DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Veronica van Dyk, has slammed the decision by Cricket South Africa (CSA) to strip the captaincy of South Africa’s Under-19 cricket team from David Teeger just a week before the World Cup,
Van Dyk says the decision was apparently on the basis of his faith and beliefs. That is a violation of the Constitution’s Bill of Rights.
“In a statement, CSA announced that it stripped Teeger of the captaincy due to threats issued by unnamed parties based on his Jewish faith, because its “primary duty” is to “safeguard the interests of all those involved in the World Cup.
“CSA is misguided. Its primary duty is to uphold the Bill of Rights as enshrined in the Constitution of South Africa, which explicitly prohibits direct or indirect discrimination on grounds including religion, ethnic or social origin, conscience, belief and culture.
“This decision is particularly galling given that the current chairperson of CSA, Lawson Naidoo, is also the executive secretary of the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution and regularly styles himself as a human rights defender.
“By bending the knee before threats of violence, Naidoo and the organisation he chairs, have taken the coward’s way out and betrayed the values enshrined in the Bill of Rights.
“Instead of kowtowing to bullies, CSA has a duty to uphold the rule of law. This means protecting the rights of players, including their rights to free expression, belief, conscience, and religion, from those who would commit violence against them.
“Allowing this precedent to stand would set us on a dangerous path. Will CSA next strip the captaincy from a Muslim player if anti-Muslim groups threaten to protest? Will it drop players from the side on the basis of their skin colour, if racists threaten violence?
“The DA calls on CSA to immediately reverse this decision. Failing to do so will compel us to lodge a formal complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC). We will also consider further action in due course’, said van Dyk.
