ANC STATEMENT ON ASA DECISION

The African National Congress (ANC) finds the decision by Athletics South Africa (ASA) regarding its handling of the Caster Semenya saga very unfortunate and not helpful at all (see report).

As the ANC we were under the impression that ASA would use the opportunity presented by its Special General Meeting to censure all those in its leadership who played a role in the mishandling of the matter and the maltreatment of Caster Semenya, both in South Africa and in Germany-Berlin, which led to the violation of her rights as a person and an athlete.

It is very clear that ASA's Special General meeting failed to rise-up to the expectation above, thereby failing the South African public, Caster Simenya and the sporting fraternity.

We are also saddened that despite ASA officials having misled our government and the public, despite the fact that their actions and pronouncements were not in the best interest of Caster Semenya as an athlete and a person, despite the fact that ASA through its leadership brought South Africa into disrepute in the eyes of the international community, the ASA meeting could find no one to bring to book on these matters and could not even propose a process through which these failures could be corrected.

It is our view that ASA has missed an opportunity to win back the confidence of all South Africans and they instead have dragged the name of ASA and the South Africa sporting fraternity into further disrepute.

We are now left with no alternative but to ask the South African government and the South Africa sporting fraternity to redeem the integrity of our country in the eyes of both the South African public and the international community on this matter.

Statement issued by Jackson Mthembu, African National Congress national spokesperson, September 25 2009

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