This Day in History: October 14, 1974
Additional Date: October 14, 1974
The Minister of Sport, Piet Koornhof, announced a relaxation of apartheid rules for sport and declared that the government is working towards eliminating racial discrimination in the selection of contestants for international events. South Africa was once excluded from participating in international games because of its segregation policies. It was reinstated in the early 1990s, where it staged and won the Rugby World Cup in 1995.
The former Minister of Cooperation and Development in the early 1980s was in charge of forced removals. Many would remember Koornhof by what he once said. In justifying the government’s decision to relocate many rural communities Koornhof declared that “ the resettlement of black people is resorted to in order to ensure their national unity, to protect their ethnic and political interests, and to improve their living conditions and standard of life.” In a surprise move, Koornhof joined the African National Congress (ANC) in November 2001.