VUNITED NATIONS VUNITED NATIONS SCENTRE AGAINST APARTHEID NOTES AND DOCUMENTS* No. 3/84 March 1984 REGISTER OF SPORTS COTCTS WITH SOUTH AFRICA r16 .. 7_. Juy - 31 December 1983 JUH 7 - 1984 Z{ : pursuant to a decision in'1980, the Special Oittes aainst Apartheid bas been publishing semi-annual registers of sports contacts with South Africa. The present register, as the previous ones, contains: (a) A list of sports exchanges with South Africa arranged by the code of sport; and (b) -A register of sportsmen and sportswoen who participated in sport events in South Africa, arranged by country. Names of persons who undertake not to engage in further sports events in South Africa will be deleted from the register.__ -0618o *Al materizi in these Notes and Documents may be freely reprinted. Acknowedgement, together with a copy of the publicatino containing the reprint, would be appreciated. United Nations. New York 10017 -2- Introduction The racist regime of South Africa and the racist sports bodies in that country have failed to achieve any success in their heavily-financed and deceitful propaganda efforts to persuade world opinion that there is no more racial discrimination and segregation in sports in South Africa and that the international boycott of apartheid sports should be terminated. Despite intensive lobbying by South Africa and its friends, no international sports body which has excluded or suspended South Africa from membership has reversed its decision. Pressure for the sports boycott of South Africa has grown and more Governments have taken action in support of the boycott. In their desperation, the Pretoria r6gime and the racist sports bodies have come to rely mainly on the use of huge amounts of money to secure some participation in international sports competition. With ahandsome budget made up of contributions from business enterprises as well as public and secret government funds, they have persisted with the virtual bribery of individual sportspersons or threats to undermine amateur sports. The recently-formed South African Sports Sponsors Association has -donated many millions of dollars to lure overseas sports stars to compete in South Africa and to undermine internal opposition by offering substantial rewards to sportspersons who compete within the Government's sports policy. Sports administrators have enlisted the help of overseas personalities to defame the isolation campaign. Inside South Africa, the white media have been encouraged to give the erroneous impression that South Africa is on the verge of re-entry into international sport. This is aimed at boosting the morale of white South Africans and undermining that of the opponents of apartheid. Apartheid, however, continues to be entrenched in sports and in South African society generally, albeit with some adjustments. However, international opposition to apartheid sport has continued to grow. International Rugby Media Congress The International Rugby Media Congress was organized by the white South African Rugby Board (SARB) in August 1983 as a major propaganda effort to procure a favourable image for apartheid sport. The organizers invited about 80 overseas journalists and observers ostensibly "to hear the SARB's case first hand" and to "'give representatives of the world media the opportunity to examine South African rugby". L/ The journalists were provided with free air fares, accommodations, tours and lavish entertainment. -3- The whole exercise backfired with the spokesmen of raciallysegregated rugby federations of South Africa contradicting each other. The president of the South African (Coloured) Rugby Federation said there was no racial discrimination but the president of the South African (African) Rugby Association said that his association would strive to play a part in bringing about further changes until "the complete ideal is reached". 2/ Danie Craven, president of the South African (White) Rugby Board conceded that the three racially-segregated bodies were needed as separate organizations to run rugby because administrators did not have the machinery to control rugby through one body. 3/ Above all, the Minister in charge of sport admitted, in response to questions, that his Government would uphold the system of racial segregation and would not attempt to end segregation of school sport. 1_/ Sponsorship of apartheid sport Meanwhile, South Africa has been investing millions of dollars in efforts to secure some international sporting contacts. Multinational .companies which benefit from apartheid have had no hesitation in contributing astronomical sums to uphold the government's sports policy. The Southern Suns Hotel Group and South African Breweries which have very close links with the apartheid regime, in particular, donate huge sums of of money to sports bodies which work within the framework of apartheid. The Southern Suns is responsible for luring overseas sports stars to compete in the so-called "independent" state of Bophuthatswana, which has been denounced by the entire international community. The companies sponsoring sports events which attract overseas participation enjoy special tax exemptions. In July, Southern Suns spent a million dollars in prize money alone to bring four tennis players for a tournament in Bophuthatswana. Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl earned $700,000 between them for playing just two matches. 5/ Southern Suns also organized the world's richest golf tournament, the Million Dollar Classic. The ultimate winner, Severiano Ballesteros of Spain, received over $300,000. This is equivalent to winning ten of the world's major golf tournaments. Nick Faldo of the United Kingdom, who had earlier stated that he would not participate in South African golf, decided to break his pledge when he was invited to compete in this lucrative tournament. It is believed that the Southern Suns Hotel Group also spent about $2 million to organize the Motor Racing Grand Prix in Johannesburg in October. However, because of generous tax exemptions provided by the Government to attract overseas stars, it was estimated that it cost the sponsors only 7.6 per cent of the gross expenditure. 6/ The South African Breweries contributed nearly a million dollars to bolster the government--recognized South African Cricket Union. V/ Altech put up $250,000 to attract overseas players to the South African Open Tennis Championships. It is estimated that the total expenses of the championships were in the region of a million dollars. 8/ Veneer peels off Although South Africa's external propaganda claims that there is complete mixing in sport, black South Africans know that to be untrue and rarely venture to apply to join white clubs or enter white facilities. When they occasionally try, the propaganda veneer over apartheid sport peels off, exposing the truth about the r6gime's so-called changes. Soon after it was announced that the swimming pool in Kimberly was opened to all races for competition, the authorities refused training facilities on the pretext that the "black suburbs did not fall within the municipality's area of jurisdiction". 9/ In July, the Pietersburg Golf Club, Transvaal, after receiving an application for membership from a black golfer, voted not to admit black members. 10/ Applications for membership from individual blacks to the Port Shepstone Golf Club, Richmond Sports Club and the Natal Motor Cycle and Car Club have also been turned down. R_/ One of the rebel West Indian cricketers touring South Africa, Mr. Colin Croft of Barbados, was ordered off a "whites only" train carriage in Cape Town in November. This incident was widely reported and greatly embarrassed the regime and white sports administrators as the West Indian cricketers were given "honorary white" status for their stay in South Africa. The authorities had provided a special representative to accompany the West Indian team "to handle problem situations", but Mr. Croft had tried to travel alone. The Foreign Minister and the Sports Minister were at pains to apologize for this incident as if it were unique, though South Africa's blacks are subjected to such humiliation every day of their lives. 12/ -5- Such incidents continue to expose the nature of so-called reforms to end apartheid in sport. For, while the racist regime has amended some legislation which prohibited whites and blacks playing in the same tournament or mingling in the social events after the sporting fixture, there remains, as the Johannesburg Star pointed out on 5 September 1983, "the mountain of apartheid to climb": "For after the match, after the dressing room embraces and a pint in the club pub, the coloured or black player must make his way to the railway station - through a 'special' entrance reserved for 'other races' - sit in a third class carriage, and go back to the ghetto, his part-time privileges gone, until the next match." Financial Mail, Johannesburg, commented on 16 December 1983: "South Africa wants to demonstrate its 'normality' is sport. But it can't really do it, since the situation is far from normal and we would be kidding ourselves if we, thought it was. Any embarrassing incidents will have to be paid for, both by astute grovelling by the authorities and a probable raising of the prize money involved. "Which raises a question. If Pretoria, as it seems to indicate, really considers apartheid a vestige of an unreconstructed past, why does it maintain the system at all2 Perhaps there are those who calculate that it's easier to sell a false image of harmonious race relationships than tamper with the ideology that keeps them in power." It may be added that the regime, while relaxing the laws, has in no way changed its opposition to truly non-racial sport. It expects the schools, clubs, sports bodies and municipalities to hinder such sport. At the same time, the draconian laws prevent public protests against apartheid sport. The Riotous Assemblies Act No. 17 of 1956 gives the police extraordinary powers to suppress any demonstration. In November, Caroline Cullinan of Johannesburg produced several T-shirts opposing the rebel West Indian cricket tour.