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The 1981 South African rugby tour (known in
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
as the 1981 Springbok Tour, and in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
as the Rebel Tour) polarised opinions and inspired widespread protests across New Zealand. The controversy also extended to the United States, where the South African rugby team continued their tour after departing New Zealand.
Apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
had made South Africa an international pariah, and other countries were strongly discouraged from having sporting contacts with it.
Rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
was (and is) an extremely popular sport in New Zealand, and the South African national team, known as the Springboks, were considered to be New Zealand's most formidable opponents. Therefore, there was a major split in opinion in New Zealand as to whether politics should influence sport in this way and whether the Springboks should be allowed to tour. The dispute was similar to that involving
Peter Hain Peter Gerald Hain, Baron Hain, (born 16 February 1950), is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2005 to 2007, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2007 to 2008 and twice as Secretary of State ...
in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s, when Hain's Stop the Tour campaign clashed with the more conservative 'Freedom Under Law' movement championed by barrister
Francis Bennion Francis Alan Roscoe Bennion (2 January 1923 – 28 January 2015"Deaths", ''The Times'', 17 February 2015, p. 57) was a barrister in the United Kingdom. He was the author of several leading UK legal texts, including in particular ''Bennion on St ...
. The police response to the protests also became a focus of controversy. Although the protests were among the most intense in New Zealand's recent history, no deaths or serious injuries resulted. After the tour, no official sporting contact took place between New Zealand and South Africa until the early 1990s, after apartheid had been abolished. The tour has been said to have led to a decline in the popularity of rugby union in New Zealand, until the
1987 Rugby World Cup The 1987 Rugby World Cup was the first Rugby World Cup. It was co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia – New Zealand hosted 21 matches (17 pool stage matches, two semi-finals, the third-place play-off and the final) while Australia hosted 11 mat ...
.


Background

The Springboks and New Zealand's national rugby team, the
All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...
, have a long tradition of intense and friendly sporting rivalry. From 1948 to 1969, the South African
apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
regime affected team selection for the All Blacks, with selectors passing over
Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
players for some All Black tours to South Africa. Opposition to sending race-based teams to South Africa grew throughout the 1950s and 1960s, and prior to the All Blacks' tour of South Africa in 1960, 150,000 New Zealanders – 6.25% of the country's population at that time – signed a petition supporting a policy of "No Maoris, No Tour". Despite this, the tour went ahead, and in 1969, Halt All Racist Tours (HART) was formed. During the 1970s, public protests and political pressure forced on the NZRFU the choice of either fielding a team not selected by race, or not touring South Africa: after South African rugby authorities continued to select Springbok players by race, the
Norman Kirk Norman Eric Kirk (6 January 1923 – 31 August 1974) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 29th prime minister of New Zealand and as well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs (New Zealand), minister of Foreign Affairs from 1972 until h ...
Labour Government barred the Springboks from touring New Zealand in 1973. In response, the NZRFU protested about the involvement of "politics in sport". On 28 March 1976, the final game of ex-All Black Fergie McCormick was played at
Lancaster Park Lancaster Park, also known as Jade Stadium and AMI Stadium for sponsorship reasons, was a sports stadium in Waltham, a suburb of Christchurch in New Zealand. The stadium closed permanently due to damage sustained in the February 2011 earthqu ...
in Christchurch, to which two Springbok players had been invited. Ten days before the game, protesters had written "WELCOME TO RACIST GAME" in 20-foot high letters on the pitch using weed-killer. The All Blacks toured South Africa in 1976 with the blessing of the newly elected New Zealand prime minister,
Robert Muldoon Sir Robert David Muldoon (; 25 September 19215 August 1992) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 31st prime minister of New Zealand, from 1975 to 1984, while leader of the National Party. Departing from National Party convention, Mu ...
. In response, twenty-five African nations boycotted the
1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...
in Montreal, stating that in their view the All Blacks tour gave tacit support to the apartheid regime in South Africa: the IOC declined to ban New Zealand from the Olympics on the grounds that rugby union was no longer an Olympic sport. The tour attracted several anti-apartheid protests in New Zealand, including one on 28 May 1976 in Cathedral Square, Christchurch which attracted 1000–1500 people and included guerrilla theatre. Protesters also attempted to disrupt television coverage of the first test by vandalising the Makara Hill microwave station in Wellington, which was responsible for relaying programming in and out of TV One's
Avalon Avalon () is an island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appeared in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' as a place of magic where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was made and later where Arthur was taken to recove ...
studios. The 1976 tour contributed to the creation of the
Gleneagles Agreement In the Gleneagles Agreement, in 1977, Commonwealth presidents and prime ministers agreed, as part of their support for the international campaign against apartheid, to discourage contact and competition between their sportsmen and sporting organis ...
that was adopted by the
Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM; or) is a wiktionary:biennial, biennial summit meeting of the List of current heads of state and government, governmental leaders from all Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth nations. ...
in 1977.


