The Big Issue

Uganda’s guardian Angel

By Matthew Price

WHEN Angel Taka is in form, Uganda tend to do well. In Wednesday’s 4-0 win over Australia’s hastily assembled side, she scored a hat-trick.

When Uganda outclassed Cameroon at Yarra pitch on Thursday, Angel was at the heart of things again. She scored twice and chased back to make crucial tackles.

“I don’t play in any particular place,” she says. “To keep me strong, I run around. I can run in this position, and this, and this …”

Before the game Angel was awarded the Nike Fair Play Award, given to the player who best embodies the spirit of the 2008 Homeless World Cup.

The oldest of six children, Angel often speaks of strength – particularly strength arising from hardship. Early losses this week to Kyrgyzstan and front-runners Zambia were physically punishing. But not, she says, demoralising.

“Since we’ve played these matches I’ve got more skills … which have helped us win,” she says. “There have been some rough games but they have made me strong. I am no longer stressed.”

Growing up in Uganda, Angel’s father was paralysed and could not provide for the family.

In her part of the country, she says, it is common for women to be seen as commodities. When money is tight, boys go to school, but girls are kept at home. When things get really tough, girls may be sold for marriage.

With her father unable to work and her mother caring for five young children, Angel was a prime candidate to be sold off for the family’s benefit.

Instead, she took responsibility for the family’s wellbeing. Heading to the local university, she began doing odd jobs for other students. Finishing people’s projects and doing their homework brought enough money to support herself and keep the family afloat.

At the Homeless World Cup, Angel is fast becoming a pillar for the other African women. Four of the eight women’s teams are African, with Uganda joined in Melbourne by Zambia, Liberia and Cameroon.

“We talk to the other girls,” Angel says. “We go to visit them, we talk as ladies, we have been attending workshops … talking about women out there, how they manage their challenges.”

Uganda is one of the teams directly sponsored by the Homeless World Cup. The financial support, Angel says, has given the players hope. She believes the experience will prove a launching pad for some of the players to go on and gain an education.

“We have been encouraged,” she says. “We are no longer stressed because of [the possibility of] selling us off. We have managed to come here and share our skills and experiences.”

Back in Uganda, Angel hopes the community spirit encouraged by the Homeless World Cup can be harnessed to create change in other women’s lives.

“We are going to talk [to other women] … show them the skills we have learned – how to encourage each other as women,” she says.

“And we are hoping to find some creative thing we can do in the evening. Making craft and [earning] income to help us and other girls we left behind.”

Visit www.homelessworldcup.org to find out all the latest news from the melbourne 2008 Homeless World Cup