yr13_ia_2007_wardle_d

=Analysis (500-650 words)=

Basil D’Oliveira’s sporting career had great affect on the South African Apartheid regime, so much so that the D’Oliveira Affair is of key integrity to the history of South African politics and was the turning point in the Apartheid policies. His persistency and grit determination led to his success as a county and England cricketer but his success lead to the sporting isolation of South Africa. The decision to choose D’Oliveira for the 1968-69 tour of South Africa was not simple, as the MCC[|[1]] wanted to protect its link with its fellow “founder of the ICC”[|[2]]. Prime Minister Vorster cancelled the tour claiming that the MCC had bowed to the pressures of South Africa’s “political enemies”. After this the international sporting exclusion was introduced and the sporting authorities realised that they had to change to fight the ban. The first step was to dismantle the mixed race cricket policy of Verwoerd meaning future teams would be selected on merit.

He also boosted the morale of the non-white people of South Africa enabling them to have the confidence to fight the Apartheid regime. This was the main aim for him as he tried to make it in England he knew as long as he was successful in England his followers in the Bo-Kaap would feel that the Apartheid might be forced to change. Dennis Brutus capitalised on the support and situation of D’Oliveira building white and non-white support to challenge the Apartheid ways in his organisation the SANROC[|[3]]. SANROC was set up to fight the racist views in South Africa and gain international recognition for the non-racial boards present.[|[4]]

However it can be argued that these changes were inevitable and the international sporting isolation would have occurred anyway and D’Oliveira just sped up the process. South Africa had already taken part in its last Olympics in 1960 and was suspended by FIFA from the World Cup in 1966.[|[5]] In fact the only sporting ties the South Africans held onto up until the D’Oliveira Affair were with the ICC and the International Rugby Board; all others had been influenced by Brutus and convinced to stop links with South Africa. However this can lead back to the argument that D’Oliveira helped to sever the final ties between South Africa and the rest of the world.

Some careers also had effects on the South African government, however most other non-white athletes had relatively little effect. An exception was Papwa Sewgolum a surperb South African golfer of Indian decent, he was a raw talent but due to his colour unable to play in his native country. However success in the Dutch Open and international pressure enabled him to enter the Natal Open in 1963 which he won but he was unable to receive the trophy inside the clubhouse due to his colour. He won again in 1965 beating the famous white South African golfer Gary Player this caused a tightening of the rules[|[6]]. Although the rules were tightened on Sewgolum the picture of him receiving his trophy in the pouring rain outside the clubhouse was used around the world for anti-Apartheid support.

There was a more solitary political movement, against the Apartheid; set up in the late 1950’s called the Anti-Apartheid movement led by Nelson Mandela and others like him. Set up in Britain aiming to try and stop British investment this statement from Julius Nyerere summarized their purpose, “We are not asking the British people, for anything special. We are just asking you to withdraw your support from Apartheid by not buying South African goods”[|[7]] A statement from Julius Nyerere summarizing its purpose. The Anti-Apartheid movement was formed in London on 26th June 1959, then known as the Boycott movement, by South African exiles and their supporters.[|[8]] The Anti-Apartheid movement and SANROC had built the support and were campaigning for equal rights in South Africa for many years the D’Oliveira affair was nothing more than an event highlighting their cause.

[|[1]] Marylebone Cricket Club [|[2]] International Cricket Council [|[3]] Formed in 1958 the South African Sports Association, renamed South African Non-Racial Olympic Committee in 1963 [|[4]] Reddy, Enuga, 5th December 2007, SPORTS AND THE LIBERATION STRUGGLE : a Tribute to Sam Ramsamy and others who fought apartheid sport, http://scnc.ukzn.ac.za/doc/SPORT/SPORTRAM.htm [|[5]] Oborne, Peter, 2005, Basil D’Oliveira Cricket and Conspiracy: The Untold Story, Time Warner Books. Page 121 [|[6]] Hain, Peter, 1971, Don’t Play With Apartheid, Allen & U. page 38-39 [|[7]] Anonymous, 23rd September 2007, The Anti-Apartheid Movement:A 40-year Perspective South Africa House, http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/history/aam/symposium.htm [|[8]] McCann, Lucy, 23rd September 2007, Catalogue of the archive of the Anti-Apartheid Movement, 1956-98, http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/rhodes/aam/aam.html