The White Match (1968) - full transcript
A film by:
with contributions by
Bo Jonsson and Staffan Lamm.
On 3 May 1968, a Davis Cup tennis
match was set to be played in Båstad
between Sweden and Rhodesia.
This match never took place.
The following film covers the
circumstances surrounding this...
Why did you want to stop
the match in Båstad?
I think that politics and sports
really belong together,
that sport has a real
political function,
that politics permeates
all aspects of society
and thus also permeates sports.
I feel there is a tendency
in our society to consider
politics the preserve of professional
politicians, government, party officials.
And that the man on the street
is somehow incapable
or unqualified to take
a position on political issues.
But with channels of information
available in Sweden today
through mass media,
we can actually inform ourselves
well enough to be able to adopt
a political position.
This tendency causes many people,
under the pretext of so-called
objectivity, to become passive,
to become apolitical.
And I think that’s absurd,
because that means
they renounce a democratic
opportunity to change society.
I want to change society,
that’s why I feel it’s so important
to protest against this match.
Our neutrality policy does not
condemn us to silence.
Silence can be the ally of injustice.
Silence can be seen
as supporting reaction.
We must have the right to assert
the ideals of universal freedom
and fellowship
of solidarity and justice.
Let our opponents on the right beware:
don’t try to use neutrality as a cover
to muzzle the Swedish
labour movement.
You will never succeed.
OLAF PALME
Minister of Education
GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL
What do I think?
They should cancel the match.
But whether the sports association
decides to do that is another question.
But what are you going to do about it?
- Well, what can one do about it?
I mean, why should I
do something about it?
That’s my attitude regarding
the sports association.
If they were to ask me,
I’d tell them what I think.
Then it’s up to them
what they do about it.
ENGINE DRIVER
No, I don't like it.
Are you going to do anything about it?
- No, I’m not.
That’s up to the ones who…
I mean… I have no...
I’m not going to personally
do anything about all this.
But I am of the opinion that
the match shouldn’t be played.
Why?
Because I feel that the racial policy
in Rhodesia isn't what it ought to be.
CEMENT WORKER AND HIS WIFE
It should be stopped, of course.
How?
How? Just see to it that they stop,
don’t let them play.
Who is supposed to see
that they don't play?
Well, I suppose it’s up to the Sports…
what’s it called now…
the Sports Association to see to that.
Who’s supposed to see to it that
the Sports Association does that?
Yeah, well, that’s just it, isn’t it?
Can you do anything?
- No, we can't do anything, no.
Why not?
We aren't powerful enough.
Well, there are some talented
tennis players who, it seems,
are as bad at politics
as I am at tennis.
And what does that mean, Minister?
Well, that's my position
regarding this match.
And those attempts that will be
made to stop this match,
how should they be viewed?
I don't want to comment on that
because I know too little about it.
Above all it is the responsibility
of the Tennis Association to say
what they think is
the decent thing to do.
Is it not possible for someone higher up to?
We live in a free country,
so we don’t interfere in sports
in such a way as to recommend
that they do one thing or the other,
With the Olympics, it’s a question
of money, but that’s not the case here.
DISTRICT CHAIRMAN
SWEDISH DEMOCRATIC
YOUTH LEAGUE (SSU)
Peter Wallenberg’s dealings in
Rhodesia are a separate chapter.
It’s his company, his company is
investing in Rhodesia
Atlas Copco, we know for certain,
and he is also the one keeping the
Tennis Association afloat.
He’s more or less financing it,
and he’s also a partner
in the tennis stadium here.
That means that our protest
against the Smith regime
must also be directed
at those industrialists in Sweden
and the rest of the world
who, through their economic ties
with Smith, support this racist,
fascist regime.
HERMAN KLING, MINISTER OF JUSTICE
It is not for me,
as Minister of Justice,
to comment on the policy
of Swedish sports associations.
The Swedish government’s policy
is another matter entirely,
and there is no doubt as to its position
with regard to Rhodesia.
TEAM CAPTAIN, SWEDISH
TENNIS ASSOCIATION
I feel a little resentful
at the prospect
of there being demonstrations
that violate the law.
As long as the demonstrations
adhere to the law, then I accept them.
I think it’s quite acceptable,
but if they violate the law,
then that has to be wrong.
Are you afraid of that happening?
- No, I am not.
There’s been a fair bit in the press
about activist groups.
You’re not afraid that such
elements are going to...?
I’m not afraid,
but I think it would be a shame
if they were allowed to break the law.
I see.
You are aware that a broad swath
of public opinion in Sweden
feels that the Tennis Association
has subjected the country,
has put Sweden in an untenable position...
I wouldn’t call it a broad swath.
You don’t think it’s broad?
- Well, I mean, we don’t know that.
Do we?
Do we? I mean, you tell me...
RUNE JOHANSSON
Foreign Minister
They clearly have another point
of departure for their assessment,
namely that of sports as an activity that
bridges differences between countries.
But in this case,
I feel that they ought to have shown
more respect for the official position
toward the country
that the players come from
and the public opinion that exists here
that sympathizes with the plight
of colored groups
and the difficulties they face.
Those feelings are very strong here.
Do you feel that the Swedish government
has done what it could to prevent it?
Officially, there’s nothing more
we could have done.…
So you feel that you’ve made your
views clear on this issue?
Yes, the sports organizations cannot
be unaware of them.
They’re not unaware of them?
No. But I don’t think there’s been any
official intervention to influence matters.
They’re independent organizations.
POLITICAL SCIENCE STUDENT
You’re part of the group heading
to Båstad tomorrow?
M-hm.
Why are you going?
We feel that it’s necessary to protest
against white oppression in Rhodesia,
and to really be serious about it.
I don’t mean just walking around with a sign
or expressing our views,
but really trying to stop the match
precisely the difference between
a protest movement
and the resistance movement that
Stokley Carmichel and others spoke about.
When you're in a resistance movement,
you mean what you say,
and you resist actively.
That’s what we should try
to do with this match.
How far do you think you should go
in order to put a stop to the match?
First of all, these methods
aren't something we're just talking about.
We really intend to stop the match.
Then whatever disturbances
end up taking place, is up to the police.
The most important thing
is just to be able to stop the match.
What’s your take on it?
I’m going down there because
I feel that this is a way to expose
the political stance
that the Tennis Association
is in fact adopting
by organizing this match
with representatives of this
oppressive regime in Rhodesia.
Furthermore,
I feel it is important
to make it clear to
the Swedish people
that the political reality
permeates everything,
that it’s integrated into
everything we say and do.
It’s that great myth that society
is divided into sectors,
that there’s just a little part of society
that has anything to do with politics –
with elections every four years
or something like that.
What I mean is that
politics permeates everything.
Everything has a political relevance.
And in that sense, this match
is most definitely a political issue.
These are representatives of a white,
completely illegal, oppressive,
fascist regime
that are coming here
and we can’t tolerate that.
PRESSURE MOUNTING
AGAINST DAVIS CUP
YOUTH ASSOCIATIONS DEFY BAN
ON DEMONSTRATIONS IN BÅSTAD
BÅSTAD MATCH:
POLICE PREPARED FOR WAR
MUNICIPAL WORKER
We don’t have much to do with it,
those of us who just work.
