Two members of AfriForum Youth were kicked out of Loftus Versveld stadium during a rugby game on Saturday for displaying a banner with the words “Sies Absa, ons eis meriete” [Absa, we demand merit], the civil rights organisation said.
“The security guards who kicked out the students said that all are prohibited from saying anything against Absa who is the main sponsor of SA rugby,” said AfriForum Youth national chairperson of Ernst Roets.
Roets and Ian Cameron, a member of the management of AfriForum Youth, were named as the students who were ejected from the stadium.
“[We] told the security guards that this action is a violation of their constitutional rights to which the guards replied with the words ‘Your rights do not apply here. Absa makes its own rules’.”
In September reports surfaced that Absa, sponsor of the Currie Cup rugby tournament, had expressed concern over a lack of transformation in rugby.
AfriForum then launched a “Stop Absa Quotas” campaign, which saw some threatening to close their Absa bank accounts.
Absa responded with deputy chief executive Louis von Zeuner saying: “We have never said a team should include a certain number of players of colour.”
AfriForum continued with its campaign “to stop Absa’s political interference in SA rugby”.
Roets said approximately 5 000 posters with the words ‘Sies Absa!’, ‘Absa, ons eis meriete!’ and ‘Haal politiek uit rugby!’ [Keep politics out of rugby] were handed out to spectators.
The posters were confiscated.
“We were treated disrespectfully and were insulted and our tickets were confiscated. We did not disrupt the rugby in any way. We simply exercised our constitutional rights by taking a stand for what we believe in.”
Roets demanded an apology from the bank and said he wanted a refund for his ticket. – Sapa