Tour of New Zealand

By the early 1980s, the pressure from other countries and from protest groups in New Zealand such as HART reached a head when the NZRFU proposed a Springbok tour for 1981. This became a topic of political contention due to the international sports
boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...
. After the Australian Prime Minister,
Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia, and is the fourth List of ...
, refused permission for the Springboks' aircraft to refuel in Australia, the Springboks' flights to and from New Zealand went via Los Angeles and Hawaii. Despite pressure for the Muldoon government to cancel the tour, permission was granted for it, and the Springboks arrived in New Zealand on 19 July 1981. Since 1977 Muldoon's government had been a party to the Gleneagles Agreement, in which the countries of the
Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
accepted that it was:
the urgent duty of each of their Governments vigorously to combat the evil of apartheid by withholding any form of support for, and by taking every practical step to discourage contact or competition by their nationals with sporting organisations, teams or sportsmen from South Africa or from any other country where sports are organised on the basis of race, colour or ethnic origin.
Despite this, Muldoon also argued that New Zealand was a free and democratic country, and that "politics should stay out of sport." In the years following the Gleneagles Agreement, it seemed that New Zealand government members did not feel bound to the Gleneagles agreement, and disregarded it. However, some historians claim that, "the leneaglesagreement remained vague enough to avoid the New Zealand government from having to use coercive powers such as withdrawing visas and passports." This means Muldoon's government technically was not bound to the agreement to the extent it outwardly appeared to the public. In addition to this,
Ben Couch Manuera Benjamin Rīwai Couch (27 June 1925 – 3 June 1996) was a New Zealand politician and rugby union player. He was a team-member of the All Blacks and the New Zealand Māori rugby union team in the 1940s. Early life Couch was born in 192 ...
, who was the minister for Māori development at the time, stated, "I believe that the Gleneagles agreement has been forced upon us by people who do not have the same kind of democracy that we have." Muldoon made some effort to discourage the tour and stated that he could see "nothing but trouble coming from this." "A Springbok tour would dash to the ground all that has been achieved as a result of international acceptance", wrote deputy Prime Minister
Brian Talboys Sir Brian Edward Talboys (7 June 1921 – 3 June 2012) was a New Zealand politician who served as the seventh deputy prime minister of New Zealand for the first two terms of Robert Muldoon's premiership. If the abortive "#Colonels' Coup, C ...
to the chairman of the NZRFU in a further attempt to discourage the tour, " he tourmay affect the harmonious development of the Commonwealth and international sport". Some rugby supporters echoed the separation of politics and sport, while other rugby supporters argued that if the tour were cancelled, there would be no reporting of the widespread criticism of apartheid in New Zealand in the controlled South African media. Muldoon's critics felt that he allowed the tour in order for his National Party to secure the votes of rural and provincial conservatives in the general election later in the year, which National won. Along with Muldoon's policy of "leaving sporting contacts to sporting bodies", Muldoon also held the opinion that the disruption and division of New Zealand was not caused by the NZRFU, nor the Springboks, but the anti-tour protesters themselves. This argument was vehemently refuted by anti-tour voices, political activist Tom Newnham claimed that the government enabled "the greatest breakdown in law and order ew Zealandhas ever witnessed." The ensuing public protests polarised New Zealand: while rugby fans filled the football grounds, protest crowds filled the surrounding streets, and on one occasion succeeded in invading the pitch and stopping the game. Initially the anti-tour movement was committed to non-violent
civil disobedience Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizenship, citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be cal ...
, demonstrations and
direct action Direct action is a term for economic and political behavior in which participants use agency—for example economic or physical power—to achieve their goals. The aim of direct action is to either obstruct a certain practice (such as a governm ...
. As protection for the Springboks,
the police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. Within a few months of their first gig, the line-up settled as Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar, primary songwriter), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussi ...
created two special riot squads, the Red and Blue Squads. These police were, controversially, the first in New Zealand to be issued with visored riot helmets and long batons (more commonly the side-handle baton). Some protesters were intimidated and interpreted this initial police response as overkill and heavy-handed tactics. After early disruptions, police began to require that all spectators assemble in sports grounds at least an hour before kick-off. While the protests were meant to be largely peaceful resistance to the Springbok tour, quite often there were "violent confrontations with rugby supporters and specially trained riot police." At Gisborne on the day before the match anti-tour activists, including Mereana Pitman, gained access to the pitch with a vehicle and tipped broken glass on the pitch. On 22 July, protesters managed to break through a fence, but quick action by spectators and ground security prevented the game being disrupted. Some protesters were beaten by police. From the very first match of the tour in Gisborne, protester tension levels ran high, and one protester, cartoonist Murray Ball, who was the son of an All Black, recalled that it "was strange for New Zealanders to feel so aggressive towards other New Zealanders" and that he was "scared as hell" when he came up against pro-tour defenders.