That’s more for the rich,
who can sort of do
more as they please.
We don’t have much chance
of making it into those circles,
where they play tennis.
So you think it’s a rich man’s sport?
Yes, it is.
Do you feel that
the Tennis Association
was wrong to bring
the match here to Båstad?
Well they’ve gone against the others…
against ordinary people...
that’s why there’s going
to be demonstrations.
My lady, gentlemen,
I bid you all a warm welcome
to the Båstad Tennis Stadium
and the drawing for the first round
of the Davis Cup match between
Sweden and Rhodesia.
The matches are scheduled for Friday, 2.00 pm,
Saturday, 2.00 pm and Sunday 1.00 p.m..
I am now going to hand
the floor over to Sven Davidson,
who is going to act as referee
and who will be in charge of the drawing.
After which,
we, along with the two teams,
will be at your disposal to answer
any questions you might have.
Go ahead, Sven!
The two captains have
submitted their teams.
Adrian Bay,
captain of the Rhodesian team,
has nominated Frank Salamon
and himself for the single matches.
The captain of the Swedish team,
Birger Folke, has nominated
Ove Bengtsson as number one
and Hans Nerell as number two.
I have here four slips of paper.
I think we should let Åke Eriksson
draw this time.
This will be his 35th consecutive year at Båstad.
He first came here in 1934.
We now have the two slips of paper
with the Swedish players’ names in here,
and the Rhodesian players’ names in here.
Could I ask Åke Eriksson
to draw one slip from each of them.
The two names that Åke draws are going
to face each other in the first single’s match.
Please go ahead.
Adrian Bay, for Rhodesia.
Ove Bengtsson, for Sweden.
Would you please verify.
Go by bus from…
how long do you think it’ll take?
Ten…
It’s about 500km from here…
That depends; ten, twelve hours maybe.
Ten hours?
From Stockholm to Båstad?
No, each person will have
to bring their own food.
That can’t be organized.
Maybe we can come up with
some collective solution
for everyone down there,
that I don’t know…
Thirty? That depends…
forty crowns at the most.
No more than forty,
no less than thirty-five.
The reason we’re going to Båstad is
because we feel that this tennis match
between Rhodesia and Sweden
serves as a form of recognition
for the government in Rhodesia,
which we are trying to boycott and topple
through the UN and by other means.
And we feel that the decision that
was taken to hold this match
was taken above the heads
of the people, of public opinion.
The Swedish Tennis Association’s
Board of Directors comprises
representatives from
Wallenberg companies,
from Enskilda Banken, and companies
such as Atlas Copco and Alfa Laval
who are doing business with Rhodesia,
even though the UN passed a formal
resolution boycotting Rhodesia.
That is why we feel this decision to hold
this match in Sweden to be undemocratic.
How many are coming from Stockholm
and how are they going to get down there?
There will be about a hundred of us,
and we’ll be driving down
in busses and in private cars.
We’re setting off from here on
Thursday evening
and will arrive
in Båstad Friday morning
and will meet up
with our comrades-in-arms
from other areas of the country,
particularly Lund, Gothenburg and
Uppsala.
You’re going to Båstad tomorrow
to try and stop the tennis match?
Yes, that’s right.
Has this initiative been taken
in consultation
with any organization here in Lund?
Or is it also in part a
private initiative?
There are several organizations
here in Lund that are planning to go.
And also people outside
those organizations,
but above all
it’s the South Africa Committee
and the Vietnam Committee
here in Lund,
and then the Ecumenical
Development Group,
to which I belong, is also going.
Many of us anyway.
According to reports,
the police are preparing
to do all they can
to stop the demonstration.
How far are you yourself
prepared to go in order
to push through your
and the others’ decision?
Well, as far as possible,
that is until we’ve got what we…
until our demands have been met, that is.
That might involve breaking the law.
Are you prepared to break the law?
You’re going to Båstad tomorrow?
Yes.
What do you want to do there?
Demonstrate against the
match that’s going to be played.
The decision was made
yesterday to ban demonstrations.
Yes, before six o’clock,
but I consider that to be a provocation
on the part of the police,
since they knew very well
that there were going to be
many demonstrators.
Are you going to demonstrate any way,
even if it means breaking the law?
Yes.
Why is it important?
In order to mobilize public opinion
against the regime in Rhodesia.
You’re going to Båstad tomorrow to stop
the match against Rhodesia?
Why?
Because... I consider it to be my
duty as a Christian
to stand on the side of the oppressed,
and against the oppressors.
What do you want to
achieve by this action?
To stop the match for one thing,
but also to disseminate information
about the situation in Rhodesia,
and to demonstrate
that there is public opinion
that is opposed to
the regime in Rhodesia.
How many are going to
be there, approximately?
From Lund,
approximately two hundred.
Do you think you'll succeed
in stopping it?
Yes, I do.
It’s strange that a little
community like Båstad
can find itself at the centre
of world events like this,
all because we've got a few
tennis players coming here.
I can’t believe that it serves
any reasonable purpose
to pour it on like this;
it’s always the innocent people
who get caught in the middle
and these players that
Rhodesia is sending here,
they haven’t had any influence
on the regime in their country,
and aren’t in a position to bring about
a change in that regime.
It's often said that you shouldn't
mix sports with politics;
and I’d say that’s something
worth bearing in mind.
You agree with that?
Yes; it's not appropriate.
TEAM CAPTAIN
RHODESIA
DENTAL STUDENT
This Davis Cup match
is a competition between
the countries of Sweden and Rhodesia;
the Rhodesian players are not playing
as private individuals,
but as representatives
of the Rhodesian nation.
All of them are white.
The whites in Rhodesia make up
10% of the country's population.
The white minority is engaged
in the systematic oppression
and exploitation
of the black population.
If we allow these white players
to represent Rhodesia
in a national competition,
then I can’t see it as anything
other
than a recognition
of the Smith regime,
and I don’t want that.
Båstad, which is usually rather empty
and quiet around this time,
is currently in the midst
of intense preparations
that, according to
local residents,
far exceeds those leading up
to the big invasion every summer
and the tennis tournaments.
Close to a hundred journalists
and photographers
from local papers
and international
news agencies
have gathered here,
and the three permanently
stationed police officers
at the little stationhouse
have been reinforced
by several hundred colleagues
from the whole of southern Sweden.
But so far there has been no sign
of the reportedly thousands
of demonstrating youths
for whom everyone is waiting
for in anxious anticipation.
Kristianstad’s County Police
Commissioner, Hans Fjellner,
thinks that it’s going to be
a calm tennis tournament, after all.
(Vietnamese national anthem, in Swedish)
It’s the race problems
that are responsible for all of this.
The race policies in Rhodesia?
Yes, that's right.
Do you think that they’re right
to demonstrate
against it here in Sweden?
How do you feel about it?
Yes, I support that point of view…
that they should demonstrate.
That they should be allowed
to demonstrate?
So you hope that
they are met with restraint?
Of course I also hope
that the demonstrators show restraint.
That they conduct themselves
in a dignified manner?
Do you think
that the tennis association
should have handled
this differently
and moved the match,
or simply not played against Rhodesia?
I don’t think they should have played.
You don’t think so?
It’s the same as if you were to
be given an assignment
to carry out by your employer;
you’d have to do it.
