Springbok rugby probe re-arranged
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (Reuters) -- South Africa's new rugby bosses have cancelled an independent probe into alleged racism within the Springbok team.
But South African Rugby Football Union (SARFU) president Brian van Rooyen said a government commission would undertake a broader inquiry into "transformation issues."
Van Rooyen, who deposed predecessor Silas Nkanunu last week, said the inquiry into specific alleged racist incidents would now be handled by a SARFU committee.
Under Nkanunu, SARFU appointed retired Judge Edwin King to head an inquiry into alleged racism, including reports that white player Geo Cronje refused to share a room with black player Quinton Davids.
SARFU also said it would investigate "Kamp Staaldraad" -- "Camp Barbed Wire" -- a military-style pre-World Cup training camp where Springboks were forced into a lake naked.
"Van Rooyen confirmed that the issues regarding Geo Cronje/Quinton Davids and Kamp Staaldraad will now revert into an internal committee handled by SARFU. A full report will be submitted to the board," a SARFU statement said late on Wednesday.
The statement also re-iterated that the Ministry of Sport will handle the broader enquiry and that SARFU and SA Rugby are fully committed to co-operating with the ministry.
Nearly a decade after the end of South Africa's apartheid white rule, traditionally white-dominated sports like cricket and rugby are periodically dogged by racism allegations.
Nkanunu said as he stepped down last Thursday that he had asked the sports ministry to probe racism in rugby.
Ministry spokesman Graham Abrahams said: "I have seen that they are wanting to deal with it internally but obviously one has to look at what is meant exactly by that.
"What we did say is that SARFU needs to deal with the Springbok issues themselves," he said, adding that the sports ministry still needed to discuss the wider terms of the government inquiry into allegations of racism within rugby.
"Our understanding would be that we would be looking essentially at transformation issues within rugby," he said.
"It will be under the auspices of government but we will appoint independent people to deal with it."
King was asked to head an inquiry after allegations of racism emerged in August, but the probe was postponed until the New Year.
Both Cronje and Davids were omitted from the Springboks' World Cup party and team media officer Mark Keohane resigned saying he could no longer "be part of a squad in which prejudice is tolerated, wished away and excused."
An initial SARFU inquiry could find "no conclusive evidence" of racism but rugby officials appointed King, who led the inquiry into South African cricket match-fixing, to start an independent investigation.
The new internal investigation will also report on the notorious three-day Kamp Staaldraad, where players were crammed naked into a pit overnight while anthems of rival teams were played and they were periodically doused in cold water.
Pictures of the camp stunned the South African public and, allied to poor results, led to the resignation of coach Rudolf Straeuli and SA Rugby managing director Rian Oberholzer.
