C.A.R.E. Appeal Criticised

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32392, 3 September 1970, Page 6

C.A.R.E. Appeal Criticised

To support an appeal asking all New Zealand sporting bodies to invite to the Dominion only those national teams chosen on sporting merit irrespective of race, co lout or creed was “to help place a spanner in the administration of the South African and Rhodesia Governments," the president of the Aid Rhodesia Movement (N.Z.), LieutenantColonel A. C. R. Elderton, said this week.

Colonel Elderton, who is also a member of the executive committee of the Southern African Friends, said both Governments had raised, without any outside aid or handouts, the standards of living of their black populations to the highest in Africa. The appeal referred to was made by the secretary of the Citizens' Association for Racial Equality (Mr T. 0. Newnham) and published in “The Press” on August 28. Mr Newnham said that suggestions by Colonel Aiderton (in an earlier statement) that racialism existed in the selection of Kenyan and Indian sports teams were “merely fantasies of the Aid Rhodesia Movement to try to take the heat off the blatant culprits —the racialist South African sports bodies.”

"Mr Newnham's reply avoids the points -at issue, made in my letter to the Cricket Council, and published in “The Press" on August 19. C.A.R.E. has campaigned against South Africa and Rhodesia for well over a year on the grounds of apartheid and not having race-mixed teams, all this despite the fact that while South Africa has a system of apartheid and does not normally race-mix teams, Rhodesia on the other hand is the very opposite—all mixed teams and no apartheid," said Colonel Elderton.

“To emphasise the complete lack of consistency in C.A.R.E.'s activities,' when South Africa and Rhodesia offered, and had ready to participate, race-mixed teams for the Olympic Games, far from supporting these two countries C.A.R.E. backed the Afro-Asian bloc when they voted against South Africa and Rhodesia over their application to take part in the Olympic Games. “Yet again, C.A.R.E. has done nothing to organise a boycott of a South African black golfers' team which is touring countries in Europe. This is of course what they should do, if their aims were sincere, as this team does not include a white golfer.

“Mr Newnham’s knowledge of India is abysmal. No Um touchable has ever been allowed on the same sports field, let alone the same team as other castes in the long history of India,” said Colonel Elderton.