When barbed wire and batons lined Cuba St

With just a week until the 1981 Springbok tour match in Manawatū, tensions began to build.

For aweek in the winter of 1981, Palmerston North was the centre of the rugby world. The South African rugby team, the Springboks, were touring New Zealand.

The apartheid policies of South Africa severely restricted Blacks and Coloureds, and the Commonwealth nations had agreed to limit sporting contact against South Africa.

Yet the New Zealand Rugby Football Union had invited the Springboks and the New Zealand Government had agreed to it.

The police planned for disruption and prepared by giving special training and equipment to two groups of police officers, naming them Red Group and Blue Group. The infamous Red and Blue Squads.

The anti-apartheid group Hart (Halt All Racist Tours) was a national organisation, Cost (Citizens Opposed to the Springboks Tour) was Wellington-based, and Mast (Manawatū Against the Springboks Tour) formed as the local group.

Bishop Cullinane was reportedly the front person, while others included former All Black Robert Burgess. There were manymore groups, and somewere associated with or backed by churches.

The Manawatū rugby team of 1981 were the reigning NPC champions, and the Springboks had dubbed their match against Manawatū the fourth test. The match was keenly anticipated by rugby lovers, as Manawatū could expect to field six or seven All Blacks.

On Saturday, July 25, at the second game in Hamilton, 200 protesters invaded the pitch and linked arms before the game started. As police considered what action to take, reports of a light plane being stolen and flown in the direction of the ground came through. Spectators in the grandstand were told the game was called off and to leave the ground. Disappointed rugby supporters lashed out against the protesters as they exited the field, leaving many bloodied and battered.

The cancelling of thematch made headlines in New Zealand and South Africa. And with just a week until the Manawatū game, tensions began to build.

Palmerston North City councillor Graeme Hubbard led efforts to persuade the council to ban the game. Legal action was taken when that failed.

Mayor Brian Elwood preferred the neutral position but worried that people and property might be harmed.

Eventually city the council wrote to the Manawatū and New Zealand rugby unions and asked them to call off the Manawatū game.

Hart and several other anti-apartheid groups indicated that therewould be large contingents of protesters travelling to Palmerston North.

Mast was planning a noon rally in The Square on the Saturday. Hart was organising the 1pm march.

The agreed route went from Railway land, up Church St to The Square, up Rangitīkei St, left along Cuba St to Bryant St, and left back to the Railway land.

InWellington on Wednesday, July 28, a group of 1000 protesters marching up Molesworth St faced the Blue Squad, who chose to wield their batons. Eight protestors were hospitalised. The officers believed the protesters were marching on the South African consul’s home.

The following day police indicated they would take a tougher line against protesters, ironically after the Molesworth St event. Earlier the Waitakere Rugby Clubrooms were destroyed by fire. The New Zealand Rugby Museum, acting on police advice, moved its collection out of its building.

Mast printed posters and had a onepage advertisement in the Manawatū

Standard inviting people to the rally in The Square.

Under cover of darkness, the New Zealand Army engineers moved in and delivered a logistical feat. On Saturday morning the Showgrounds block was ringed with barbed wire – Cuba St, Pascal St, and across the back of the showgrounds to Waldegrave St.

Stock trucks were parked at Oakley St. Skip bins were set up on the roads to narrow them and block vehicles.

Police mobilised hundreds of officers from across the country. There were more than 1000 police in Palmerston North, conducting what was then the largest police operation in New Zealand’s history.

Opiki resident Clive Akers heard a convoy of buses coming past his house and saw they were protesters with helmets lined across the back windows. Theywere the Cost group from Wellington.

The Springboks team, staying at the Fitzherbert Motor Inn, left early at 8.15am. They spent the next five or so hours at the Marist clubrooms on Pascal St, playing pool and cards.

The club’s management had been approached by police and agreed to accommodate the Springboks. They were roundly criticised afterwards.

At noon, the Mast group held its peaceful rally.

At 1pm, 5000 people had gathered at the Railway land, where they received handouts explaining the march was to be a peaceful event. Police enforced a new march route. The protesters would be turned aside at David St, not Bryant St.

Marching down Cuba St, the leading protesters were confronted past David St by more than 40 police officers, the welltrained Red Squad.

The Red Squad wore helmets and carried long batons. They moved forward chanting and jabbing their batons towards the front row of protesters.

Tensions were at their peak, and the threat of physical violence was palpably real. Cost marshals urged the protesters not to attack or charge the police lines during the standoff, while protest leaders such as Alick Shaw gave passionate speeches. After a reported 14 minutes the protest turned away and moved on.

Inside the ground, touch-judge Bruce Amphlett was concerned that Wellington referee Cliff Dainty was nowhere to be seen. He found that Dainty was stuck at his hotel because of the protest, so a police patrol car was dispatched and the referee arrived just 20minutes before kickoff. The game went ahead.

The protesters wound their way back to the Railway land, pleased to have led an orderly and peaceful demonstration, while a few said they would have liked more confrontation.

Robert Burgess of Mast was outraged at the lengths the police and government went ‘‘to ensure racist rugby could go on’’.

Elwood was relieved that everything had been incident free. The events in Palmerston North now history, the tour moved on.