HOPES FOR 1970 TOUR DISCREET SILENCE IN SOUTH AFRICA ON MAORIS

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31836, 14 November 1968, Page 12

HOPES FOR 1970 TOUR DISCREET SILENCE IN SOUTH AFRICA ON MAORIS

(From JAN BOTHA in Cape Town) (Reprinted by arrangement with the "New Zealand Herald")

The great ‘‘Maori silence” has descended upon South Africa—everybody hoping that a solution to the All Black tour of the country in 1970 can somehow be found in New Zealand.

Since September 28, when the Prime Minister (Mr Vorster) made his surprise announcement that Maori members of the All Blacks would be “warmly welcomed” in South Africa, there has been a minimum of public discussion on the delicate subject.

Rugby administrators apart from- some initial “good news” remarks—are loath to say anything, and even Opposition newspapers have politely refrained from scoring obvious political points against the Prime Minister and his Government.

Reports from New Zealand about the reactions of Maoris and of others are published dispassionately as news reports. For the rest, everybody treads warily, adopting a “wait and see” attitude. Policy Reversed? Certainly, Mr Vorster’s announcement, represents a reversal of the Government’s previous point of view—a Nationalist Government which has mostly been unbending in the defence of its policies. The former Prime Minister, Dr Verwoerd, left no uncertainty about the Government’s policy when he said in September, 1966, that he would not allow New Zealand to send a “mixed” team to South Africa. Because Dr Verwoerd was regarded as a Prime Minister who forced his own ideas on to his party without discussing them with his parliamentary caucus, and because his remarks caused a general outcry and upset many of his Afrikaner followers, some of his Cabinet colleagues went out of their way to explain that it had been a unamimous Cabinet decision not to allow Maoris in a New Zealand team to South Africa. The Minister of Sport and Recreation, Mr Frank Waring, defended Dr Verwoerd, saying that he himself took full responsibility for that decision.

This is what he told a public meeting in the general election of 1966: “Can you imagine what would have happened if there were, say, two Maoris in the All Black team? The situation would have been exploited by Leftwingers, the English press, and opponents of the Government. Conflicting Statements “The convention of sending an all-white team should have been continued by New Zealand. I am sorry that the AU Blacks are not coming to South Africa, but they brought this thing on themselves ” Mr Waring has not retracted his words and has said nothing about Mr Vorster’s “welcome to the Maoris.” Mr Vorster himself was guilty of oversights and illogicalities in making his announcement. His bland statement that “South Africa

had never in the past inter-1 fered with selection of cricket or Rugby teams abroad” does not hold water in view • of Dr Verwoerd’s attitude—unless Mr Vorster wants to i split hairs about the finer ■ meaning of words. Similarly, his statement that previous New Zealand Rugby ; teams had included among i their players some with Maori blood in their veins is ■ correct only up to a point. Mr Vorster said there would again be players* “of this nature” in the 1970 touring side and “we will receive . these players as in the past and will give them our warm . and traditional welcome as in the past.” Certainly no dark-skinned . Maori had ever been a mem- . ber of a New Zealand touring team in South Africa. The feeling here is that Mr Vor- ' ster, after the aßsil D’Olive-ira-M.C.C. incident, had to act i quickly to try to save what , could still be saved for South ' African sport. 1 M.C.C. and “Politics” i Mr Vorster blamed anti- . South African political organ- . isations and individuals in . Britain for wrecking the . M.C.C. tour. Some people said . that the Prime Minister had given open encouragement to I the enemies of South Africa • to adopt similar tactics in other sports. It was pointed out that a ' few vociferous people in New ! Zealand by clamouring for ’ guarantees that Maoris would be allowed, would make the ■ issues “political” as far as ’ Mr Vorster was concerned. ' Only a few days before ' making his announcement on the Maoris, Mr Vorster was defending his decision on the M.C.C. at a public meeting when he was asked by an interjector: “What about the Maoris?” Mr Vorster replied: “Wait until 1970.” It is a politician’s prerogative not to reveal his plans to all and sundry and to adapt his tactics to circumstances, but it does seem as if Mr Vorster had rather quick second thoughts on the matter. His remark that the Maoris would be welcome was obviously intended to stifle a development in New Zealand similar to that in England over D’Oliveira. Dangers Ahead But does that solve the' problem for South Africa? The dangers of something going awry before the tour actually takes place are only too apparent. If a dark-skinned Maori were selected for the New Zealand team, Mr Vorster I would be placed in an embar-

passing position. Having bluntly refused permission for a Cape Coloured man to play with the M.C.C. in South Africa, he might be embarrassed if opponents’ pointed out that something was being allowed now by Mr Vorster that has never happened in South Africa before. Whatever anybody may have said about the difference that exists between the selection of the M.C.C. team and the All Black team, it remains basically a question of colour. Basil D’Oliveira is a light-skinned Cape Coloured man, and a dark-skinned Maori would stand out much more than D’Oliveira would have done on the “white” sports fields of South Africa. In the meantime, political pressure could be brought to bear on South Africa if there were demands from New Zealand that dark-skinned Maori football followers be allowed visas and seating accommodation at Rugby stadiums and hotel accommodation equal to that provided for whites anywhere in South Africa. That is something which has been done in only a few individual cases for visiting I black politicians, diplomats, land other V.I.P.s. The problem of a few hundred Maori football followers, iof all shades and colours, being given the “freedom” of the country, at this stage seems quite insoluble in view of the strict non-integration I race laws in South Africa. 'There has never been an occasion in South African sportI ing history where a few hundred or even a few dozen people of colour have sat among a white audience. Segregated Spectators The trend in recent years has been to go even further: non-white people are now mostly not allowed to attend sporting events in white areas. Exceptions are made | only where a specific event or I something similar cannot be staged separately for the non- | whites. I The present tour of Ihe “Handsome Nine” professional tennis players, for instance, is not open to nonwhites. In Cape ' Town a number of players went to a non-white area to stage a special performance for the non-whites.

The All Blacks, presumably, would not be asked to I play in front of a special nonwhite audience. The nonwhite people would still be able to attend the matches at Newlands in their special enclosures, but in Pretoria and Bloemfontein they would not be allowed. The thought of darkskinned Maoris in the white audiences in the northern provinces can only be disturbing to those people who had accepted Dr Verwoerd’s version that something of the sort would be the thin end of the wedge—that once the strict segregation rules were breached the 3.5 million whites would be swamped in the sea of 14 million nonwhites. Mr Vorster has bravely cleared the first hurdle by welcoming Maori players. The size of the next hurdle will become known only as Maori football followers actually apply for visas. A few individuals would possibly be acceptable: a few dozen would create an awkward situation; a hundred or more would create a hazard unknown to the South African Government Hopes And Fears The sports-loving white South Africans realise that they have, at best, been given a respite on the next visit by the All Blacks. As if by collective instinct they are remaining silent and awaiting events. In their optimistic moments they say to themselves that the team selection for the 1970 tour is at least 18 months off. Things just might simmer down sufficiently in New Zealand not to make it a continual “hot” issue. The New Zealand Rugby administrators might just be able to “fix things up.” Even if one or two Maori players were selected they might just be light-skinned enough not to cause a flutter in the White South African dovecot. And perhaps the reports that hundreds of football followers, including Maoris, want to come along are a little bit exaggerated. In their pessimistic moments they think of the future which Dr Verwoerd sketched for South African sportsmen they should rather play against one another in the free South African sunshine than change their way of life to please the outside world, which is trying to undermine South African policies through sport. Eighteen anxious and nailbiting months lie ahead for South Africa.