The quota of black players motivates sanctions in South Africa

The quota of black players motivates sanctions in South Africa

The government has sanctioned the federations of rugby, athletics and cricket without international events for failing to comply with the promotion of black players

The South African Government has banned rugby, athletics and cricket federations from submitting applications to host international competitions for failing to meet the promotion goals of black players in their selections.

As announced today by the Minister of Sports, Fikile Mbalula, the measure will be reconsidered decision next year, when the results of the Transformation Barometer in the sport of the 2016/2017 season are known.

The promotion of black players in national teams of traditionally white sports such as rugby or cricket is a priority for the Government of South Africa since the fall of the apartheid segregationist regime in 1994.

The low presence of black players in the rugby team, the Springboks, in the 2015 World Cup - 22 of the 31 selected were white - provoked strong criticism from various social and political sectors.

These voices accused the then coach, Heyneke Meyer, of racism, and the federation of lack of interest in promoting rugby among the black majority of the country, which accounts for 80 percent of the total population.

The Springboks are an important element of the identity of South African whites, particularly the Afrikaner people.

The lower categories of rugby in South Africa are often dominated by conservative mentalities that, in the opinion of some observers, make access for black players difficult.

The popularity of the Springboks in white South Africa was used by Nelson Mandela to gain the confidence of the minority of European origin during the 1995 World Cup played in the southern country, which the hosts ended up gaining.

Mandela's attitude caused an unknown phenomenon of enthusiasm with the Springboks among the black population, hitherto hostile to a team identified with racist domination.

The Springboks - and the South African federations of other sports - suffered an international boycott during the apartheid years that deprived them of participating in international events.