Old SA flag not welcome at 2010

[oliver]

Cape Town - Consideration of legislation by South African Members of parliament to provide Fifa (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) with a legislative platform to manage South Africa's hosting of the Soccer World Cup in 2010 began at parliament on Tuesday - with a discussion whether previous versions of the South African flag should be banned during the staging of matches.

The National Assembly Sports and Recreation committee - in conjunction with the National Council of Provinces Select Committee on Education and Recreation - began discussing the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa Special Measures Bill this morning.

Sports and Recreation Ministry legal adviser Gideon Boshoff proposed that a clause in the legislation providing for the singing of national anthems and the carrying of flags could carry the proviso that the old South African flag should be proscribed - effectively preventing the carrying of the flag by members of a match audience.

Both African National Congress MP Lanval Reid and Democratic Alliance (DA) MP Donald Lee asked whether this was necessary. Fellow DA MP Willem Doman asked whether this would apply to the crowd or just the official activities of a national side.

Boshoff said it was envisaged that this would apply to the control of the crowd.

Traffic free zones

The bill also provides for no-go zones for traffic and the facilitation of easier visa approval processes for match spectators. It also provides for the declaration of a World Cup stadium venue by the Minister of Sport and Recreation.

A second bill - which deals with provincial competencies relating to trade and industry matters and to the governing of medicine use - is also to be considered by the committees.

The first bill at present says that no person may prevent the playing of the national anthem of any country represented by a team during any match or other official event of the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa and the flying of the national flag of any country represented by a team during any match or other official event of the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa.

This wording was apparently in accordance with a government guarantee issued by the South African Minister of Foreign Affairs on July 14 2003.

In terms of a clause in the Bill the Minister of Home Affairs may approve work permits during the World Cup subject to Fifa approval.

The first bill also makes provision for traffic free zones preventing an unauthorized person from driving a vehicle into such a zone unless he or she carried a prescribed notice.

The bill also provides that a peace officer may search "any person intending to enter a designated area or found inside such area and may search any vehicle or container in the possession or under the control of such person or any vehicle being driven into or found in a traffic-free zone for any prescribed object and may seize such an object found on such person, in or on such vehicle or in or on such container and deal with the seized object in the prescribed manner."

[CINDERS]

If we are not to use the old S.A. flag and drop our traditions then other cultures should drop their traditions and then we dont want all kinds of tribal dances with their attire etc. otherwise we want our volk dancing too! Why must we drop our Afrikaans traditions while other's keep theirs!

[felix]

I agree that it is a daft restriction to impose. But it's the kind of thing I've come to expect in the politically correct society we are faced with today. It makes me laugh thinking that a commitee has actually taken the time to do this - clearly they have a lot on their plate If someone wants to wave a flag, wave away I say.

Of course the issue no doubt revolves around the old South African flag being associated with Apartheid. The reality is that it represents more than just that. It just so happens that it has been chosen as the icon of the most deplorable aspect of it's era. While I think Apartheid was disgusting, we are talking about a flag here. I think it's more peoples faults (or the medias for that matter) for having the association in the first place - and in all seriousness, how many people are going to be seriously offended by a flag?

Everything here also needs to be taken in context. If we were at an anti-racist rally and somebody was waving the old SA flag I would assume it to be directly referencing the Apartheid era and I could understand it's offensive nature. However, at a soccer match I would like to think that people would be waving it to support the South African soccer team?! It seems people have gotten so caught up with whole race thing that it just squeezes itself into every context imaginable. It's really not an issue to me apart from the fact that everybody seems to make it such a big issue.

As far as graphical representation is concerned, I would pick the old SA flag anyday - I always have thought it was a great looking flag. The new flag is a little too garish for my liking.

In light of political correctness let me say that the above is merely my opinion and let me finish by saying that if I wanted to wave the old flag I would laugh in the face of the above restriction.