S.A. sport policy ‘has failed’

Press, 9 March 1984, Page 6

S.A. sport policy ‘has failed’

NZPA-Reuter New York A United Nations body said yesterday that, despite “heavily financed and deceitful propaganda efforts,” South Africa had failed to persuade world opinion it had eliminated racial discrimination in sports. “Despite intensive lobbying by South Africa and its friends, no international sports body which has excluded or suspended South Africa from membership has reversed its decision,” the United Nations Centre Against Apartheid said. Its comments were made in the introduction to its latest sports “blacklist,” containing the names of sports figures reported to have had contacts with South Africa during the second half of 1983.

The centre said: “The racist regime of South Africa and the racist sports bodies in that country have failed to achieve any success in their heavily financed and deceitful propaganda efforts to persuade world opinion that there is no more racial

discrimination and segregation in sports in South Africa, and that the international boycott of apartheid sports should be ter-

minated.”

It said that pressure for a sporting boycott of South Africa had grown and more governments had taken action in support of the ban. “In their desperation, the Pretoria regime and the racist sports bodies have come to rely mainly on the use of huge amounts of money to secure some participation in international sports competition.' “With a handsome budget made up of contributions from business enterprises as well as public and secret Government funds, they have persisted with the virtual bribery of individual sportspersons or threats to undermine amateur sports,” it said. The recently formed South African Sports Sponsors Association had given

millions of dollars to lure overseas sports stars to compete in South Africa and to undermine internal opposition by offering substantial rewards to those who competed within the Government’s sport policy, it said.

“Apartheid, however, continues to- be entrenched in sports and in South African society generally, albeit with some adjustments.”