Overview
The 1981 Springbok rugby tour
The South African rugby team (the Springboks) toured New Zealand in 1981, sparking unprecedented civil unrest. The tour was one of the most violent and controversial peace-time events in New Zealand’s history. For 56 days between July and September, 150,000 people took part in over 200 demonstrations in 28 towns and cities. Around 1,500 were charged with offences. The tour divided the country, revealing deep rifts in society and challenging the long-held national belief in the country’s harmonious race relations.
Apartheid
Behind the unrest were the racial policies of South Africa known as apartheid. Apartheid involved the strict classification of people by race and the second class treatment of blacks in South Africa. South African sports teams were generally selected on the basis of race, and Māori players were not welcome to visit South Africa when the All Blacks toured there.
For and against
Opinion in New Zealand was evenly divided between those for and those against the tour. Some believed that playing sport against South Africa was tacit approval of apartheid. They argued that sporting contact also meant New Zealand was not honouring international agreements and sanctions, and thus compromising its international reputation. But others believed New Zealand could lead by example and, through sport, show South Africa how a multi-racial society could exist harmoniously.