From: higham@waikato.ac.nz
Newsgroups: rec.sport.rugby
Subject: Re: All Blacks vs South Africa
Date: 21 Aug 92 14:58:08 +1200
Organization: University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand

In article <1992Aug19.163728.10211@waikato.ac.nz>, hist1261@waikato.ac.nz writes:
> In article <dekock.714136294@shannon>, dekock@shannon.ee.wits.ac.za (Nick de Kock) writes:
>> In <1992Aug17.012451.28460@mailhost.ocs.mq.edu.au> s8923098@macnab.mqcs.mq.oz.au (Josef WIDJAJA) writes:
>> 
> 
> Yes, a quite reasonable argument.  I find it somewhat disquieting that certain
> New Zealanders - particularly certain New Zealanders from Waikato University -
> have adopted such a holier-than-thou attitude toward this singing of the anthem
> business.  The arrogance with which some people presume to preach to others
> defies belief.  How dare we, thousands of miles from the incident and largely
> ignorant of the complex social and political forces at work in South Africa,
> come to such a definitive conclusion so quickly.

If you really believed this you should have stoped your post here instead of
carrying on a reaching your own definitve conclusion.
> 
> I can of course hear the cries already of "he's a racist, he's a racist", but
> nevertheless I would go further and suggest the arrogance with which the ANC
> has used rugby as a political football over the last few weeks is
> reprehensible.  The only thing worse is the Australian Foreign Ministry's
> willingness to follow each and every utterance from that political movement
> as though it were the word of God.  As worthy as is the fight against
> discrimination and for political equality, surely the ANC at the end of the
> day is a political party, much like that other black group we mysteriously
> hear so little of in the New Zealand media.  To blindly follow the dictates
> of one party is hardly "democratic".
> 

Course its not, the reason the Aust. Foreign ministry and others troop to the
ANC's table is that in the long term its the wisest thing to do giventhat
sooner rather than later the ANC and other groups will be holding the lions
share of the reins of power.
As for the ANC using rugby as a political football (nice pun too :^)) I would
have to agree, its in their best interests to do so. But, you have to qualify
this with the fact that the rugby unions negotiated with them and accepted
their proposals and prerequisites. If the rugby union felt that the ANC (and
other groups) were using rugby as a political weapon which they could not
tolerate, surely they could have either agued more forcefully and negotiated
with them or told them to be damned or cancelled the tour. Don't forget too
that the South African government have done their fair share of politicking
 Remember seeing Mr De Klerk down a mineshaft for a surprise meeting and
photocall with 2 famous rugby teams? It cuts both ways. I've also seen alot of
politicking by the rugby people as well. Playing the National anthem and waving
lots of SA flags was a powerful focus for conservative white South Africans.

> Was there any TANGIBLE damage done because the minute's silence was not
> observed?  Would the observance have brought back the thousands who have
> died, on both sides, due to township violence?  Perhaps such a
> political gesture was inappropriate in such a sporting context in the first
> place - particularly when it cut directly across traditions (and not wholly
> apartheid traditions either) which have been established in International
> Rugby for most of this century.
> 

The only tangible damage will come later when the planned tours are called off.

I would say that in hindsight it was wishful to think that a minutes silence
would work but it was agreed upon by both sides before the tour. My gripe was
that it was wilfully subverted, the agreement was broken. Not only was there no
minutes silence but the anthems, surely the most powerful political gesture
available, were played. International rugby tradition is bottom of my list of
importance, maybe instead they should just have said no anthems, just a game.
It will be intersting to see what happens tomorrow, I hear the Wallabies are
planning not to play until a minutes silence happens. Maybe there won't be a
game at all?
-- 
Tom Higham,		        "If ever somethin' don't feel right to you,     
Radiocarbon Dating Lab,	        remember what Pancho said to the Cisco Kid:
University of Waikato,	        'Let's went, before we are dancing at the
Hamilton,		        end of a rope, without music.'"  
NEW ZEALAND.		                   Sailor Ripley, "wild at heart".
Higham@waikato.ac.nz