The Rwandan Archers – 20 years after the genocide
Felicity Finch
Radio Presenter and Actor
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When not playing Ruth Archer, Felicity Finch works as a freelance radio reporter. Since 1999, she has been involved in a radio soap opera inspired by The Archers.
I’ll never forget the rather grey, depressing January morning in 1999 when I was asked if I would like to go to Rwanda. Within a month, I found myself in the capital Kigali, assisting the charity Health Unlimited (now Health Poverty Action) with the launch of their new radio soap opera, Urunana. Using The Archersas its model, the programme was to be both educational and entertaining.
I’ve returned to Rwanda three times since that first trip to make features for BBC Radio 4 and the World Service, most recently this year to mark the 20th anniversary of the genocide.
I remember being told by the Rwandan production team what a huge achievement it was to get Urunana on air, not least because radio had been used as a propaganda tool during the genocide only five years earlier in 1994. An estimated 800,000 to 1m Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed in a hundred days. A private radio station had broadcast messages to incite hatred and violence saying “kill a cockroach today” (meaning Tutsi). It often gave specific names and addresses of those to target.
People’s trust of the medium had to be slowly regained and nurtured over time.
Radios donated by an NGO
Early stories covered topics as diverse as domestic violence, which had become more rife since 1994, malaria, HIV/AIDS and income-generating activities for women. At that time, women comprised more than two-thirds of the population. Many were widows of the genocide.
Urunana means ‘hand in hand’. The writers regularly visit rural communities across the country, monitoring their reactions and suggestions for storylines. Relevant scenarios are developed reflecting the day-to-day lives of listeners. They enable them to make choices and informed decisions, never telling them how to behave or what to do.
I heard proof of how convincing the programme was from the very start. The production manager Prudence told me how a group of women in a village had accused him of sneaking around people’s houses, standing under windows with a microphone recording what was going on inside, then playing it on the radio the next day!
One of the most popular characters is Bushombe, a hard-drinking lovable rogue and the village gossip. Eddie Grundy and Lynda Snell rolled into one – hard to imagine, I know! The actor Jean Claude, who also worked as a nurse, hadn’t known how patients might react when they discovered his other identity. He needn’t have worried. They were astounded but thrilled.
I was amused if a little shocked when I witnessed the recording of a light-hearted but tender scene where a couple surprised each other by both producing a condom at the ‘appropriate’ moment. At that time condoms were considered a taboo subject. Not a lot was left to the imagination, though the actors barely touched little fingers. I’m not sure if The Archers would ever dare to be quite so explicit!
An estimated 73% of the 11 million population tune in to Urunana every week. The team’s small recording studio is on a busy road near a football stadium. Their occasional community road shows attract as many as 10,000 listeners, all desperate to meet the inhabitants of Nyarurembo, the Rwandan Ambridge!
Sam Kyagambidwa was previously head scriptwriter and now production manager. With growing confidence he has dared to bring about changes to storylines which would have been unthinkable back in 1999, when any references to the genocide would have been impossible. The character of Agnes, who was a student and is now married with a child, became the first character to experience the trauma many survivors of the genocide go through every year during the April anniversary.
Other characters make pilgrimages to memorial sites during the annual week of remembrance. There has also been a story about child abuse, where a young girl was living with her uncle after her parents died in the genocide. This was a subject which would previously have been seen as taboo. By raising awareness, the story resulted in the Government introducing child protection laws.
The programme is an amazing example of the power of radio. It’s no exaggeration to say that Urunanahas provided a lifeline for its listeners, helping to transform lives. I feel incredibly lucky to have watched the team in action and to have gained such insights into their remarkable work
And to think that The Archers is their inspiration is also pretty remarkable.
Rwanda itself
Finally, I’d like to say (and you may be surprised to hear), that Rwanda is a beautiful country. Only the size of Wales, it’s often called The Land of a Thousand Hills. Now the safest country in which to live in Africa, it has aspirations to become the digital hub of the Eastern region. 56% of Parliamentary seats are held by women, the highest percentage in the world
The country is also an emerging tourist destination, with the mountain gorillas and National Parks attracting visitors.
As well as playing Ruth Archer, Felicity Finch is a freelance radio reporter and presenter.
Learn more about Felicity on the Ruth Archer page in our Who’s Who
