Controversy has erupted in the United States over the basketball match played by Dennis Rodman and other ex-NBA players in North Korea, as part of the birthday celebrations of the country’s dictator, Kim Jong-un.
Rodman’s presence in the Asian nation and his positive statements about the North Korean leader (‘The Worm’ said Kim was “a nice guy”) has generated backlash in American public opinion.
David Stern, the NBA commissioner, was one of the most critical with the former Chicago Bull, saying Rodman “is blinded by a flash of North Korean money”.
Beyond whether it is correct or not for the former basketball player to publicly praise the North Korean leader, the important thing here is this is another example of the political use that sport has, both for good and for evil.
Perhaps the best example of this has been the Rugby World Cup hosted by South Africa in 1995 and the role played by Nelson Mandela and Francois Pienaar.
On that occasion, a country broken by Apartheid joined behind that common ideal that was the Sprigbooks, once a symbol of racial segregation.
As clearly reflected in the movie ‘Invictus’, Mandela defended to the hilt the importance of the Boks as a symbol of the African nation, even against the opinion of the majority of the ANC (African National Congress).
Mandela thought maybe this would be the single point of contact between the black majority and the white minority.
Sport unites. It can unify all levels of a nation.
Putting aside any ultra nationalistic fantasy, the victory of any national team can become a source of unimaginable joy for society, even in the worst moments of a country.
But like everything in life, these situations have their counterpart.
For Argentina, the FIFA World Cup of 1978 was perhaps one of the most bitter joys of its history.
The tournament was held and won for the first time by Argentina at a time the country was in its blackest hour, under the iron fist of a military dictatorship led by Jorge Rafael Videla.
The organisation of the championship, where corruption was the usual rule, was only a mask, a lie devised by criminals who wanted to show the world a happy and united nation.
But the reality was very different.
The political persecution and murder perpetrated by the Argentine government against its own citizens could not be hidden and many players like Johan Cruyff refused to attend the tournament.
The sad part of all this is that the stadium where the final of the World Cup was played is located just ten blocks from what was the worst clandestine detention center during those years, the ESMA.
It is impossible not to think that maybe, as Mario Kempes and Daniel Bertoni scored the decisive goals, someone was being tortured a few blocks from there.
The reality, liked or not, is that governments around the world will continue using sport to achieve political objectives – whether to unite the nation or to mount a farce.
Sandy
Guest
Err, who wrote the article Felix?
Glenn Innes
Guest
The Argentinian military dictatorship was childs play compared with Stalanist North Korea.The Argentinian military never starved hundreds of thousands of their own people to death - there were never vast gulags and Argentina even it's darkest days was filthy rich compared with North Korea, North Korea is as close as we have ever come to an Orwellian dystopia and these basketballers should hang their heads in shame playing there but in their defence they are probably too thick to understand what they are doing.
Chan Wee
Guest
@ Adam Julian , Storm Boy : First of all it was never a "CIVIL WAR!". It was terrorism of the highest order and evern more brutal than Taliban and Al Qaida. In fact the "Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam - LTTE" have the dubious credit of being the inventors of human suicide bombers. Before commenting like frogs in a well, just do some research and ask some people who came to Sri Lanka to play cricket like the NZ sie led by MArtin Crowe, who abandoned a test tour when the LTTE exploded a suicide car bomb right in front of Taj Samudra, the hotel where the NZ team were in !!! Then go back a few years and ask some Pakistanis about the Taliban attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team who were on their way to the ground. Few cricketers and the enxt coach of sri Lanka Paul Farbrace were shot and wounded in that attack but there were no deaths due to the bravery of the bus driver who drove thru a hail of bullets. In fact the present coach of umpires, Simon Taufel said one reason for retiring at a very young age was that "day" when his life was threatened. there is no difference between terrorism in Sri Lanka and USA, Pakistan Afganistan or anywhere else in the world. the case of south africa is different , it was never terrorism , it was a struggle against apartheid!!! As for the so called refugees, they move for economic reasons. why do u think there are Sri Lankans Indians Indonesians etc., in the same boat??? Boat people are a part of organized crime, and remember it is not only to Australia such refugees go. lot of people try to move to Europe and Americas and Middle east. it is a global issue , not just endemic to sri lanka !!! maybe u need to listen to ur own news reports how the OZ coast guard towed boats just outside the maritime boundaries and now it is a diplomatic issue with Indonesia !!!
felix
Guest
What ever you must be the clown writer on The roar,haha very funny but on the seriouse note what a load of hogwash. Only an Aussy would write such sporadic drivel,Who are your heroes of the past?, try making them your cheap examples of whatever point you are trying to bring out.
peeeko
Guest
exactly
pim
Guest
How dare you even mention Mandela and Rodman/King Yong Un in the same breath? Meaningless drivel- says nothing. This article is probably the worst I have read on the Roar. Shame on you for publishing it!
Alex
Roar Rookie
The 'friendship' works both ways: Kim Jong-Un used Rodman as a mouthpiece to the West and Rodman regains some sort of celebrity.
Gordon
Guest
Isolating the North Koreans hasn't exactly worked favourably. Time to let Rodman try and bring them out of the "cold".
Storm Boy
Guest
Yep I've never quite followed how we can admit that we need to provide safe haven for refugees that flee a country we play cricket against.
Adam Julian
Roar Guru
Sri Lankan cricket is another example, shocking civil war in that country and yet everybody has turned a blind eye.