Tragedy ·
A Congo Derby Ends in a Deadly Rush for the Exits
Reports described an allegation of witchcraft, a fight between players and police tear gas at the September 2008 match in Butembo. They put the death toll at 11 or 13.
A football derby in Butembo, eastern Congo, ended in a deadly rush for the exits on September 14, 2008, after a fight between players escalated into a confrontation with police. Officers fired tear gas into the crowd. Contemporary reports put the death toll at 11 or 13.
Nyuki System had been losing to local rivals Socozaki. UN-funded Radio Okapi reported that Nyuki’s goalkeeper ran up the pitch chanting what the broadcaster described as “fetishist” spells. His actions were presented as an attempt to alter the match, though the broadcaster offered little further detail. The allegation of witchcraft was the reported backdrop to the violence, not an established explanation for the deaths.
Fighting broke out between the opposing teams. A police officer who tried to intervene was pelted with rocks by spectators; CBC reported that he was wounded on the head. Police then fired tear gas, and spectators rushed toward the exits. The Telegraph reported that fighting had spread through some sections of the stadium before the crowd fled.
Contemporary accounts differed on the scale of the loss. The Telegraph reported 11 people dead and several others injured. CBC reported 13 deaths and, citing the radio station, said most of those killed were between 11 and 16 years old and had suffocated. Both accounts placed the fatal rush after police fired tear gas.
The following day, dozens of teenagers marched through Butembo’s dirt streets in protest.