Sir Keith admits to hindsight

Press, 18 October 1976, Page 6

Sir Keith admits to hindsight

PA Auckland The Minister of State (Sir Keith Holyoakei returned from the United Nations at the week-end under no illusions that New Zealand was “out of the woods” over its sports contacts with South Africa and the effects those could have on the Commonwealth Games at Edmonton in 1978.

Commenting on his strong anti-apartheid speech at the United Nations, Sir Keith said “it could have been right” to have made a similar speech at the time of Mr Abraham Ordia’s visit to New Zealand earlier this year.

He was reacting to the comment by the Olympic gold medallist, John Walker, this month: “If this is the way he and the Government feel about South Africa, why wasn’t it said long before this.”

Sir Keith said he had taken a similar stance on apartheid over the years. Strong speeches recently by himself and the Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) had been in response to “the rather traumatic experience New Zealand has had over the last three months or so.” He said black African nations to which he had spoken in New York had given New Zealand a “breathing space,’’ and that some African leaders had expressed feelings of cautious encouragement.

One African leader to whom he had spoken had said that New Zealand had been singled out at the time of the Montreal Olympics, because it was “the weak point.”

“The general attitude is now one of ‘wait and see.’ That means, in my view, wait and see what New Zealand sports bodies actually do about contacts with South Africa in the future,” said Sir Keith.

“As regards the pos-

sibility of future boycotts, I have no solid grounds for suggesting that we are out of the woods. In Commonwealth circles, there is continuing concern about the next Commonwealth Games.”

The Canadian Foreign Minister had reiterated Canada’s concern during discussions in New York, he said.

Sir Keith said he was “personally confident” that sports bodies in New Zealand would act “in a responsible manner that will contribute to the success of those Games, without any direction or dictation by the Government.”

He said it had been made quite clear to the chairman of the United Nations Special Committee on Apartheid (Mr Leslie Harriman) that New Zealand would inform sports bodies contemplating contacts with South Africa about the likely consequences of their actions, but that the Government would not withhold passports or refuse to issue visas.

“Some sports bodies might be very selfish and selfcentred, and not consider fellow sportsmen and citizens of New Zealand and go ahead with a tour,” Sir Keith said. I In this case, the Government might have to dissociate itself from their tours, he said.

Sir Keith agreed that this policy was “exactly” the 1972 Election policy of the Labour Government. “It would be unrealistic for me to claim that there is now complete understanding among African governments of New Zealand sports policy,” he said. “It is difficult for some of them, accus-

tomed in some cases to forms of Government which tend to subordinate individual freedom to what is believed to be the common good, to understand the freedom which New Zealand sports bodies enjoy, or the importance which the majority of New Zealanders attach to that freedom,” he said.

“Free men have the right to travel ... but free men also have a responsibility to consider the effects on others that their decisions will have.” Sir Keith described as “trivial” the reaction to a statement by the Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Tallboys) that the Government was not prepared to inform sports bodies specifically about the contents of United Nations resolutions, but would leave the matter to newspapers and broadcasting media.

“That is the most trivial thing I have heard of,” said Sir Keith. “What would you expect the Government to do? I gather that some people took from what I said that the Government would circularise sports bodies. I think that would be impractical . . .

“Obviously, the Government would expect that anyone who was contemplating, thinking, or planning to go to South Africa for sporting reasons would contact the Government to find out just what the position was. The Government then, through its agencies, would communicate its own assessment of the effects of any such tour, and supply them with all information, including copies of the U.N. resolutions.”