Hamilton: Game cancelled

At Rugby Park,
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
(the site of today's
Waikato Stadium FMG Stadium Waikato is a major sporting and cultural events venue in Hamilton, New Zealand, with a total capacity of 25,800. Four areas contribute to this capacity: The Brian Perry Stand holding 12,000, the WEL Networks Stand holding 8,000, th ...
), on 25 July, about 350 protesters invaded the pitch after pulling down a fence. The police arrested about 50 of them over a period of an hour, but were concerned that they could not control the rugby crowd, who were throwing bottles and other objects at the protesters. Following reports that a stolen light plane (piloted by Pat McQuarrie) was approaching the stadium, police cancelled the match. The protesters were ushered from the ground and were advised by protest marshals to remove any anti-tour insignia from their attire, with enraged rugby spectators lashing out at them. Gangs of rugby supporters waited outside Hamilton police station for arrested protesters to be processed and released, and assaulted some protesters making their way into Victoria Street. There are many reports from protesters feeling unsafe during this protest. "It was terrifying, I don’t know how big the crowd was, but they were clearly furious …. The police looked vulnerable as they spread out around the whole ground", recollects one protester.


Wellington: Molesworth Street protest

The aftermath of the Hamilton game, followed by the bloody batoning of marchers in
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
's Molesworth Street in the following week, in which police batoned bare-headed protesters, led to the radicalisation of the protest movement. There are many instances where the protesters had to fear for their safety, especially considering the violence that began on Molesworth Street, where police are said to have "behaved rather too similarly to South African police", according to Tom Newnham. Former police officer, Ross Muerant, who was pro-tour, speaks of the Molesworth St protest: "The protestors, who so obviously lacked self-control, were that evening privy to a classic display of discipline." This perspective of the police tactics has severe opposition from anti-tour activists, with claims that protesters were "savagely attacked by police", and that "police provoked violence." While Newnham's claims that the violence towards protesters from police was unjustified was likely true in his experience, Muerant maintains that there were protesters who intended to inflict "serious injury or disfigurement" on the police. Because of this, many protesters began to wear
motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...
or
bicycle helmet A bicycle helmet is a type of helmet designed to attenuate impacts to the head of a cycling, cyclist in collisions while minimizing side effects such as interference with peripheral vision. History History of designs A cycle helme ...
s to protect themselves from batons and
head injury A head injury is any injury that results in trauma to the skull or brain. The terms ''traumatic brain injury'' and ''head injury'' are often used interchangeably in the medical literature. Because head injuries cover such a broad scope of inju ...
. The authorities strengthened security at public facilities after protesters disrupted
telecommunications Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...
by damaging a
waveguide A waveguide is a structure that guides waves by restricting the transmission of energy to one direction. Common types of waveguides include acoustic waveguides which direct sound, optical waveguides which direct light, and radio-frequency w ...
on a microwave
repeater In telecommunications, a repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it. Repeaters are used to extend transmissions so that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an obstruction. Some ...
, disrupting telephone and data services, though TV transmissions continued as they were carried by a separate waveguide on the tower. Army engineers were deployed, and the remaining grounds were surrounded with razor wire and
shipping container A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated box design, corrugated b ...
barricades to decrease the chances of another pitch invasion. At Eden Park, an emergency escape route was constructed from the visitors' changing rooms for use if the stadium was overrun by protesters. Crowds of anti-tour protesters stood outside as the police were overwhelmed but the hundreds of police still managed to prevent the protesters from entering the stadium.