We don’t want the match
hindered in any way;
we just want everything
to progress in good order.
So you think it’s in order
that they go ahead with the match?
This isn’t about what we think,
but the duty that our employer
has charged us with.
Would you be relieved if
the Swedish Tennis Association
cancelled the match?
My own personal take on this –
not as a police officer,
but completely my
own personal view –
is that riots must be avoided.
Then, those measures
ought to have been taken.
That is my own personal view.
As a police officer I am obliged
to follow the laws and regulations,
and the command
structure that we have.
But your personal point of view is -
Completely personal.
That...
That it ought to be cancelled.
They should cancel the match?
- Yes.
In order to avoid the risk of riots?
Yes.
Thank you.
I don’t like blood.
You cannot separate
economics from politics, period,
or view any sector of society as apolitical.
You can look at examples
from history,
such as the Nazi regime in Germany,
they had a very high-profile Olympics,
which of course became a great
propaganda coup for that regime.
In that case there were
no great protests,
but one can imagine that
if some effective action
had been taken against the Olympic bid,
that more people would
have been roused in time
and seen the danger of what
was going on in Germany,
and I think it’s just as
important that we now
focus public opinion on
what is going on in Africa,
how the same kind of
fascist regime
is being strengthened there.
1500 PREPARED FOR ROUGH
RECEPTION IN BÅSTAD
COUNTY POLICE COMMISSIONER:
POLICE DEPT EXPECTS DEMO TO
BE CONDUCTED IN A DIGNIFIED MANNER
THUS, WE DO NOT HAVE
PLANS FOR FORCEFUL ACTION
ANY TALK OF WATER CANNONS
IS COMPLETELY RIDICULOUS
MASS PROTEST
TO BÅSTAD PARTICIPANTS:
DO NOT ESCALATE
NERVES ON EDGE
AHEAD OF MATCH
You mentioned a pair of scissors.
Yes, that's what we need.
For what?
To give these long-haired individuals
a haircut.
You'd cut off their hair?
Yes, they need it!
What do you think about
what they’re doing?
Well, it's all very childish...
It's childish?
Yes, it is.
You think that they’re ruining Båstad?
I think they should stay at home.
What business to they
have coming down here?
They’re demonstrating
against this tennis match.
Well, it won’t get them anywhere.
It won't do any good?
No. Four unfortunate players come here
and they have to suffer for it.
How do we play against other nations?
Spain was here playing
football yesterday, right?
It’s the same situation there as in…
What do you think
would have been
the wisest thing to do right now?
Well, nothing. Just let them play.
Is that what you think?
You don’t think it would have
been wise to cancel the match?
No, since the whole thing was
decided by lot,
it doesn’t matter who…
Then it has to run its course.
Absolutely! That’s only fair.
Sweden shouldn't have to suffer for it.
JOURNALIST, KVÄLLSPOSTEN
It’s interesting
that people are coming here,
and it’s sure
to be a very interesting day,
that afterwards there will be
every reason
to shed light on in peace and quiet,
in an objective debate.
Yes, that's quite right.
I have nothing against
the demonstrations as such.
I'm just afraid it doesn't
do much to help the black man.
But rather, when all this is over,
everyone will go home,
and the black man will be
just as badly off.
So, for my part, I’ve suggested
that each demonstrator
should carry a collection box
into which they put ten crowns
and see to it
that another forty crowns
make it in there.
then we could easily collect, together,
the sum of a hundred thousand crowns.
And that we could use
to bring over
colored children,
orphaned colored children.
That’s what demonstrators
are doing in the case of Vietnam.
It’s a good idea,
and it would have been great
if they had done that here, too.
But at the same time,
I’ve suggested
that the Tennis Association,
as an incentive
for the demonstrators
to take part in it,
make an initial contribution
of 20 to 30,000 crowns to such a fund.
But it was dismissed,
both by the representatives
of the Tennis Association
and from the other side.
But I have nothing
against their demonstrating,
so long as it takes place
in a dignified manner.
If they start fighting,
that I don’t like.
The right to demonstrate
is something we
should safeguard,
especially when it’s been so well
looked after over the years,
especially earlier on
by the Social Democrats.
If you consider
that the Tennis Assocation,
which followed the National
Sports Confederation’s directives
that we are allowed
to compete against any
internationally approved
sports association –
a directive that was reviewed
by the government
just six years ago.
If they had granted a walkover
and Rhodesia
had gone to Spain instead,
then we wouldn't have been given
the chance to speak our minds
to say we don't like apartheid.
By holding the match,
we have been given the opportunity
to say what we think about apartheid.
Just so long as we do it
in an objective manner.
Can you stop this
match with non-violence?
As far as possible..
Is that really realistic?
We’ll have to see.
It’s very important to the outward
objectives of this action,
that it be conducted
in a dignified manner.
We are very, very aware of that,
and have also worked according
to those principles.
But not to the extent
that we’ll compromise on our goal.
Of stopping the match.
Do you think the match will be stopped?
I have a hard time seeing how it
can be done, but it’s possible.
It all depends on what tactics they use.
I am absolutely convinced
that we will succeed.
Are you sure
that you can sort of control
any elements that might
get a bit violent?
As regards those people
we’ve been in touch with, we’re sure of it.
And we also have some tools to
help us in that respect,
Such as our slogan:
We remain calm when the police attack-
in order to strengthen our unity,
to ensure that any provocations fail.
Whether on the part of the police,
or those who identify themselves
with the Rhodesian regime
or the actions of the Tennis Association.
Of course, but then in this context
they ought to have blocked
Rhodesia's application
to the Davis Cup.
Isn't it a little crazy when Rhodesia's
application has been accepted...
Surely "the show must go on",
as they say.
No, I don’t think "the show must go on".
most definitely
"the show must be stopped."
We are not the ones
who accepted Rhodesia’s application.
No, it was the International
Tennis Association.
Yes, that's right.
And then we have to play by our rules.
What are your rules?
Well, we’re going to hold
a demonstration here
in calm and dignified order.
We're going to walk three
abreast down to the courts.
We’re going to stand
outside by the main entrance.
Then we’ll stand there until two o’clock
when the match begins.
If it does end up getting started.
Then there will be people who have
made it inside by buying tickets,
made it onto the court,
but they’ll have to…
what they get up to
is their own business, right?
The students from Lund and others
who are going to march with us,
they'll have to play by our rules.
Who’s "us" then?
The Youth League of
the People's Party
and the Swedish Social
Democratic Youth League..
I’ll call up the leaders for Stockholm,
Gothenburg, Uppsala and so on.
Everyone except Lund – Malmö.
Lund - Malmö will go to one entrance,
Stockholm and the others
will go to the other entrance.
And it’s important that we
keep these groups together,
that we follow these leaders,
and don’t take any personal initiatives.
Just do whatever they initiate.
Is that understood?
Yes.
So are you going to join our procession?
Yes.
WHITES PLAY BALL
BLACKS DON'T MATTER
Three abreast.
You can’t be more than three abreast,
Those of you in charge,
make sure that there
are only three abreast.
You'll be marching three by three!
FREEDOM FOR ZIMBABWE
LET THE STANDS BE EMPTY
TENNIS STINKS
Our ability to express
ourselves has been sharply curtailed.
There are very few channels through
which we can express our views.
