Equatorial Guinea fans’ violence: ‘I was choking, my eyes burning’ | Gary Al-Smith
The louspeaker crackled to life. “This is the minister of sport of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea,” a disembodied voice said. “I want to urge you all to calm down and cooperate with the police. We are sending a poor image about our country …” The crowd responded with boos and whistles. Another warning from the PA – and then the police moved in.
Smoke bombs flew. A chopper appeared, lowering its rotors to scatter fans as police brandished batons and Tasers. For a brief moment there was a rush as supporters made for the exits, all played out to a global audience.
By this time the Ghanaian fans who had been pelted had left their position and were on the pitch behind Equatorial Guinea’s goal. They were shielded by a group of police but that did not stop missiles being thrown from the stands.
Police managed to get the fans to another part of the stadium and, after a lot of back and forth between officials and a near 40-minute delay, play resumed. It did not last, however, and the full-time whistle came, five minutes early.
The two sets of players exchanged jerseys while Ghana’s players started dancing and celebrating. But off the pitch some Ghanaian fans made the mistake of leaving the stadium too early. “We thought we should go and start getting into our buses which was outside the stadium,” said Gyikua Asiamah. But when they got outside, a mob rounded on them. “Look,” she said, showing a plastered cut above her eyes. “I was lucky, some of the men who tried to protect us were really badly hurt.”
Meanwhile Ghana’s sports minister, Mahama Ayariga, had shed his suit jacket as he spoke to the country’s embassy in Malabo about ordering in extra buses for visiting supporters.
A riot police officer runs to shield a Ghana player after Equatorial Guinea supporters threw objects on to the field during the Africa Cup of Nations semi-final. Photograph: Sunday Alamba/AP
The Ghana Football Association president, Kwesi Nyantakyi, calmed scared fans before addressing the media. “This is the highest state of barbarism. To take the law into your own hands and react to a ref’s decisions is unacceptable,” he said. “This is a very negative commentary on the state of African football. Africans are not violent. Africans are not barbaric.”
Trouble had begun to brew in the 41st minute. The referee, Eric Otogo, had given a few 50-50 challenges to Ghana in the first half-hour and, when he awarded the Black Stars – as Ghana’s national side are known – a penalty, the crowd’s displeasure was clear.
Bottles were thrown and, when by half-time they were 2-0 ahead, the Ghana team had to leave the pitch and then rejoin the game protected by police riot shields. By now the helicopter, complete with gun-toting police perched on board, was hovering dangerously close to the stands. “Are they going to shoot the fans?” asked a senior Confederation of African Football official.
Then it turned out that the police in the stadium were not from Equatorial Guinea but were special forces flown in from Angola, which brought its own problems. One policeman said they “really wanted to control the crowd earlier but it is not our country, so we were not sure of what to do”.
Fifteen minutes before full-time Ghana’s captain André Ayew had guided the ball home for a 3-0 lead. “The referee is from Gabon and he didn’t like us. I don’t understand how Caf gave this game to him,” complained Achille, a volunteer.
It was a valid comment. Gabon is a fierce regional football rival and neighbour of Equatorial Guinea. Thierry, another volunteer, added: “Because we beat them [2-0 in the group stage], you could tell from the way he handled the game that he didn’t want us to win.”
Equatorial Guinea v Ghana semi-final marred by violence – in pictures
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In the media centre colleagues were filing out of the door behind me. My head was buried inside the laptop and it did not occur to me that they were running from something. And then the smell ...
The last time I was tear-gassed was in 2012 when police had to disperse angry crowds during Ghana’s general elections so it might be thought I would recognise the odour by now.
The glass window behind me was rapped urgently – a colleague was gesturing furiously for me to get out of the commentary area. Before I could respond, I was choking. I grabbed my cell phone. Bottle of water. As I reached down to unplug the laptop, my eyes started burning. “Let’s go!” a voice barked. I yanked the plug out and scurried to where the wheezing and coughing journalists had congregated.
Four 60-seater buses soon arrived. Fans raced each other into them and even as they pulled out of the stadium, there was still fear.
African football has struggled to shake off the stigma attached to its name and, for a tournament that had been hastily organised after Morocco’s withdrawal, Equatorial Guinea had received generally good reviews.
“The government of Equatorial Guinea had done very well to organise this tournament. Is this the icing on the cake for them? This is unacceptable and sad,” was Nyantakyi’s take on the situation.
Back at the stadium it was almost midnight. The Ghanaian journalists were allocated a bus and it sped outside the stadium. It was clear that the rioting had continued even after the fans had been forced out of the stadium.
Broken chairs, rocks, wood and other objects littered the street. There was a sense of disbelief about it all. In the silence of the bus racking sobs could be heard in front as the ordeal started to sink in.
Gary Al-Smith is an African football specialist who is covering the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea for the Guardian. Follow him on Twitter: @garyalsmith