Christchurch

At
Lancaster Park Lancaster Park, also known as Jade Stadium and AMI Stadium for sponsorship reasons, was a sports stadium in Waltham, a suburb of Christchurch in New Zealand. The stadium closed permanently due to damage sustained in the February 2011 earthqu ...
, Christchurch, on 15 August, some protesters managed to break through a security cordon and a number invaded the pitch. They were quickly removed and forcibly ejected from the stadium by security staff and spectators. A large demonstration managed to occupy the street adjacent to the ground and confront the riot police. Spectators were kept in the ground until the protesters dispersed.


Auckland: plane invasion

A low-flying
Cessna 172 The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is an American four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company.test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film) ...
at
Eden Park Eden Park is a sports venue in Auckland, New Zealand. It is located three kilometres southwest of the Auckland CBD, on the boundary between the suburbs of Mount Eden and Kingsland. The main stadium has a nominal capacity of 50,000, and is s ...
,
Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
, on 12 September by dropping flour-bombs on the pitch, despite which the game continued. "Patches" of criminal gangs, such as traditional rivals
Black Power Black power is a list of political slogans, political slogan and a name which is given to various associated ideologies which aim to achieve self-determination for black people. It is primarily, but not exclusively, used in the United States b ...
and the Mongrel Mob, were also evident. (Black Power were Muldoon supporters.) A group of peaceful protestors dressed as clowns were beaten with batons by police. The same day in Warkworth, Dunedin and Timaru protesters stormed the local TV transmitters and shut off coverage of the game.


The protest movement

Some of the protests had the dual purpose of linking
racial discrimination Racial discrimination is any discrimination against any individual on the basis of their Race (human categorization), race, ancestry, ethnicity, ethnic or national origin, and/or Human skin color, skin color and Hair, hair texture. Individuals ...
against
Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
in New Zealand to apartheid in South Africa. Some of the protesters, particularly young Māori, felt frustrated by the image of New Zealand as a paradise for racial unity. Many opponents of racism in New Zealand in the early 1980s saw it as useful to use the protests against South Africa as a vehicle for wider social action. However, some Māori supported the tour and attended games. John Minto, the national organizer for HART, thought that the tour "stimulate the whole debate about racism and the place of Māori in our community." Political activist Tom Newnham's opinion echoes that of Minto's, albeit considerably more radical, stating that "we are basically the same as white South Africans, just as racist." Some of those protesting racism in South Africa felt inclined to reflect on the racial divide in their own country, before condemning another – part-Māori rugby spectator Kevin Taylor did not join the protests because he "wanted New Zealand to fix its own issues before New Zealanders started telling other countries how to fix their problems."


Tour of the United States

With the American leg of the tour following directly after the events of New Zealand, further protests and clashes with police were expected. Threats of riots caused city officials in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York City and Rochester to withdraw their previous authorisation for the Springboks to play in their cities.


