All Blacks Fascinated By Transkei

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32381, 21 August 1970, Page 17

All Blacks Fascinated By Transkei

(From T. P. McLEAN) GAPE TOWN. Paramount-Chief Kaeser Matanzima, Chief Minister of South Africa’s first self-governing native state, the Transkei, is happy to mix politics and sport. He is delighted that the All Blacks have come to South Africa; his pleasure is the greater because the team includes non-Europeans.

“I played much Rugby, cricket and other sport when I was at school,” paramount chief Matanzima told the AU Blacks. “That is one reason why I so warmly welcome you to South Africa.” He is 56 but looks 20 years younger. It may be that he Is an advertisement for the youthful qualities of Rugby. He listens to all of the team’s games and without invitation will produce from his pocket a tour-itinerary card showing the results of all games. He professes the warmest admiration for New Zealand because of its racial policies and he is immensely saddened that the South African cricket team’s tour of England was cancelled because of political pressures. Paramount Chief Matanzima describes himself and his Xhosa people as South Africans and he looks to the development of his state in close " association with the South African Government. He was the most arresting but by no means the only interesting personality encountered by a party'of eight All Blacks, including the team managers, Messrs R. L. Burk t and I. M. Vodanovich, who - visited the Transkei on Tues--5 day. ' In this area of 1600 square !- miles, which houses one milf lion and a half people, the 1 most interesting racial experir ment in South African history i has been going on for the last s seven years. The All Blacks, who flew r by light planes from East t London, were G. F. Kember, E. W. Kirton, B. A. Hunter, G S. Thorne, N. W. Thimbleby and W. D. Cottrell. They were all obviously impressed by the warmth of the welcome from Paramount Chief

Matanzima and members of his Cabinet at the Legislative Assembly. They may have been impressed even more by the reaction of the 30 or 40 Bantu who watched the proceedings from the galleries of the House while the All Blacks were welcomed.

Beautiful Singing

Led by the only woman in the gallery, a nurse, this group spontaneously began to sing the National Anthem—which has now become the anthem of the Bantu nations of South Africa. The fourpart choral singing was exquisite and to some hearers appeared to surpass even the singing of Fijians on similar occasions.

The All Blacks were a little baffled at the end of this affecting experience to be split into two parties for a short visit to schools. One school visited was English, the other Afrikaans. It would have pleased the New Zealanders a great deal more if they could have visited a school for Africans. Nevertheless, they were a little shaken to find that the Transkei, although offering an unqualified vote to all men and women above the age of 18, is pursuing a policy of separate development which

is leading to the phasing-out of Europeans from government immediately the Bantu become capable of assuming the important positions. This is apparently a major political issue in the territory. Paramount Chief Matanzima approves of this but the Leader of the Opposition, who was not present at the welcome, favours a multi-racial policy for the development of the area.

Separate Development The All Blacks became acquainted with the separatist policy at first hand when they lunched in an all-white group at a leading old hotel in the city of Umtata and then proceeded down the road to a new three-storey hotel which is restricted entirely to non-Europeans. The accommodation and facilities in this hotel excited the admiration of Mr Burk, who because of his position as hotels-manager of" Dominion Breweries, Ltd, views these things with an expert eye. The accommodation ranged from a 100-bed dormitory offering a night’s board for 35c to three-roomed suites costing $lO-a-person a night for bed and breakfast On their last trip round a most attractive city, set at an altitude of 3000 ft the AU Blacks visited a weaving factory managed by a German woman and staffed by 170 Bantu women.

By a stupendous effort of will Graham Thorne resisted the temptation to buy for nearly $2OOO a hand-woven carpet square measuring twelve by twelve, and of a truly-sensational quality, but he was characteristically in the forefront of the race to buy at cost other hand-woven items of superb quality and highly-original design.