We rarely get to be heard in
the mass media, in TV and radio,
and on those few occasions
when we do,
the radio management makes
a conscious attempt
to neutralize what we say
by commenting on what we've said after
assuming the role of interpreter
for what we really mean,
as if we were incapable
of communicating that ourselves.
Then regarding newspapers:
Our time is marked by the
shutting down of newspapers,
which of course leads to a
monopolizing of the print industry.
We’re having a very hard time
getting articles onto the main pages
of the newspapers,
in the cultural pages.
Celebrity personalities like
Jan Myrdal and Sara Lidman
are really the only ones who
make it onto the cultural pages.
At best we might be able
to get is articles in the
letter-to-the-editors column.
And those articles that we
on occasion manage to get in there
are drastically edited,
certain sentences removed,
thus changing the entire meaning,
so that everything we say is skewed,
and thereby used against us.
There is no right to demonstrate
written into the Swedish constitution,
nor is there any right of assembly.
That right is written into the
constitutions of many other countries.
Instead, in Sweden we apply a praxis
where it is up to the police to decide
on demonstrations.
A police force is not
a democratically elected authority.
Its makeup does not in any way
reflect the political composition
of Swedish public opinion,
and therefore it is completely
wrong for the police to decide when,
where, and how we should be
allowed to demonstrate.
This forces us to use other channels,
and this forces us
out into the streets.
We print flyers that
we hand out,
we print our own newspapers
that we sell and try
to distribute in various ways,
and we demonstrate.
Sold out! Sold out! Sorry!
There is no match! It’s closed there now.
Next time. Salisbury, Rhodesia,
next year.
What business do
you have coming here?!
They’re boycotted by the UN...
it was a proper drawing!
But it wasn't...
You dirty bastards..
What do you mean by that?
Are we the ones you're calling intellectuals?
Well, isn’t that what you are?
We never said that.
Are you Swedish?
Yes.
Then why don’t you try to solve
the Swedish race problems first
and give the Gypsies a chance?
Try to solve that
before starting trying to solve..
We came to see a tennis match,
and you go and stop it.
Did you buy tickets, too?
That's exactly what I did.
I've been coming here to watch
the Davis Cup for years,
and that’s just what I want
to do now, too.
Then a bunch of bloody
shitheads come along
and stops the whole thing.
Do you think that the
death sentences in Rhodesia..
What’s right and wrong, huh?
What the hell do you think is
going to happen
if they get into power down there?
There won't be any more
death sentences.
Oh no? Kiss my ass.
Who do you mean by
"they", anyway?
We should just keep our traps shut
here in Sweden.
Let me try and explain Swedish
neutrality to you.
Like hell you're explaining anything!
Here I’ve been working
and paying taxes
since the age of twelve,
then you bastards run up in here -
the ones we've been paying for, huh?
Given half the chance
I'd love to punch you out, the lot of you...
The Tennis Association
has asked me to inform everyone
that there will be
no tennis match in Båstad…
Louder!
Shut up so we can hear!!
As we just announced,
or as County Police
Commissioner Fjellner announced…
Louder! Louder!
This is a genuine decision
on our part –
we are not going to play
the match here in Båstad.
I hope that you trust us on this.
So there is no reason
for you to stay.
We are not going to sneak off
and play here tomorrow morning
or anything like that.
I ask that you take me at my word.
We've won here today and
now we can leave.
We’ll proceed up to the church hall,
where we started this morning.
What do you think was the most
important thing about what
happened here?
Well, I think the most important thing
was that we succeeded
in stopping the match,
that the match was really stopped,
that we succeeded in doing that.
That it wasn't just a public protest,
I mean we actually achieved
concrete results, here.
I think that was most important.
What do you think
you've gained through your action?
We stopped the match here
and we got the word out,
it's going to be on TV, on the radio,
in newspapers...
We've managed to tell a lot of people
that the policies being pursued
in South Rhodesia are wrong.
It's a way of disseminating information.
Many feel that you
shouldn't mix sports and politics.
You obviously don't feel that way.
Would you care to
explain that a little bit?
There is no aspect of human intercourse
that is without political consequences,
political overtones.
Even in sports, politics is involved.
That’s how it is in South Africa,
in Rhodesia,
that even within sports,
this segregation exists,
so sports and politics
are in no way separate.
What was your experience?
Do you feel your action
was a success?
Yes, I think it was a success,
but it was rather disorganized.
The fact that it went as well as it did,
for our section, Stockholm-Gothenburg,
probably comes down to the fact
the police were even less prepared
and more disorganized than we were.
Do you have any comments
about the actions of the police?
Yeah, typical Swedish political police.
How so?
They always block things
almost always,
when it's leftist groups,
or when it's against racism,
they'll use the most brutal methods,
pulling people by the hair
and kicking them, hitting them.
I think they’re showing definite tendencies
towards what the Germans
did in Berlin last Easter.
Would you like to comment
on what took place here today?
No, I wouldn't.
You’ll have to ask our superiors,
they’re the ones who should comment.
We are not prepared to comment.
Not even a personal point of view
on how the demonstration
was conducted?
As a police officer I’m not
allowed to offer personal comments.
You weren't part of the group
that made it through the gates, then?
No, no...
That was only down at the lower gates.
But what the news wire service
is saying is that we were armed,
with cobblestones and iron bars..
The thing is,
if we had wanted to stop you,
we would have stationed four horses
and four dogs at each entrance.
Then nobody would have...
The police weren't much better
than dogs.
That's a pretty positive assessment, then.
When a police officer
punches a girl with his fist,
that means something is wrong.
That's enough exposition on this;
Let's just call it a day.
Yes, but there's likely to be repercussions.
Let's hope so.
I mean, it's illegal.
If we wanted four horses
and four dogs at each entrance,
No power on earth
could have gotten near us.
I mean, we have the means.
If we want to.
So you didn't want to?
That's enough,
let's not discuss it any further.
You can become a war criminal
by alway following the rules...
THE BATTLE FOR BÅSTAD
HYDROCHLORIC ACID IMAGES
EXPRESSEN HAS THE PHOTOS
THAT WEREN’T ON TV
RIOTS PUT A STOP TO BÅSTAD GAMES
THE MOB ”WON” IN BÅSTAD
EGGS, OIL ON THE COURT IN BÅSTAD
INFERNO
FORMALIN
'THE WORST SINCE 1909'
It was mob-like behavior,
something you would not expect
to see here in Sweden.
And the ones in the action groups
that howled and rampaged and
defied the police and others,
they least of all achieved the effect
they may think they did.
Of course they think they’ve
they’re smug and cocky and brave.
But the only thing the police were doing,
was protecting them.
The rest of us who were standing
not so far away from this mob,
were hardly free to walk around,
we didn’t know what would happen to us.
Well, I mean, it’s a shame isn’t it
Excuse me?
...It's a shame.
You think so?
I mean, all this violence and fighting –
it’s a shame, isn’t it.
Yes, of course it is,
but the background
in Rhodesia is also a shame.
Of course it is,
I mean no one likes
oppression and violence, but…
You think it’s a shame that the
demonstrators were so aggressive?
I think it’s a shame
that people are oppressed.
I think it's a shame
that there’s fighting and violence.
I think people should get along.
Yes, it’s a nice thought.