Midwest

The Springboks' match against the Midwest All Stars team had originally been intended to be played in Chicago. Following the anti-apartheid protests, it was secretly rescheduled to the mid morning of Saturday 19 September at Roosevelt Park in
Racine, Wisconsin Racine ( ) is a city in Racine County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River (Wisconsin), Root River, south of Milwaukee and north of Chicago. It is the List ...
. The clandestine strategy seemingly worked as around 500 spectators gathered to watch the match. Late in the game, however, a small number of protesters arrived to disrupt proceedings and two were arrested after a brief altercation broke out on the field.


Albany: pipe bomb

The cancelled New York City match against the Eastern All Stars was moved upstate to Albany. The long serving Mayor of Albany, Erastus Corning, maintained that there was a right of peaceful assembly to "publicly espouse an unpopular cause," despite his own stated view that "I abhor everything about apartheid". Governor
Hugh Carey Hugh Leo Carey (April 11, 1919 – August 7, 2011) was an American politician and attorney of the Democratic Party who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1961 to 1974 and as the 51st governor of New York from 1975 to 1982. Early ...
argued that the event should be barred as the anti-apartheid demonstrators presented an "imminent danger of riot", but a Federal court ruling allowing the game to be played was upheld in the United States Court of Appeals. A further appeal to Supreme Court Justice
Thurgood Marshall Thoroughgood "Thurgood" Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American civil rights lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 until 1991. He was the Supreme C ...
was also overruled on the grounds of
free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognise ...
. The match went ahead with around a thousand demonstrators (including
Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and social activist. He was a fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s and had a string of hit records in the early 1950s as a member of The Weav ...
) corralled 100 yards away from the field of play, which was surrounded by the police. No violence occurred at the game but a
pipe bomb A pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device (IED) that uses a tightly sealed section of pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple low explosives can be used to produce a relatively larg ...
was set off in the early morning outside the headquarters of the Eastern Rugby Union resulting in damage to the building estimated at $50,000. No one was injured.


Glenville

The final match of the tour, against the United States national team, took place in secret at Glenville in upstate New York. The thirty spectators recorded at the match is the lowest ever attendance for an international rugby match.


The matches


In New Zealand


In United States


Touring party

*Manager: Johan Claassen *Assistant Manager: Abe Williams *Coach: Nelie Smith ( Free State) *Captain:
Wynand Claassen Wynand Claassen (born 16 January 1951, in Schweizer-Reneke) is a former South African Rugby union, rugby player and Springboks, Springbok captain. Playing career He was selected as eighth-man for Blue Bulls, Northern Transvaal whilst studying ar ...


Aftermath

The Muldoon government was re-elected in the 1981 election losing three seats to leave it with a majority of one. The NZRFU constitution contained much high-minded wording about promoting the image of rugby and New Zealand, and generally being a benefit to society. In 1985, the NZRFU proposed an All Black tour of South Africa: two lawyers successfully sued it, claiming such a tour would breach its constitution. A High Court injunction by Justice Casey saw the tour cancelled. Afterwards, the All Blacks would not tour South Africa until after the fall of the
apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
regime, with the next official tour in 1992. After the 1985 tour was cancelled, an unofficial tour took place a year later by a team that included 28 out of the 30 All Blacks selected for the 1985 tour, known as the
New Zealand Cavaliers The Cavaliers was an unofficial New Zealand rugby union team which toured South Africa in 1986. Because of the Apartheid policies of the South African government, the official New Zealand Rugby Union tour scheduled for 1985 was cancelled, and t ...
, a team that was often advertised in South Africa as the All Blacks and/or depicted with the Silver Fern. After the All Blacks won the
1987 Rugby World Cup The 1987 Rugby World Cup was the first Rugby World Cup. It was co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia – New Zealand hosted 21 matches (17 pool stage matches, two semi-finals, the third-place play-off and the final) while Australia hosted 11 mat ...
, rugby union was once again the dominant sport – in both spectator and participant numbers – in New Zealand.


