panthere Noires.
Can you brief us on how football was during the liberation war and genocide?
Between 1992 and 1994 Football stadiums turned into political forums with most political rallies taking place in the stadiums. Militias were formed and the first recruits came from football supporters and youth football teams. They were radicalized and trained in weapons that were later used to commit genocide.
During the Liberation war Football was also part of the DNA of the RPF. As ARUSHA Peace negotiations were underway in 1993, soldiers temporarily abandoned their guns for kicking the ball: this was a way to show that the RPF, was not only fighting with weapons. An inter battalions football championship was created and used as a way of keeping busy soldiers.
How did football become a tool for rebuilding after the genocide?
When the war and Genocide ended a new team composed of soldiers of the Rwandan Patriotic Army was formed and got the name of APR FC. It attracted many supporters by winning the hearts and minds of Rwandan fans and quickly became one of the biggest football clubs in Rwanda and the East Africa region.
A friend of mine once said this “I can’t categorically say that if most Rwandans were true sportsmen that the genocide would never have taken place but I can definitely say that had most Rwandans been true sportsmen then the manner of which the genocide happened would have been different with less people being involved and ultimately with less victims.”
Barely a month after the genocide, in September 1994, a football match was held in Kigali. For the first time in many months, Rwandans dared to come out of hiding to fill the stadium. They were no longer afraid of the militia, bombs or grenades. If you play football, it is a sign that life is returning and that was the message from this football match which took place just few months after the end of Genocide.
From the ashes of genocide, Rwanda is raised somehow. RPF soldiers began a tour of the country, reorganizing teams. Soon the Championship reasserts itself. Football matches for reconciliation were even organized to facilitate the return of the prisoners released. Today, sport no longer seeks to destroy, but to rebuild the country.
The qualification of Amavubi to the 2004 CAN (today’s AFCON) was a very important event in the process of bringing Rwandans together and shaping the image of new Rwanda. The way the team qualified after eliminating both Uganda and mighty Black Stars of Ghana gave Rwandans a belief that nothing was impossible and His Excellency Paul Kagame made the following comments when he was asked to share his thoughts on the Amavubi qualification in the documentary (This is Football):
“I don’t want to sound like one is exaggerating, but that moment added a lot to what was happening, to the process of bringing the country together.”
Also by qualifying for the U17 world cup in 2011, young Rwandan football players – among them genocide orphans, children of genocide perpetrators and former exiles become a symbol for the new Rwanda and also a good role models to all children of the country.
Personally, how did the power of sport contribute to your survival?
Sporting solidarity became a matter of life and death.
As a genocide survivor, I owe my survival and that of part of my family to the protection I received from fellow members of the Rayon Sports Team.
The humanity and courage shown by my teammates was a significant lesson in the power of sport and is the inspiration behind my belief in football as a highly effective tool for achieving sustainable social change.
In most teams, racism did not exist between teammates as it was in other walks of life across Rwandan society. This sporting solidarity was expressed even more during the genocide, when some Tutsi players were helped and protected by their Hutu teammates. The likes of myself with the help I received from Rayon Sports teammate Longin Munyurangabo and some other fans of my former club, or Michel Kamanzi by his Kiyovu Sport teammates. Others, like the goalkeeper Eugene Kanyandekwe and former Glory Mukura’s Charles Runuya were hidden by their own fans. A few weeks before the tragedy, football again played a significant role by bringing together all Rwandans around following a historic victory by Rayon Sports who knocked out giants Al Hilal from Sudan in the African continental competition. After the game, the hope of a future peace seemed palpable when the hatred and division between Rwandans seemed to be on hold as people were celebrating the win of Rayon Sports.
How has football being a tool for healing and reconciliation after the genocide?
Football was not only in the process of national reconciliation and rebuilding, it also allowed Rwandans to rebuild personally. The development of women’s football is the most obvious example. Genocide survivor, Grace Nyinawumuntu has been a pioneer in women football in Rwanda. Now head of the women’s national team and Sport Director at Rwanda PSG Academy, she has set an example for many Rwandans girls who dare now to practice football as their game of choice. Through football, they repossess their battered bodies, channeling their strongest emotions, and occupy an increasingly important role in a traditionally patriarchal society.
When I initiated my organisation Football for Hope, Peace and Unity (now, Ishami Foundation), my main goal was to use the power of the beautiful game to move on from the catastrophic events of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and build a better future for myself and fellow Rwandans particularly young ones. What happened in Rwanda 28 years completely transformed the nation and continues to form its identity today. As I have demonstrated, sport and football in particularly, have contributed to this process of reconstruction and reconciliation since the end of the genocide. Through my organisation and a few other initiatives that I’m part of, I have contributed to the use of the power of sport to build tolerance and lasting peace by fostering the culture of respect, team spirit, critical thinking and resilience among young people we work with both in Rwanda and the UK.
Our work focuses on communicating the lessons of the past through two strands of activity: sport and storytelling.
Sport/Football encourages social change and peace in a range of ways such as Collaboration and Trust where after a conflict, trust is broken between communities. Playing football offers the opportunity to bring people from different groups together into the same team working for the same purpose – to score goals! Collaboration is essential because one player cannot win the game alone. Football requires players to trust that their teammates will act in the interest of the whole team: passing when necessary, playing defensive roles and so on. Working together towards a shared goal is a helpful way to move beyond a divided history. These are the values and principles we try to instill into young Rwandans and citizens of the world so that they can develop into true champions in football and in life.