Then, I feel, that it’s difficult to
take a position, either for or against.
I see, but the fact that the tennis match
didn’t take place,
do you think that’s also a shame?
I don’t think I know enough
about it to say yes or no.
Fine; thank you.
I was actually involved,
on the tennis side of it.
Hired for the competition
as an umpire.
As far as I’m concerned it was terrible.
It was a shock to see that people
could behave the way they did.
You’re talking primarily about
the demonstrators?
Yes, that’s right,
the unofficial demonstrators,
or whatever you want to call them.
How about the other demonstrators?
Well, I think they behaved
absolutely properly, so there was nothing wrong there.
Do you also feel that you can’t
separate sports and politics?
Well, I’ve been involved
in sports my entire life.
So I’d certainly like
to keep them separate.
Do you feel that that’s the right thing to do
to do in the case of Rhodesia,
where black people
don’t have access to tennis?
I can’t personally know what it’s like.
There are bad things
going on in various countries,
that’s what we all feel,
Oppression on one side and the other.
We even do it here in Sweden.
We oppress the gypsies.
So I don’t want to pass
judgment in this case.
if you’re from a country where
they behave that way then…
Well, it's awful.
Have you read the paper today?
I certainly have.
I’m going to read a few more.
And do you think the description
of the whole thing
was correct and relevant?
I do. But of course
they do have differing views.
Political opinions and views.
Yes, they vary,
They vary considerably, I think, actually.
They're saying it's the worst
since 1909.
I didn’t read that newspaper,
but I saw the headline,
Do you also feel that way?
I've never experienced
anything this bad.
I met Sven Jerring yesterday.
He said he had experienced
the Russian Revolution.
and that was the worst thing
he’d ever experienced,
so far that is.
but it was pretty close.
This wasn't that bad, he said,
We were certainly shocked.
You think so?
Absolutely. Many of us.
What did you think of
the demonstration?
Didn't care for it.
Not the least bit.
Why do you think one
shouldn’t mix sports with politics?
I think they’re two
completely separate things.
Why’s that?
Well...
In what way?
I don't know how to put it,
Sports is one thing
and politics another.
That's what I think, anyway.
If the demonstrators felt
that stopping the match
would help the Rhodesian blacks,
do you think it was the right
thing to do in that case,
if they were firmly convinced of it?
Is it right then to fight for it?
Of course, if they hold
a proper demonstration.
But this was more like a riot,
you might say.
Were you down there
yourself to look at it?
No, I wasn’t.
No.
It's disgusting that they
should be allowed
to behave that way down in Båstad,
that they should be allowed to
come here and spoil things.
All the disturbance
they caused out there.
Well, that’s how we feel about it,
how most people around here feel,
I guess.
The local residents have been upset
by their presence down here,
their shameless behavior and all.
They say that a number of Båstad residents
went up to teach those
demonstrators a lesson? Is that true?
I don’t know anything about that.
There are a whole lot of cars here.
Do you know why that is?
Well, they're curious.
There was a bit of a brawl
happening here.
There still is.
What kind of a brawl?
The youths of Båstad
are trying to get hold
of the students,
to teach them a lesson.
Teach them a lesson?
In what way?
They don't like them..
And want to have it out with them.
Make life unpleasant for them.
Did anything happen yesterday?
Yeah, from what I heard
there was a bit of a brawl last night.
A brawl? What happened?
They used ladders to try and get up to
where they were staying
to get them out.
At the station, too.
They threw rocks at the Båstad kids,
tried to hit their cars and that.
There were a hundred and fifty men
who tried to head over to the building,
and then one of their leaders
showed up
and drove them down there by car
which got pelted by rocks.
A hundred and fifty, who were they?
They were from Båstad
and all around here.
What did they do?
They wanted to go up there
and get them all out
Who?
The students.
What were they going to do with them?
I don't know, but the parking lot here
was full of cars.
Did you hear anything about it?
I heard they were out here
trying to get them out of the building
so they could beat them up.
Beat them up?
How many were they?
I have no idea how many they were.
Like... twenty-five cars.
Police cars?
No. Ordinary, private cars.
Where did those cars come from?
From around here, around Båstad.
So what else happened?
Well, they went up there,
but they were gone.
There had been a police car
up there earlier
to pick up a few of them, they thought,
but when they got up there,
the lights were switched off,
they couldn't see anybody.
Were you here yourself?
And saw everything?
Would you like to tell us
what you're doing here, today?
Now?
Well, we came to see what…
…if there are any students.
If there are any students?
They say that there were
students demonstrating here in Båstad
against the match.
Do you have any comments on that?
I don’t think they should
drag politics into sports.
Why not, do you think?
Well, they don't belong together.
I feel the same way.
They say that the demonstrators’ bus
was destroyed yesterday.
How do you feel about that?
I think it's good.
Why?
Well, they deserve to get a taste
of their own medicine,
for destroying the tennis courts.
They say that the demonstrators’ bus
was destroyed;
is that true?
Yes.
How do you feel about that?
That's good.
Why do you think that's good?
When they come down here
to demonstrate against a match,
then they should get
some payback, I think.
Come down here
all the way from Stockholm
just to demonstrate
against something like that,
it's idiotic. Ridiculous.
Why do you think
they were demonstrating?
For the rights of the blacks.
Excuse me?
For the rights of the blacks.
No, look,
I have nothing against blacks.
I think that in the US, for example,
there the blacks should have their rights,
as they should everywhere.
But I mean, they can't do anything.
If the UN can't, they can't.
They managed to stop the match anyway.
Sure, but it doesn't make
any difference.
I mean, they're going to play anyway.
It's a tradition.
It's ruined in that sense.
You saw the demonstration yesterday.
What did you think was wrong about it?
I did not see it.
I was only there for a short while,
then I drove home again.
If they had to demonstrate,
then they could have done it
peacefully.
And not gotten so violent.
What do you think about
the demonstration
yesterday, here in Båstad?
It was awful.
It sure was; bloody awful.
It was ridiculous.
It was so childish,
like nothing I've ever seen before.
Why’s that, do you think?
Well, I’ll tell you; because it’s
absolutely unnecessary
to demonstrate like that.
I don't understand why.
You think it was unneccesary?
Of course it was unnecessary.
What do you think
of the demonstration yesterday?
I didn't like it.
You shouldn’t mix politics with sports.
Those kids should have stayed home.
Should politics and
sports be kept separate?
Yes, definitely.
Why?
Well, because if you
can't keep it out of sports,
you can't keep it out
of anything.
I feel the same.
Politics, sports, separate.
Why have so many people
gathered here today?
Well, I'll tell you
we followed you here.
We thought you belonged to
that group, see.
We spotted you along the way,
And saw that you were headed
up to Ekmans,
so we drove into town
and gathered some people together.
You were going to beat us up?
No, not beat you up,
but if that gang had been up at Ekmans,
then we would have stood there
and stopped them from leaving.
But unfortunately they ran off
last night or this afternoon.
I agree with the lady here,
that’s absolutely true.
We think they should
have been forced to stay on,
for at least one more night.
What for?
They ought to suffer
some kind of punishment.
I think they must have
been very scared up there.
Why else would they have run
outside and hidden in the bushes?
As soon as the people came up there,
they ran off, out into the bushes,
and they were huddled out there
until we left again.
