Mr Lee to mediate in sports dispute?

Press, 10 June 1977, Page 4

Mr Lee to mediate in sports dispute?

NZPA London Singapore’s Prime Minister (Mr Lee Kuan Yew) is poised to move on to centre stage in the Commonwealth dispute over sports contacts with South Africa.

Mr Lee is believed to have, •greed to act as a mediator! between New Zealand and 1 those countries — the large i majority — which oppose* New Zealand’s stand on the' sports question. The surprise move was re-: veaied today by sources close' to the Commonwealth sum-! mit. They say that Mr Lee is| being held in reserve in casediscussions at summit ses-l sions break down in heated' argument. There appears to be al strong, and so far success-! ful. move to hold off any talks on New Zealand until) the Commonwealth leaders i get to the Scottish hideaway' of Gleneagles tomorrow afternoon. That move is being engin-1 eered by the energetic and articulate Commonwealth Secretary-General (Mr Shridath Ramphal) with the backing of the host Prime Minister (Mr Callaghan). The debate on the vexed, southern African question I opens in the formal summit! session today, but it is expected to be so wide-ranging and so many leaders are expected to join the queue to speak, that New Zealand’s problem could well take at back seat. The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) is believed to have discussed a prospective role for Mr Lee when he was in Singapore in April. It is not known whether Mr Muldoon made the first approach, or whether it was Mr Lee’s idea. New Zealand officials with Mr Muldoon in London are not commenting on the man-! oeuvering. But is has become noticeable during the week that Mr Muldoon, and indeed all' others involved, including Canada’s Mr Trudeau and Mr Callaghan, are picking their words with care and are anxious not to inflame an already controversial issue. Mr Muldoon has reneated his stand on a number of

■.occasions, but he has been .(careful not to comment on i the activities of Africa or Africans — except for :(Uganda — and his known J dislike for Mr Abraham JOrdia, a man black African leaders respect, has not been mentioned here. ■ Lee is ideally placed to Icome in as international broker. He is an influential, i senior Commonwealth Prime (Minister, without any close I alignment to either black or ! white factions. Another significant factor ; is that he is a figure Mr Muldoon admires, and the latter’s i praise on Wednesday of Mr I Lee’s speech on the shift in i the balance of power was an ■ indication of that. Yesterday’s southern Afriican debate was brought for>ward a dav to accommodate I two leaders, Zambia’s President Kuan da and Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister (Mr Somare). Both are leaving the summit early to return 'home. The forma! debate behind (the closed doors of the conference centre — the music (room in historic Lancaster House — will be centred on the plans for majority rule in Rhodesia and the future of Namibia. Meanwhile, the simmering I beiow-surface dispute be- , tween Mr Muldoon and the Australian Prime Minister (Mr Fraser) could develop further, after revelations made in London yesterday by a senior New Zealand vachting official. The official, the president of the New Zealand Federation (Mr Harry Julian) told the NZPA that Mr Fraser ( had agreed to issue visas to South African yachtsmen (wanting to compete at a regatta at Perth in November. This would be totally against Mr Fraser’s hard line on sports contact with South Africa. Previously, he has said that the Australian Government would refuse visas to South African sportsmen — a move that not even Britain or Canada attempts to match.

Mr Julian was in London ii representing New Zealand, r; Australia, and Papua New r! Guinea at a meeting of the 11 International Yacht Racing 11 Union. He said that Australia i j wanted to host the regatta at i*Perth, a junior world cham--1 pionship in the Laser and 470 )(classes, but was concerned 1 that the Government would , not allow South Africans in. >1 Australian officials told Mr Julian that because South j; African participation was a (condition of holding the r I event, they had consulted the . Government. s Mr Julian said he was r advised by the Australians to , tell his colleagues on the j world body that the Australian Government said that . “visas would not be given to . a South African team, but > would be issued to indi- ' viduais.’’ z These individuals, the Ausr tralians made clear, would , be the members of the South ’(African team. “We do not understand j how the Australian Govern- . ment cannot issue visas col- - lectively to a team, but can [I to the individuals in the , team.’’ Mr Julian said. , There had been no attempt f .at censure of South Africa at (the I.Y.R.U. meeting, nor any , criticism of the New Zealand ’ stance. ; A South African team will r also compete in the world > Quarter-ton championships in > Finland later this year, with i the other 75 member nations - of the I.Y.R.U. The only anti-South Africa t incident at die meeting was • when the Soviet Union 1 objected to one of the r Quarter-ton races encroach- > ing on Soviet waters. Its i delegate said a South African - sportsman would not be '■ allowed into Soviet territory. f The course of the race was s changed. Black African nations were J not represented at the meetI ing, and few can point to I I yachting as a major sport. EARLIER STORY, P. 3