In New Zealand culture

* Prominent artist
Ralph Hotere Hone Papita Raukura "Ralph" Hotere (11 August 1931 – 24 February 2013) was a New Zealand artist. He was born in Mitimiti, Northland Region, Northland and is widely regarded as one of New Zealand's most important artists. In 1994 he was award ...
painted a ''Black Union Jack'' series of paintings in protest against the tour. * Merata Mita's documentary film '' Patu!'' (1983) tells the tale of the tour from a Māori perspective. ''Patu!'' was added to New Zealand's national
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
Memory of the World Register UNESCO's Memory of the World (MoW) Programme is an international initiative to safeguard the documentary heritage of humanity against collective amnesia, neglect, decay over time and climatic conditions, as well as deliberate destruction. It ca ...
in 2012. * Music popularly associated with the tour included the punk band RIOT 111, and the songs "Riot Squad" by the Newmatics and "There Is No Depression in New Zealand" by Blam Blam Blam. * Ross Meurant, commander of the police " Red Squad", published ''Red Squad Story'' in 1982, giving a conservative view. * The
TVNZ Television New Zealand (, "Te Reo Tātaki" meaning "The Leading Voice"), more commonly referred to as TVNZ, is a New Zealand state-owned media company and Crown entity. The company operates a television network, streaming service, and news se ...
1980s police drama '' Mortimer's Patch'' included a flashback episode of the (younger) main character's tour police duties * In 1984 Geoff Chapple wrote the book ''1981: The Tour'', chronicling the events from the protesters' perspective. * In 1999 Glenn Wood's biography ''Cop Out'' covered the tour from the perspective of a frontline policeman. * David Hill's book ''The Name of the Game'' is the story of a schoolboy's personal struggles during the tour. * Tom Newnham's book ''By Batons And Barbed Wire'' is one of the largest collections of photos and general information of the protest movement during the tour. (hardback). (paperback) * The documentary ''1981: A Country at War'' chronicled the tour from various perspectives. *
Te Papa The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. Usually known as Te Papa (Māori language, Māori for 'Waka huia, the treasure box'), it opened in 1998 after the merging of the Nation ...
has objects related to the tour including images, helmets and an entrance ticket. The exhibition ''Slice of Heaven: 20th Century Aotearoa'' has a section about the tour. * ''Rage'', a dramatisation of the tour by Tom Scott, was filmed in mid-2011 and was broadcast on TV One on 4 September 2011. * ''The Engine Room'', a play by Ralph McCubbin Howell, opened at BATS Theatre in Wellington on 27 September 2011. It contrasts the stories and viewpoints of
John Key Sir John Phillip Key (born 9 August 1961) is a New Zealand retired politician who served as the 38th prime minister of New Zealand from 2008 to 2016 and as leader of the National Party from 2006 to 2016. Following his father's death when ...
and
Helen Clark Helen Elizabeth Clark (born 26 February 1950) is a New Zealand politician who served as the 37th prime minister of New Zealand from 1999 to 2008 and was the administrator of the United Nations Development Programme from 2009 to 2017. She was ...
during the tour and the 2008 general election. * The second series of the television show ''Westside'' takes place during the events of the tour and portrays the main characters' involvement in several of the major incidents.


See also

* 1971 South Africa rugby union tour of Australia *
History of South Africa in the apartheid era History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...
* Ces Blazey *
Politics and sports Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of status or resources. The branch of social science that studies poli ...
*
Sporting boycott of South Africa South Africa under apartheid was subjected to a variety of international boycotts, including on sporting contacts. There was some debate about whether the aim of the boycott was to oppose segregation in sport or apartheid in general, with the la ...


Notes and references


Bibliography

* * * *


External links


Posters at Christchurch City Libraries

Images of the events surrounding the Springbok Tour in the collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa



A time line and references



The 1981 Springbok Tour, including history, images and video (NZHistory)

Letters solicited from the New Zealand public after the 1981 Springbok Tour
{{DEFAULTSORT:1981 South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
Race relations in New Zealand Protests in New Zealand Protests in the United States Māori politics Māori sport South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981 Sports riots South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981 International opposition to apartheid in South Africa South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981 Rugby union controversies Rugby union and apartheid tour Sports scandals in New Zealand
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
1981 protests 1981 scandals Police misconduct in Oceania Law enforcement in New Zealand