Changing the world: sport, racism and law in South Africa and Malaysia

An important function of a nation's sport is to provide means of health and social cohesion. The objective is to be inclusive (internal function). This worthy objective causes tension, however, when juxtaposed with international sports competition (external function), because competitive sport at all levels is inherently elitist. In Malaysia, the development of the law indicates that sport was not acknowledged to serve any significant internal or external function. National policy to redress social inequities had a largely consequential effect on sport. Sport was deemed to be little more than another social institution subject to affirmative action policies. As a result, sport was a weak driver for social change. Sport in South Africa has had a significant internal and external impact on the development of the nation. It has a vital function in social cohesion and played significant part to play in the development of political policy and law. Internally the dismantling of apartheid in sport was a catalyst for the dismantling of apartheid generally. This article maps the development and interaction among sport, racism and law within these two countries. It reveals how international sports status is a product of law and a complex interrelationship between history and politics.