Two Nations, One Goal

The pastmonth has been a time of mourning for millions in South Africa and across the world. The death of the nation’s first Black President means the loss of an inspirational figure of peace, freedom and justice. Much will be written about the effect Mandela had on his native South Africa, but it is important to remember how his struggle was mirrored across the Orange River.

Wrestled from the Kaiser’s clutches in 1915 by a force of invading South Africans, Namibia became a de facto province where the tiny White minority had hegemony. Apartheid came in 1948, and despite opposition from the UN, Namibia remained a South African possession for the next 40 years. Pretoria held steadfast as normal against international pressure, and the early 60’s saw the beginnings of violent, armed struggle from the South West African People’s Organisation (SWAPO.) SWAPO and the  ANC were natural allies  and were fighting the same enemy, fighting political and racial discrimination. As well as sharing values, they shared information, tactics and techniques as leaders mingled freely in Zambia. A fitting display of African unity.

In 1971, as Mandela sat incarcerated Robben Island, he was joined by members of his ‘ally’ SWAPO. The Namibians were on hunger strike, and Mandela and his fellow ANC prisoners leapt at the chance to take part too. These displays of united, pan-African disobedience must have got under the skins of the authorities who may sensed their days were numbered.

But the memory of Mandela and his struggle is doomed to be tarnished by the weaknesses of the men who have succeeded him. The frailties of Mbeki and Zuma as both politicians and men have been laid out before the world in the past week as the media dissect South Africa’s history post-democracy. In 1992, with apartheid in its death throes and Namibia crippled by drought and poverty, Nujoma risked losing foreign aid by purchasing sleek new jets and helicopters with government money. As the Second Congo War erupted in an already weak and beleaguered DRC, Nujoma committed Namibian troops ostensibly to support his neighbours, but more likely to protect his family’s mining interests in the mineral-rich nation.

The loss of this unique pillar of African freedom will be felt not just in the bustling streets of Cape Town or the rolling hills his ancestral home of Qunu, but also across the African continent. In Windhoek, Swakopmund and Okahandja, Namibians will remember that his struggle was their struggle.

Plastic Brits: Mercenaries or Professionals?

In the last Ashes Test the England team sheet contained two players born in South Africa and one born in New Zealand. Compared to other games over the last decade, this was actually a particularly English-heavy XI. The England team has a history of naturalised players, many from Southern Africa. From the Hicks, Lambs, Smiths and Greigs of yesteryear to the Kieswetters and Dernbachs of today, England has been a destination for players who saw their professional futures away from home. But the prevalence of foreign-born players has come in for criticism, with Ashes-winning captain Michael Vaughan calling it a ‘problem.’

Players who moved to England as children, like Strauss and Prior, have as good a claim as anybody to wear the three lions. Nobody could seriously question their loyalties, and people who do are likely the same kind of people who question those of Ravi Bopara or Monty Panesar because of their heritage. It isn’t the Priors or Strausses of this world that I take issue with, rather the Trotts and Pietersens. Trott, a former South African U’19 star, and Pietersen, who first played cricket in England aged 20, have been two of England’s best performers in recent years, and this could be behind the general atmosphere of acceptance that they have the right to represent their adopted country. After all, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,.

Gary Ballance, a Zimbabwean by birth who represented the African nation at U’19 level, said in an interview with The Mail that he felt “100% English” having come over “at a young age.” That age was 16, and an age at which he felt he was Zimbabwean enough to represent that nation.

But the question of nationality is a difficult one in itself. All-rounder Ben Stokes moved to Cumbria when he was 12 and few have questioned his legitimacy to play for England. His recent century against the Aussies may have quietened any dissenters. Ballance’s legitimacy has been questioned by the media, whereas Stokes’ have not, meaning the cut-off point for Englishness seems to be between the ages of 13 and 15. God knows what will happen if a Saffa who turned up on these shores ages 14 earns a place in the team!

It’s important to avoid xenophobia when discussing nationality, but if there is one environment in which where people come from is crucial it is surely international sport. If not, why do we have teams representing nations? Why not the South African Proteas, based in Cape Town but comprising players from all corners of the globe? Or the England Roses, based at Lords but just as likely to have a captain from Kolkata as Cockermouth? The money-driven, mercenary nature of the Indian Premier League may be the blueprint for the international scene of the future. The ubiquity of foreign-raised (notice ‘raised,’  not ‘born’) players in the England squad says more about the lack of quality of our own youth system than the quality of those abroad.