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Cricket South Africa will embark on a redress process for anyone involved in gambling who has been discriminated against in the past as part of its Social Justice and Nation Building (SJN) project. The compensation amounts will be determined after the complaints have been heard and mediated by the newly appointed Transformation Ombudsman Dumisa Ntsebeza, who will also be responsible for the creation of the Restoration Fund.
“My expectation is that based on the complaints, the ombudsman will be able to classify them and, based on that, will be able to determine what percentage goes to which player,” said Dr. Eugenia Kula-Ameyaw, Independent Director of the Board of CSA and his transformation chair, he said. “If you work in an asbestos factory and they are affected by tuberculosis, they compensate you. There is nothing wrong with compensation when people have lost income.”
That means that anyone who believes they have been denied opportunities on racial grounds can go to the ombudsman, who will then need to determine the severity of their case and the amount of compensation. Money for the fund has yet to be secured, but CSA is hopeful of raising it through business involvement and even the South African government. “We still have to raise funds to see how we are going to restore. There are many companies, including the government, that is ready to restore the people,” Kula-Ameyaw said. “The money will change hands at some point, but the modalities and the formula must be resolved. It could even be after a year because it will take a few months for the ombudsman to set up and address the complaints.”
While the finer details, including a timeline, have yet to be finalized, Kula-Ameyaw called the SJN’s release “a brick in this nationally built house,” which seeks to ensure that “everyone will be treated fairly in the game of Cricket “. It also comes after various stories of exclusion were revealed in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. Former players and coaches have spoken out in the media, and while none have actively requested compensation (Thami Tsolekile demanded an apology), the CSA is looking to make financial contributions to those who were unable to earn money from the game due to discrimination.
“Potentially, players who see themselves as victims of the current targeting system that requires franchise teams to feature a minimum of six players of color, three of whom must be black African, could also approach the ombudsman.”
As an example, this could mean a player like Aaron Phangiso, who went to the 2015 World Cup and was the only member of the team who did not play a match even after South Africa qualified for the quarterfinals with a match to spare. it may be compensated in match quotas or Geoffrey Toyana, who missed his national coach job in 2017 (which former CSA president Chris Nenzani has now called a “missed opportunity”) may have a redress case.
The functions of the ombudsman are not limited solely to people of color and Kula-Ameyaw noted that anyone who has been involved in the game, at any level, can approach the ombudsman. “If something is fair, it will be fair to everyone,” he said.
Potentially, that opens the door for players who see themselves as victims of the current objective system, which requires franchise teams to feature a minimum of six players of color, of which three must be black African. One such example is Leus du Plooy, who told the Afrikaans-language publication Red24 In February, the reason he signed Kolpak to Derbybshire was because “the system we have puts young white players at a disadvantage in particular.”
Although the SJN will be open to hearing and addressing all stories of exclusion, Kula-Ameyaw emphasized that CSA still needs to accelerate the pace of change and ensure greater representation for people of color. While the Ombudsman’s work will address historical grievances, CSA will continue its own transformational work, with an emphasis on demographics in the field. “What we will focus on the most is the actual game. Plans will include aggressively building talent,” Kula-Ameyaw said. “The long-term plan is to make sure there is no racism in sport – no discrimination.”
The SJN will be supported by nine former players, who have been appointed ambassadors for the project, and will help raise public awareness of the campaign. Some of the ambassadors, such as Makhaya Ntini, Monde Zondeki and Toyana, have already made their experiences of discrimination public. The list of ambassadors is: Zondeki, Gary Kirsten, Lance Klusener, Toyana, Ntini, Marcia Letsoalo, Shandre Fritz, Nolubabalo Ndzundzu and Dinesha Devnarain.
