Prosper Bwanakweli (1924 – December 1963) was a Rwandan chieftain and politician.

Early life

Prosper Bwanakweli was born in 1924 in Bunyambiriri,

Ruanda-Urundi Ruanda-Urundi (), later Rwanda-Burundi, was a colonial territory, once part of German East Africa, which was occupied by troops from the Belgian Congo during the East African campaign in World War I and was administered by Belgium under militar ...

to Grand Chief Paul Nturo and Angeline Kampororo. Ethnically, he was

Tutsi The Tutsi (), or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi (the other two being the largest Bantu ethnic grou ...

and descended from the Banyiginya clan of the Banana lineage. He attended primary schools in Muyunzwe and Kabgayi before enrolling at the Groupe Scolaire de Astrida, where he graduated in 1945. He married Pascasie Mukakimenyi.

Chieftainship and political career

On 2 February 1945 Bwanakweli was made chief of Kabagali in Nyanza District. In the 1950s he served on the Rwandan Conseil Superieur du Pays (High Council of the Land). In 1954 amidst the "

Second School War The Second School War (french: Deuxième guerre scolaire, nl, Tweede schoolstrijd) was a political crisis in Belgium over the issue of religion in education. The conflict lasted between 1950 and 1959 and was ended by a cross-party agreement, know ...

" in Belgium, the Belgian Minister of African Affairs decided to cancel all state subsidies for Catholic schools in the colonies. Most chiefs in Ruanda-Urundi sided with the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the affair. In Rwanda this led to division on the Conseil Superieur between

Mwami ''Mwami'' () is an honorific title common in parts of Central and East Africa. The title means ''chief'' or ''tribal chief'' in several Bantu languages. It was historically used by kings in several African nations, and is still used for traditi ...

Mutara III Rudahigwa Mutara III Rudahigwa (March 1911 – 25 July 1959) was King ('' umwami'') of Rwanda between 1931 and 1959. He was the first Rwandan king to be baptised, and Roman Catholicism took hold in Rwanda during his reign. His Christian names were C ...

and a faction led by Bwanakweli. In December 1954 he led 14 councilors in petitioning the Mwami to allow for discussion of the school question in the council. This move was unprecedented and led the Mwami to accused Bwanakweli of committing '' lèse-majesté''. In 1956 he attempted to implement social reforms in his jurisdiction, but Mutara opposed this and transferred him to the remote chiefdom of Rusenyi-Itabire in Kibuye Territory. Politically, Bwanakweli favored inter-caste cooperation, the election of chiefs, the institution of a

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

, and supported agrarian reform following the abandonment of the ''

ubuhake ''Ubuhake'' is the name given to the social order in Rwanda and Burundi from approximately the 15th century to 1958. It has been frequently compared to European feudalism. Based on cattle distribution, it was, however, a much smaller system than ...

'' system. On 14 September 1959 he founded the Rassemblement Démocratique du Rwanda (RADER, Democratic Rally of Rwanda), a moderate political party. Its stated goal was "to work towards the realisation of a social, economic, political, and cultural order based on authentic democracy and harmony among the constituent groups of Rwanda." The party never gained much of a following aside from some Tutsi students, as Bwanakweli's ethnicity garnered suspicion among Hutus and his reputation as a progressive democrat who had challenged Mutara alienated conservative Tutsis. He was killed in a political purge in December 1963.

References

Works cited

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bwanakweli, Prosper 1924 births 1963 deaths Assassinated Rwandan politicians Tutsi people Tribal chiefs Politicians assassinated in the 1960s