Springboks a template for race relations in South Africa

 In the year in which we mark 200 years of isiXhosa in writing, a young Xhosa-speaking man watched John Smit, the then captain of the Springboks, lift the Webb Ellis trophy in 2007 on behalf of South Africa for the second time.

It is that same young man, of course not so young any more, who will not only lead out his troops on the very same field but will also lead them in one of the world's most unique prayers, Nkosi’ Sikele’ Afrika — the first stanza of a Xhosa hymn written by one Enoch Sontonga in 1897.

A prayer that will reverberate across the whole of South Africa and the African continent. From the pitch in the Stade de France to a tavern in Zwide, South Africans will be filled with pride, joy, and patriotism as our beloved national rugby team does battle with a mission to lift the Webb Ellis trophy for the fourth time since our democracy.

And it would be for the first time that a rugby team will win the trophy on four occasions. Having lifted it himself in 2019, he now hopes to be the first South African captain to lift the trophy in two successive world cups. In so doing, our team will become the second team ever to defend the Webb Ellis trophy.

The Springboks have played a pivotal role in shaping the national identity of South Africa since 1994. They provide a sound basis for a nation dogged by racial inequalities to strengthen and resolve our race relations. And the words of former president Nelson Mandela ring true today when he said: “Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down the racial barriers. It laughs in the face of all discrimination.”

As we prepare to support national our team in the Rugby World Cup, let us remember the role that the Springboks have played in shaping our national identity and the importance of continued unity as a nation.

Mandela, embracing the Springboks and rugby, and he too being embraced by rugby, said to us this is also our sport. And so today, we see a proliferation of black players who have come through the school system and have gone on to play franchise rugby and ultimately represent the national team.

In a country where the national question (our national identity) is a complex issue, the ANC has been at the forefront of framing the debate surrounding nation-building, nationalism and a nation-state. The Springboks invite us to revisit this question, as they have significantly shaped our national identity.

Historically, rugby was a sport associated with exclusion and Afrikanerdom. However, the Springboks have broken down these barriers and have become a symbol of unity for all South Africans.

While some argue that representativeness and competence are mutually exclusive, this is untrue. Today, South Africa boasts some of the best rugby players in the world, with Siyamthanda Kolisi, a black African from Zwide, leading the team as captain.

It would be remiss of us not to acknowledge the visionary leadership of Mandela, who wore the now-famous number 6 Springbok jersey, creating an Invictus moment where all South Africans could re-own the sport and the Springbok emblem. One uses the term re-own deliberately because as Nick Dall calls on the work of Hendrik Synders in the Financial Mail, “People think that Mandela (and the rest of black South Africa) discovered rugby in 1995 ... In actual fact, the black schools and university he (Mandela) attended had a proud rugby tradition by the 1930s”.

The rugby players’ upbringing and cultural background is now seen as a gateway to what parts of South Africa they represent and not a basis for them to form part of a national team. The struggle for democracy, after all, also entailed creating opportunities for men and women of colour to rise as high as their talents can take them.

In other words, there is no doubt that our national rugby men’s team represents what our constitution refers to as “We The People”. The Springboks are us, the people.

The intense debate surrounding the national question inside the ANC seeks to strengthen our nation-state's unity, coherence, functionality, and pride in the ongoing struggle for national emancipation.

With the myriad of challenges plaguing our nation, which is still transforming, unity of purpose across all spheres of society is a prerequisite. The Springboks show us that we cannot shine on the global stage or move forward if we do not recognise the injustices of our past.

We must revisit this discussion during the current transition and transformation phase to ensure we share a common understanding of this complex issue. This is critical for our challenge of transforming South African society and ordering the internal life of our organisation.

ANC policy of de-racialisation is a deliberate and conscious effort to reverse the decades of systematic discrimination that has plagued the country. This policy is based on a range of measures, including affirmative action, aimed at ensuring the results of the past are reversed. The goal is to create a society where everyone has equal opportunities, regardless of their race.

However, the practical implementation of affirmative action policies outside the public sector leaves much to be desired. In some provinces, such as the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, misinformation has been deliberately spread to create the impression that affirmative action means laying off Coloured and Indian workers or denying opportunities to them.

These false claims are misleading and have led to division and animosity. The aim of affirmative action and broad based black economic is to level the playing field, not to create winners and losers.

Our beloved constitution and freedom charter have entrenched the principle of equality. Substantive equality for that matter in other words equality which is nuanced and is underpinned by a historical understanding of who we are.

To borrow extensively from struggle veteran Pallo Jordan: “It's proper that we remind ourselves of our strategic goal — creating a democratic, nonracial, non-sexist society. The radical transformation of the quality of life of the Black majority is central to these objectives. Putting an end to poverty, hunger, insecurity, and economic exploitation should, therefore, be at the top of the ANC's agenda.”

To the ANC, democracy, nonracialism and non-sexism do not merely mean that Tony Leon and his African domestic worker can stand in the same queue in Houghton to vote every five years.

They suggest creating conditions in which the domestic worker's daughter has a fair chance of competing equally with Leon's son for a place at the best schools in South Africa, for a chance to play the same sports in sporting facilities of the same quality, to have access to the best cultural amenities, to compete with him for a place at Wits, to become a lawyer (or doctor, etc) if she so wishes, and to move in next door to Leon (or even Harry Oppenheimer, for that matter) if that is what she wants.

Might I add a rugby player.

It's time for everyone to work together towards a truly equitable society where everyone has equal opportunities to succeed. By doing so, we will create a better future for all South Africans.

After all our founding mothers and fathers of our constitution committed us in the preamble to our constitution to work towards “improving the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each person”.

As our cherished captain lifts the trophy on Saturday, “their triumph will be celebrated by our rainbow nation whose banner they have raised so high among the nations of the world”.

The Springboks have answered the national question — so can we. Sound the call to come together and united we shall stand.

# Phiri is a spokesperson for the ministry of justice and correctional services. He writes in his personal capacity.