Halt All Racist Tours
Encyclopedia
Halt All Racist Tours was a protest group set up in New Zealand
in 1969 to protest against rugby union
tours to and from South Africa
.
Trevor Richards, Tom Newnham
, John Minto
and others formed HART in 1969 to protest against the proposed 1970 tour. The tour went ahead after the South Africans agreed to accept a mixed-race team.
In 1973, HART promised a campaign of civil disruption if the Springboks toured New Zealand. The Labour
Prime Minister, Norman Kirk
, prohibited the tour. Rugby supporters objected, complaining that politics should not interfere in sport.
The All Blacks
were next due to tour South Africa in 1976. Newly elected National
Prime Minister Robert Muldoon
refused to cancel the tour, which went ahead. Subsequently Commonwealth leaders adopted the Gleneagles Agreement
whereby they agreed to discourage sporting contact with South Africa. 21 African nations boycotted the 1976 Summer Olympics
in Montreal in protest against the All Black tour of South Africa.
HART merged with the National Anti-Apartheid Council in 1980 to become HART: NAAM. After ten years as National Chairperson, Richards was replaced by John Minto
.
The high point of protest was around the 1981 Springbok Tour
in which thousands of New Zealanders protested, invaded pitches, and were involved in civil disobedience
to stretch police resources. HART was not the leading body in these protests, as broader organisations were set up in each major centre to coordinate protests, but HART members played a leading role in these organisations.
In 1985, a planned All Black tour of South Africa was stopped by the New Zealand High Court after two lawyers sued the NZRFU, claiming such a tour would breach the NZRFU's constitution. An unofficial tour did take place in 1986 by a team including the majority of the All Blacks players selected for the previous year's cancelled tour. These were known as the New Zealand Cavaliers
, but often advertised inside the Republic as the All Blacks or alternatively depicted with the Silver Fern. HART organised nationwide protests, but they were much smaller than the 1981 protests.
HART's reason for existence ended with the dismantling of apartheid by the South African government.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
in 1969 to protest against rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
tours to and from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
Chronology
Up until 1970, South Africa refused to allow mixed-race sports teams to tour South Africa, and they were not happy about having to play against "natives" in New Zealand. A protest movement against the 1960 New Zealand rugby union tour of South Africa used the slogan "No Maoris, No Tour", but it was unsuccessful at stopping the tour. In 1967, the New Zealand Rugby Union decided to cancel the proposed 1967 tour over the issue.Trevor Richards, Tom Newnham
Tom Newnham
Thomas Oliver "Tom" Newnham QSO was a New Zealand political activist and former educationalist. He was involved in several left wing causes: attacking institutional racism in New Zealand, and opposing the 1981 Springbok Tour and apartheid in general .He spoke Cantonese and Mandarin fluently after...
, John Minto
John Minto
John Minto is a New Zealand based political activist known for his involvement in various left-wing groups and causes, most notably Halt All Racist Tours. A 2005 documentary on New Zealand's top 100 history makers listed him as number 89. Today he is involved with the protest group Global Peace...
and others formed HART in 1969 to protest against the proposed 1970 tour. The tour went ahead after the South Africans agreed to accept a mixed-race team.
In 1973, HART promised a campaign of civil disruption if the Springboks toured New Zealand. The Labour
New Zealand Labour Party
The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....
Prime Minister, Norman Kirk
Norman Kirk
Norman Eric Kirk was the 29th Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1972 until his sudden death in 1974. He led the Parliamentary wing of the New Zealand Labour Party from 1965 to 1974. He was the fourth Labour Prime Minister of New Zealand, but the first to be born in New Zealand...
, prohibited the tour. Rugby supporters objected, complaining that politics should not interfere in sport.
The All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
were next due to tour South Africa in 1976. Newly elected National
New Zealand National Party
The New Zealand National Party is the largest party in the New Zealand House of Representatives and in November 2008 formed a minority government with support from three minor parties.-Policies:...
Prime Minister Robert Muldoon
Robert Muldoon
Sir Robert David "Rob" Muldoon, GCMG, CH served as the 31st Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1975 to 1984, as leader of the governing National Party. Muldoon had been a prominent member of the National party and MP for the Tamaki electorate for some years prior to becoming leader of the party...
refused to cancel the tour, which went ahead. Subsequently Commonwealth leaders adopted the Gleneagles Agreement
Gleneagles Agreement
The Gleneagles Agreement was unanimously approved by the Commonwealth of Nations at a meeting at Gleneagles, Auchterarder, Scotland. In 1977, Commonwealth Presidents and Prime Ministers agreed, as part of their support for the international campaign against apartheid, to discourage contact and...
whereby they agreed to discourage sporting contact with South Africa. 21 African nations boycotted the 1976 Summer Olympics
1976 Summer Olympics
The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...
in Montreal in protest against the All Black tour of South Africa.
HART merged with the National Anti-Apartheid Council in 1980 to become HART: NAAM. After ten years as National Chairperson, Richards was replaced by John Minto
John Minto
John Minto is a New Zealand based political activist known for his involvement in various left-wing groups and causes, most notably Halt All Racist Tours. A 2005 documentary on New Zealand's top 100 history makers listed him as number 89. Today he is involved with the protest group Global Peace...
.
The high point of protest was around the 1981 Springbok Tour
1981 Springbok Tour
The 1981 South African rugby union tour of New Zealand was a controversial tour of New Zealand by the South Africa national rugby union team, known as "the Springboks"...
in which thousands of New Zealanders protested, invaded pitches, and were involved in civil disobedience
Civil disobedience
Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power. Civil disobedience is commonly, though not always, defined as being nonviolent resistance. It is one form of civil resistance...
to stretch police resources. HART was not the leading body in these protests, as broader organisations were set up in each major centre to coordinate protests, but HART members played a leading role in these organisations.
In 1985, a planned All Black tour of South Africa was stopped by the New Zealand High Court after two lawyers sued the NZRFU, claiming such a tour would breach the NZRFU's constitution. An unofficial tour did take place in 1986 by a team including the majority of the All Blacks players selected for the previous year's cancelled tour. These were known as the New Zealand Cavaliers
New Zealand Cavaliers
The Cavaliers was the name given to an unofficial New Zealand rugby union team which toured South Africa in 1986.The rebel tour occurred after the official All Black tour planned for 1985 was cancelled due to a legal ruling that it would be incompatible with the NZRFU's legally stated purpose:...
, but often advertised inside the Republic as the All Blacks or alternatively depicted with the Silver Fern. HART organised nationwide protests, but they were much smaller than the 1981 protests.
HART's reason for existence ended with the dismantling of apartheid by the South African government.
See also
- 1981 South Africa rugby union tour of New Zealand
- New Zealand cricket team in Zimbabwe in 2005-06
- CARE (New Zealand)CARE (New Zealand)CARE was a New Zealand organisation that fought against racism towards minority groups in New Zealand....
Further reading
- Malcolm Templeton, Human Rights and Sporting Contacts: New Zealand Attitudes To Race Relations In South Africa, 1921-94, Auckland University Press, 1998, ISBN 1-86940-170-0
- Trevor Richards, Dancing on Our Bones: New Zealand, South Africa, Rugby and Racism (Bridget Williams Books, 1999)