And that's how they've
been carrying on all night.
We were up there with flashlights.
They were afraid.
Just terribly afraid.
Did something happen yesterday?
I wasn’t here in the evening,
so I don’t know.
But there were a lot of cars
driving around here
People were aggressive.
Very aggressive.
Why do you think
they demonstrated?
They don’t know what they’re doing.
Just a bunch of idiots.
Brats. Cowards.
Why do you say that?
Why they're cowards?
If they weren't cowards
they would have stayed.
They’re all well-off,
too, most of them.
They live here in the summer.
They ought to behave themselves.
Why shouldn't one mix
sports with politics?
They’re two different things,
completely different.
In what way?
Well, you shouldn’t…
I can’t explain it,
but they shouldn't mix
sports and politics.
Do you know why
they were demonstrating?
The thing is,
they should go down there
instead of demonstrating here.
They’ve only got two players
down here, after all.
They shouldn’t demonstrate against them;
in that case they should take up politics,
not against the players down here.
They can take it up to the government
in Stockholm and talk about it
up there instead.
And then we’re going to vote
for the right party down here,
so we don’t have
any of those demonstrations.
Which party is the right one?
Well, the Conservatives are,
for me anyway.
I'm not afraid to admit it.
You’re trying to get ahold
of the demonstrators?
Sure, why not shut them up
in there for a while?
What do the police have to
say about that?
I don't care.
We're not going to do anything to them.
Absolutely nothing.
We can show them how to
demonstrate properly;
calmly and peacefully, not like they did -
coming at the police with iron bars
and rocks and what have you.
They got off scot-free.
We had every opportunity last night
to destroy that building up there,
but we didn’t do anything.
We didn’t even touch a single
blade of grass up there,
Have the police been here?
Yes, there’s been plenty of police.
What did they want?
They just looked around.
Was that wrong?
No, it wasn't wrong...
Everyone has a right to protection.
How far do you think
the police should go?
Should they shoot?
No,
but there are excellent water cannons,
stuff like that they can use.
Did you see the demonstration?
No, I didn’t unfortunately.
…they were going to ruin
the whole damn tennis court down there.
And they were going to ruin things for
the white devil.
There was a black guy here
declaring that.
So there's proof of that.
Why do you think he thought that?
Well, I don't know.
But that guy was going to university
in Stockholm or in Uppsala,
he had money from the Swedish state
to go to school here,
and have his living costs paid for.
And he comes down here
and ruins things for us,
comparing us to Ian Smith and all them.
I don’t think that’s fair to us…
And for people like that
to act like hooligans…
why, that just ruins things
for all young people.
The clique that gets seen,
they’re the ones that ruin things.
Then it’s the decent kids
that get blamed for it.
We’ve been over to see Henry Swaving
and signed a list that he's going
to send the government,
that the police should be given
greater authority
when it comes to these
kinds of demonstrations.
"Greater authority" -
what does that mean?
Well, to be able to respond
with a firmer hand,
when it's really necessary.
And it is necessary sometimes,
as we just saw.
Do the rest of you feel that way, too?
Y E S!
You’ve drawn up a petition
to the government.
What does it say?
HENRY SWAVING,
GOLD MERCHANT
Here's what it says.
Due to the chaos that took place,
and I am in no way a leader
of the Båstad residents.
I am just a citizen
who wants to help other citizens.
This petition consists of the following:
We, the undersigned
residents of Båstad,
have looked on in dismay at the events
that took place in our town
in conjunction with the demonstrations
that were held here on 2 May 1968,
when Sweden was supposed
to meet Rhodesia in a tennis match.
The police made worthy
attempts to keep order.
Unfortunately,
they lacked the authority
to use the necessary means
that could have
effectively put a stop to the hooliganism.
Therefore,
we petition the government forthwith
to provide the police command
with such authority.
If this does not happen,
we fear for what we might experience
in our town in the future.
How far do you feel the police should go?
How much authority should they have,
do you think?
I can't comment on what authority
the police should be given
if hooligans attack a community;
That's for the government to comment on.
Even if it means being armed?
Then the government should
make absolutely sure
no such elements
are allowed into the country,
so it doesn't lead to armed conflict.
Because Sweden hasn't gone
completely communist yet,
I hope.
There’s quite a brisk flow of traffic
out to an area over by Hovs Hallar,
where some demonstrators are
supposed to be holed up.
Do you know anything about that?
Yes, some of them were still there.
These black groups,
that belong to the FNL,
who were very aggressive at the gates.
Båstad residents got wind of this
and really wanted to get ahold
of those... types.
Yesterday there were at least
a hundred youths there.
Then I went over there myself
with the editor of the Kvällsposten,
Buhre, his name is.
Birger Buhr. Then, after a
five or six minute discussion
between Birger Buhr
and this demonstrator,
it looked like it was
really going to turn into a lynching.
Then one of the police officers
asked if I wouldn’t get involved,
to try and calm the whole thing down.
So I showed a bit of aggressiveness,
and told off a few of
those stupid demonstrators
and finally I said:
Come on, people of Båstad,
let's not be as disorderly
as these rowdy people.
Let’s go home and I’ll treat
everyone to some refreshment.
And with that,
everyone came along quietly.
KLING: NOW WE REALLY
HAVE TO STOP AND THINK
Has the police commissioner
been informed about what happened?
It was through him
that I got the information I have,
beyond what I learned through the
southern Swedish press.
And may I ask you then whether
he has changed your view
of how similar incidents should be handled?
The police commissioner
has clearly stated that from his point of view,
a greater commitment of personnel
could have prevented any violence
from breaking out altogether.
In the press the following day
it was intimated
that the police are going
to be given greater authority.
Would you care to comment on that?
It was Kling who said it,
that the National Police Board
would be given greater authority.
I find it pretty shameful
that that's the first thing
Kling has to say
about this whole business
with Rhodesia.
One would expect that he,
as the government's expert
on legal issues,
ought to be able
to comment on the fact
that we have signed up to a boycott
against Rhodesia in the UN,
about the breaking of the pledge we made
to Rhodesia's colored population,
not to support the Smith regime,
and about the crime that allowing
a tennis match against Rhodesia
within Sweden entails.
Everything else,
the confrontations that broke out here
before the match,
are seocndary in comparison
to the moral treachery that it involves
to formally allow the Smith regime
to gain recognition by playing
a national match against Rhodesia.
And that’s where I think
Kling should have been upset,
instead of coming along
afterwards and being upset
about secondary consequences.
If the police were to use
harsher methods in the future,
what do you think that would mean?
It's a very alarming development.
But it seems as if things
are headed in that direction.
You can see it in a lot
of different areas,
if you look at the subway
in Stockholm now,
and the new city centre
that's been built for banks and cars,
not for people.
That causes anxiety,
because people want to
have somewhere to go.
But then instead of grappling
with the root causes,
they just try to crush
any expressions of discontent
through TV coverage
and tougher police action.
I think we face a period of difficult
re-evaluation in this country,
and throughout the West,
and that it could be the beginning
of a very unpleasant development,
instead of facing up
to the new situation,
they try to crush
expressions of dissatisfaction.
KLING ON THE RIOTS:
STOP THE HOOLIGANS
I heard now
that justice minister Kling
made a statement
in Svenska Dagladet,
where he called us
a bunch of hooligans.
