H.A.R.T. repeats plea

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32700, 1 September 1971, Page 1

H.A.R.T. repeats plea

Evidence suggesting that the New Zealand Golf Association should not invite South Africa to take part in the Auckland centennial amateur golf tournament was extensive and formidable, said the chairman of Halt All Racist Tours (Mr T. Richards, of Christchurch) last evening.

Mr Richards said that H.A.R.T. had telephoned a leading anti-apartheid organisation in South Africa in an effort to determine whether a visit by the all-white South African Golf Union team would hinder the evolution towards non-radalism in South African golf. According to the information received, everything indicated that the visit would hinder such an evolution. “I am not prepared to name publicly the source of HAR.T.’s information, for pretty obvious reasons, but 1 y

am prepared to inform the association in confidence of the source,” Mr Richards said.

It was reasonably certain that the association’s management committee was meeting today to make a final decision on both the presence

of the South African team in the centennial tournament

and association’s attitude towards proposals put by the anti-apartheid movement last week.

The major point to emerge from the five-minute telephone call to South Africa was that pressures on the

all-white South African Golf Union to call for nonracialism in South African golf could only be increased should the association withdraw the invitation.

“It would certainly be a break-through if the association were to withdraw its invitation,” Mr Richards said. “We would strongly urge the association to adopt this course of action when it meets tomorrow.”