Recently Luke Watson has been quoted as saying in a “private” meeting that he was revolted by the Springbok rugby jersey and wanted to “vomit” on the Jersey! Of course this has caused a major uproar in South Africa which is known for it’s rugby crazed populace….of which i am one and a supporter of the Stormers!
The Minister of Sport jumped on the bandwagon and claimed the Springbok emblem is not the property of the SARU but that of Government! Needless to say….that is a quote you will be hearing often when referring to our Government officials…it has added oil to the already sensitive issue.
Our dear Mr Komphela in sympathy with Luke Watson has also come out and claimed he too wanted to “vomit” on the jersey.
That while he is known to wear it at all occasions where the victorious Springboks play. Considering they are the World Champions for the past two years, beating opposition like the awesome All Blacks from New Zealand, it is an absolute honour to wear this jersey!
Now that is exactly the point.
What is happening here is that a small element within the ruling party and for political reasons only and against their declared methodologies and principles (nation building etc) use this highly charged symbol to meet their own personal agendas.
We know that the majority of the people of SA relate positively to the Springbok emblem and even more so since the ex President Nelson Mandela donned the jersey in uniting all peoples of SA after our world beating performance!
Personally I did not have a view as it is acceptable in my mind that the only symbol for SA rugby is the Springbok and could not be replaced by any other symbol. It is not a white symbol because like Luke Watson I was brought up in a liberal English speaking home in the heartland of Afrikaner rugby, Stellenbosch. Unlike Luke I do not carry grudges for what happened but instead believe i must be part of the solution going forward. Hence we returned to SA as a family in 2001.
How do you be part of the solution? SA has such a vast amount of people groups with their pown passions from the white population to the ancient San and now also the Chinese population. All have cultural habits and desires as we know the Zulu is different from the Xhosa or even the Ndebele who originate from the Zulu culture. I believe we are to respect each culture and allow the maintenance of these symbols and cultural beliefs which make that culture. Yet, allow any individual to gravitate and honour any other cultural beliefs they would like to accept.
The bottom line is it all comes down to mutual respect.
That is the bottom line and the areas where all those referred to stepped over the line. To me it is not what their view on the emblem would be but the attitude toward the emblem which is geared to dishonour a certain group of the population.
Without respect we will not develop our rainbow nation but continue to nail the coffin of our dreams and aspirations tightly shut.