I find this to be a very
worrying situation and tendency,
because it reveals the enormous lack
of information that the public and press,
and everyone else has
about who the demonstrators are.
I think it’s really awful
to see the role of the press
in this respect,
how they continue
to fan these prejudices,
how they’re engaging
in a persecution propaganda
against the demonstrators.
The combination of increased police authority,
increased police violence,
and increased politicization
of the police
is what I find to be
the most frightening.
When you can see
Sven Davidson,
who is just beneath Wallenberg,
giving orders to the police,
who they should attack,
where they should be put in,
and at the same time the police
just say
they have no opinion on this,
but are controlled
by a political force,
then I think it's dangerous
to give them more authority.
Instead they ought to examine
what exactly the police
are supposed to defend,
what role they should have,
and not just let them
be politicized freely.
That’s what Kling should be doing.
The Swedish Tennis Association
issued a communiqué
that read more or less as follows:
We will not reveal where
the Rhodesia match
is going to be played
until after it has been played.
Do you feel that to be an
especially appropriate formulation?
No, it certainly isn’t.
Because ... ?
Well, if you really feel compelled to play,
what I would consider
a rather superfluous tournament,
then surely you ought to at least
do it in such a way that people can
see it, if they want to.
No, I don’t want to speak
at length on this,
other than to describe
the formal situation,
and where we stand on principle.
But like I said,
they can enter the country
and organizations are allowed
to organize events.
Without the Swedish government
being able to stop it?
Yes.
Okay. Thank you.
The match was ultimately played
in Bandole, France.
Final result:
Sweden-Rhodesia, 3-2.
with contributions by
Bo Jonsson and Staffan Lamm.
On 3 May 1968, a Davis Cup tennis
match was set to be played in Båstad
between Sweden and Rhodesia.
This match never took place.
The following film covers the
circumstances surrounding this...
Why did you want to stop
the match in Båstad?
I think that politics and sports
really belong together,
that sport has a real
political function,
that politics permeates
all aspects of society
and thus also permeates sports.
I feel there is a tendency
in our society to consider
politics the preserve of professional
politicians, government, party officials.
And that the man on the street
is somehow incapable
or unqualified to take
a position on political issues.
But with channels of information
available in Sweden today
through mass media,
we can actually inform ourselves
well enough to be able to adopt
a political position.
This tendency causes many people,
under the pretext of so-called
objectivity, to become passive,
to become apolitical.
And I think that’s absurd,
because that means
they renounce a democratic
opportunity to change society.
I want to change society,
that’s why I feel it’s so important
to protest against this match.
Our neutrality policy does not
condemn us to silence.
Silence can be the ally of injustice.
Silence can be seen
as supporting reaction.
We must have the right to assert
the ideals of universal freedom
and fellowship
of solidarity and justice.
Let our opponents on the right beware:
don’t try to use neutrality as a cover
to muzzle the Swedish
labour movement.
You will never succeed.
OLAF PALME
Minister of Education
GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL
What do I think?
They should cancel the match.
But whether the sports association
decides to do that is another question.
But what are you going to do about it?
- Well, what can one do about it?
I mean, why should I
do something about it?
That’s my attitude regarding
the sports association.
If they were to ask me,
I’d tell them what I think.
Then it’s up to them
what they do about it.
ENGINE DRIVER
No, I don't like it.
Are you going to do anything about it?
- No, I’m not.
That’s up to the ones who…
I mean… I have no...
I’m not going to personally
do anything about all this.
But I am of the opinion that
the match shouldn’t be played.
Why?
Because I feel that the racial policy
in Rhodesia isn't what it ought to be.
CEMENT WORKER AND HIS WIFE
It should be stopped, of course.
How?
How? Just see to it that they stop,
don’t let them play.
Who is supposed to see
that they don't play?
Well, I suppose it’s up to the Sports…
what’s it called now…
the Sports Association to see to that.
Who’s supposed to see to it that
the Sports Association does that?
Yeah, well, that’s just it, isn’t it?
Can you do anything?
- No, we can't do anything, no.
Why not?
We aren't powerful enough.
Well, there are some talented
tennis players who, it seems,
are as bad at politics
as I am at tennis.
And what does that mean, Minister?
Well, that's my position
regarding this match.
And those attempts that will be
made to stop this match,
how should they be viewed?
I don't want to comment on that
because I know too little about it.
Above all it is the responsibility
of the Tennis Association to say
what they think is
the decent thing to do.
Is it not possible for someone higher up to?
We live in a free country,
so we don’t interfere in sports
in such a way as to recommend
that they do one thing or the other,
With the Olympics, it’s a question
of money, but that’s not the case here.
DISTRICT CHAIRMAN
SWEDISH DEMOCRATIC
YOUTH LEAGUE (SSU)
Peter Wallenberg’s dealings in
Rhodesia are a separate chapter.
It’s his company, his company is
investing in Rhodesia
Atlas Copco, we know for certain,
and he is also the one keeping the
Tennis Association afloat.
He’s more or less financing it,
and he’s also a partner
in the tennis stadium here.
That means that our protest
against the Smith regime
must also be directed
at those industrialists in Sweden
and the rest of the world
who, through their economic ties
with Smith, support this racist,
fascist regime.
HERMAN KLING, MINISTER OF JUSTICE
It is not for me,
as Minister of Justice,
to comment on the policy
of Swedish sports associations.
The Swedish government’s policy
is another matter entirely,
and there is no doubt as to its position
with regard to Rhodesia.
TEAM CAPTAIN, SWEDISH
TENNIS ASSOCIATION
I feel a little resentful
at the prospect
of there being demonstrations
that violate the law.
As long as the demonstrations
adhere to the law, then I accept them.
I think it’s quite acceptable,
but if they violate the law,
then that has to be wrong.
Are you afraid of that happening?
- No, I am not.
There’s been a fair bit in the press
about activist groups.
You’re not afraid that such
elements are going to...?
I’m not afraid,
but I think it would be a shame
if they were allowed to break the law.
I see.
You are aware that a broad swath
of public opinion in Sweden
feels that the Tennis Association
has subjected the country,
has put Sweden in an untenable position...
I wouldn’t call it a broad swath.
You don’t think it’s broad?
- Well, I mean, we don’t know that.
Do we?
Do we? I mean, you tell me...
RUNE JOHANSSON
Foreign Minister
They clearly have another point
of departure for their assessment,
namely that of sports as an activity that
bridges differences between countries.
But in this case,
I feel that they ought to have shown
more respect for the official position
toward the country
that the players come from
and the public opinion that exists here
that sympathizes with the plight
of colored groups
and the difficulties they face.
Those feelings are very strong here.
Do you feel that the Swedish government
has done what it could to prevent it?
Officially, there’s nothing more
we could have done.…
So you feel that you’ve made your
views clear on this issue?
Yes, the sports organizations cannot
be unaware of them.
They’re not unaware of them?
No. But I don’t think there’s been any
official intervention to influence matters.
They’re independent organizations.
POLITICAL SCIENCE STUDENT
You’re part of the group heading
to Båstad tomorrow?
M-hm.
Why are you going?
We feel that it’s necessary to protest
against white oppression in Rhodesia,
and to really be serious about it.
