South Africa: 2010 World Championship: The role of sport in the struggle against racism
Dr Maurizio Fallace, Director-General of Libraries, Cultural Institutes and copyrights
Dr Liliana Di Ruscio,
National Federation of Teachers of Rome and Lazio Region
Dr Raffaella Chiodo,
Vice President of the Benny Nato Centre
Dr Nicola Zingaretti, President of the Province of Rome
Dr Filippo Fossati, President UISP
Dr Vincenzo Curatola, President of Benny Nato Centre
Ms Thenjiwe Mtintso, South Africa’s ambassador to Italy
Mr Pietro Veronese, Moderatore
Ladies and gentlemen
Allow me, Chairperson, to make just one comment before I start. The world has come full circle. Football has finally come home to Africa. The British might have given us the football but let us not forget that South Africa and Africa is the cradle of humankind, the very beginning of humankind all his achievements. It therefore gives us, South Africans, and Africans everywhere, including the Diaspora, a great sense of pride and achievement to be hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Allow me first of all to thank you for the invitation to come and contribute to this important debate about the role of sport and the fight against racism. It would be an oversight on my side if I fail to acknowledge and recognize the immense contribution and sacrifices you made for a free and just South Africa. This conference, today, will not have happened without you.
Ladies and gentlemen, we, in South Africa, have lived through a difficult period of race based policies, a constitutional state that managed and decided everything with race coloured glasses. Race became a standard unit of measurement in both pubic and private life. Young children were also denied the opportunity to play together and sports development in South Africa took on a racial line. Cricket and rugby were designated “white sport”, whereas football was designated as “black sport” and this included the manner in which resources were allocated to the various sporting codes.
The African National Congress and other progressive forces called for a sport boycott against South Africa. We launched a successful campaign called “No normal sport in an abnormal country”. This campaign was aimed at using sport to highlight the injustices of apartheid and race policies in South Africa. The boycott was well supported by the international community, including yourselves, hence this event today.
Ladies and gentlemen, the dawn of democracy in South Africa brought the lifting of sanctions, including the end of the sport boycott. Nevertheless, the end of the sport boycott meant that people who were privileged in the old dispensation where the ones who quickly began to enjoy the fruit of liberation. The new dispensation also brought to the fore the challenges facing fragmented sporting codes along racial lines.
The challenge was how to integrate the various sporting codes into a single representative body. South African leaders in the world of sports met and developed mechanisms that saw the devaluation of the previously fragmented sporting codes into a united South Africa. This gave birth to the new single South African Rugby Union, to a single Cricket Board, to a single association managing soccer and so forth.
The unanimous support that our country received from countries like Italy helped us to successfully host international sporting tournaments like the 1995 Rugby Cup, which brought the newly non-racial South Africa together for the first time, with Nelson Mandela rallying behind the Springbok, hence the world got to know about the phrase “Madiba Magic”. During this significant rugby world cup, rugby was used to promote reconciliation and nation building. Even the President adorned the number six shirt that belonged to the captain to drum up support for the rugby. The success of the rugby team galvanised South Africans to support the changes that were taking place in the country. Soon we hosted the Cricket World Cup, the African Cup of Nations, the All African Games and now, the biggest of them all, the 2010 FIFA World Championship.
The amalgamation of sport in South Africa did not happen without any challenges. Because of the racial nature of sport in South Africa, we decided to ensure speedy transformation. This transformation included, at some point, a proposal on quota system whereby a certain number of black people will be included in the national teams, the creation of opportunities and talent searching and training in the previously disadvantaged communities.
The other challenge was the use of sport symbols. During apartheid, various teams used various symbols. The symbols that we used such as the Springbok and others were rejected in the black community as they were associated with the apartheid regime. Even the national colours of the national teams were different. Nevertheless, it was agreed that the rugby national team will use the Springbok together with the Protea flower, as part of the continuous reconciliation and nation building. Even today, the rugby national team uses both the Springbok and Protea flower. All other sporting codes use the Protea as a unifying symbol. The Protea is our national flower.
Ladies and gentlemen, we in South Africa can unreservedly attest to the power of sport in uniting a racially fragmented nation. We are very proud that the global showpiece will be held in South Africa. The hosting of the world cup is in itself an achievement and a victory against bigotry and racism and all other isms that afflict the international community and mankind.
Ladies and gentlemen, our Constitution is very clear that non-racism and non-sexism underpins our Democracy. However, racism may occur at different levels, very covert, where it is difficult to prove that it is present as our minds have been corrupted by the disease of racism in many instances.
My Department of Arts and Culture will be hosting a conference on Social Cohesion early in 2010. The conference will look at how one can harness arts, culture and common heritage as South Africans to promote nation building.
The conference will look at how we can use football, in particular the 2010 FIFA World Cup and sport in general, to uproot racism and build a legacy of racial harmony and tolerance.
Sport is also one area where home ground advantage based on race, ethnicity and prejudices is really non-existent as Italy has demonstrated by winning the World Championship in Germany in 2006. Indeed, Brazil has won all their five world championships outside Brazil.
The FIFA President Sepp Blatter affirmed that the world football governing body would not tolerate any racial discrimination in the game of football, particularly during the 2010 FIFA World Cup to be held in South Africa. Harsh measures would be taken against teams if there were any evidence of racism.
FIFPRO, an international soccer players’ federal union, is currently running a “Show racism a red card” campaign across the globe which aims to eradicate racism in the game of football and in societies in general.
With justice and fair play throughout the selection, training and playing processes sports teams can achieve a lot. Team sport is a wonderful tool to combat racism both for the players and the audiences. With teams training and playing together over long periods, a bonding process brings people closer together. It also allows team to learn to know each other intimately.
Team sport and sport in general can become a transformation tool to combat racism if practiced earnestly as sport is loved by most people if not all.
Let me congratulate Italy for qualifying to defend their trophy in South Africa. A wise Italian has decided long time ago that a good defence makes a good team as shown by the Italian defender and current team captain Fabio Carnavarlo who won the best player award at the last world championship in Germany in 2006. We request that you assist us to build the defence of our national team, Bafana Bafana.
On behalf of the President of South Africa, Mr Jacob Zuma and the people of South Africa, I invite all of you to South Africa for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Ke Nako, It is time. Let the party begin.
Thank you.
Issued by: Department of Arts and Culture
20 October 2009
Source: Department of Arts and Culture (http://www.dac.gov.za/)
