Race-spat walkout symbolic of workplace race issues

The massive, almost entirely positive, reaction to Ashwin Willemse’s walkout on live TV on Saturday night has quickly become symbolic of the problems faced by blacks in SA workplaces, and has made the former Springbok wing a catalyst for change, notes Legalbrief. Willemse’s dramatic action – seen as a stand against unfair and unequal treatment in the workplace, was quickly backed by Sports Minister Toko Xasa, who called on SuperSport to suspend his fellow pannellists, Nick Mallett and Naas Botha. Mallett is a former Springbok player and coach and Botha is a former Springbok captain and flyhalf. The incident happened during discussion on the Lions’ 42-24 win over the Brumbies at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday. In a statement‚ Xasa also condemned the continued behaviour of white entitlement in rugby, notes a report on the TimesLIVE site. ‘This behaviour of entitlement by some white South Africans who continue to think that their whiteness represent better (sic) must come to an end. If it was not for a barbaric nonsensical apartheid system that privileged them we could not have implemented (a) quota system to normalise an otherwise abnormal system.’ She said the department noted that the quota system had been largely unsuccessful in bringing about an effectively transformed sport system and this caused substantial damage for many black players who were labelled as ‘tokens’. ‘It is clear that Ashwin Willemse was referred (to) as a quota player by his fellow panellist despite his many successes in the field of play. I call upon SuperSport to suspend the two panellists while they are busy with a full investigation. The continued appearance of Mallett and Botha will be seen as an endorsement of their alleged racist behaviour,’ said Xasa.