I don’t mean just walking around with a sign
or expressing our views,
but really trying to stop the match
precisely the difference between
a protest movement
and the resistance movement that
Stokley Carmichel and others spoke about.
When you're in a resistance movement,
you mean what you say,
and you resist actively.
That’s what we should try
to do with this match.
How far do you think you should go
in order to put a stop to the match?
First of all, these methods
aren't something we're just talking about.
We really intend to stop the match.
Then whatever disturbances
end up taking place, is up to the police.
The most important thing
is just to be able to stop the match.
What’s your take on it?
I’m going down there because
I feel that this is a way to expose
the political stance
that the Tennis Association
is in fact adopting
by organizing this match
with representatives of this
oppressive regime in Rhodesia.
Furthermore,
I feel it is important
to make it clear to
the Swedish people
that the political reality
permeates everything,
that it’s integrated into
everything we say and do.
It’s that great myth that society
is divided into sectors,
that there’s just a little part of society
that has anything to do with politics –
with elections every four years
or something like that.
What I mean is that
politics permeates everything.
Everything has a political relevance.
And in that sense, this match
is most definitely a political issue.
These are representatives of a white,
completely illegal, oppressive,
fascist regime
that are coming here
and we can’t tolerate that.
PRESSURE MOUNTING
AGAINST DAVIS CUP
YOUTH ASSOCIATIONS DEFY BAN
ON DEMONSTRATIONS IN BÅSTAD
BÅSTAD MATCH:
POLICE PREPARED FOR WAR
MUNICIPAL WORKER
We don’t have much to do with it,
those of us who just work.
That’s more for the rich,
who can sort of do
more as they please.
We don’t have much chance
of making it into those circles,
where they play tennis.
So you think it’s a rich man’s sport?
Yes, it is.
Do you feel that
the Tennis Association
was wrong to bring
the match here to Båstad?
Well they’ve gone against the others…
against ordinary people...
that’s why there’s going
to be demonstrations.
My lady, gentlemen,
I bid you all a warm welcome
to the Båstad Tennis Stadium
and the drawing for the first round
of the Davis Cup match between
Sweden and Rhodesia.
The matches are scheduled for Friday, 2.00 pm,
Saturday, 2.00 pm and Sunday 1.00 p.m..
I am now going to hand
the floor over to Sven Davidson,
who is going to act as referee
and who will be in charge of the drawing.
After which,
we, along with the two teams,
will be at your disposal to answer
any questions you might have.
Go ahead, Sven!
The two captains have
submitted their teams.
Adrian Bay,
captain of the Rhodesian team,
has nominated Frank Salamon
and himself for the single matches.
The captain of the Swedish team,
Birger Folke, has nominated
Ove Bengtsson as number one
and Hans Nerell as number two.
I have here four slips of paper.
I think we should let Åke Eriksson
draw this time.
This will be his 35th consecutive year at Båstad.
He first came here in 1934.
We now have the two slips of paper
with the Swedish players’ names in here,
and the Rhodesian players’ names in here.
Could I ask Åke Eriksson
to draw one slip from each of them.
The two names that Åke draws are going
to face each other in the first single’s match.
Please go ahead.
Adrian Bay, for Rhodesia.
Ove Bengtsson, for Sweden.
Would you please verify.
Go by bus from…
how long do you think it’ll take?
Ten…
It’s about 500km from here…
That depends; ten, twelve hours maybe.
Ten hours?
From Stockholm to Båstad?
No, each person will have
to bring their own food.
That can’t be organized.
Maybe we can come up with
some collective solution
for everyone down there,
that I don’t know…
Thirty? That depends…
forty crowns at the most.
No more than forty,
no less than thirty-five.
The reason we’re going to Båstad is
because we feel that this tennis match
between Rhodesia and Sweden
serves as a form of recognition
for the government in Rhodesia,
which we are trying to boycott and topple
through the UN and by other means.
And we feel that the decision that
was taken to hold this match
was taken above the heads
of the people, of public opinion.
The Swedish Tennis Association’s
Board of Directors comprises
representatives from
Wallenberg companies,
from Enskilda Banken, and companies
such as Atlas Copco and Alfa Laval
who are doing business with Rhodesia,
even though the UN passed a formal
resolution boycotting Rhodesia.
That is why we feel this decision to hold
this match in Sweden to be undemocratic.
How many are coming from Stockholm
and how are they going to get down there?
There will be about a hundred of us,
and we’ll be driving down
in busses and in private cars.
We’re setting off from here on
Thursday evening
and will arrive
in Båstad Friday morning
and will meet up
with our comrades-in-arms
from other areas of the country,
particularly Lund, Gothenburg and
Uppsala.
You’re going to Båstad tomorrow
to try and stop the tennis match?
Yes, that’s right.
Has this initiative been taken
in consultation
with any organization here in Lund?
Or is it also in part a
private initiative?
There are several organizations
here in Lund that are planning to go.
And also people outside
those organizations,
but above all
it’s the South Africa Committee
and the Vietnam Committee
here in Lund,
and then the Ecumenical
Development Group,
to which I belong, is also going.
Many of us anyway.
According to reports,
the police are preparing
to do all they can
to stop the demonstration.
How far are you yourself
prepared to go in order
to push through your
and the others’ decision?
Well, as far as possible,
that is until we’ve got what we…
until our demands have been met, that is.
That might involve breaking the law.
Are you prepared to break the law?
You’re going to Båstad tomorrow?
Yes.
What do you want to do there?
Demonstrate against the
match that’s going to be played.
The decision was made
yesterday to ban demonstrations.
Yes, before six o’clock,
but I consider that to be a provocation
on the part of the police,
since they knew very well
that there were going to be
many demonstrators.
Are you going to demonstrate any way,
even if it means breaking the law?
Yes.
Why is it important?
In order to mobilize public opinion
against the regime in Rhodesia.
You’re going to Båstad tomorrow to stop
the match against Rhodesia?
Why?
Because... I consider it to be my
duty as a Christian
to stand on the side of the oppressed,
and against the oppressors.
What do you want to
achieve by this action?
To stop the match for one thing,
but also to disseminate information
about the situation in Rhodesia,
and to demonstrate
that there is public opinion
that is opposed to
the regime in Rhodesia.
How many are going to
be there, approximately?
From Lund,
approximately two hundred.
Do you think you'll succeed
in stopping it?
Yes, I do.
It’s strange that a little
community like Båstad
can find itself at the centre
of world events like this,
all because we've got a few
tennis players coming here.
I can’t believe that it serves
any reasonable purpose
to pour it on like this;
it’s always the innocent people
who get caught in the middle
and these players that
Rhodesia is sending here,
they haven’t had any influence
on the regime in their country,
and aren’t in a position to bring about
a change in that regime.
It's often said that you shouldn't
mix sports with politics;
and I’d say that’s something
worth bearing in mind.
You agree with that?
Yes; it's not appropriate.
TEAM CAPTAIN
RHODESIA
DENTAL STUDENT
This Davis Cup match
is a competition between
the countries of Sweden and Rhodesia;
the Rhodesian players are not playing
as private individuals,
but as representatives
of the Rhodesian nation.
All of them are white.
The whites in Rhodesia make up
10% of the country's population.
The white minority is engaged
in the systematic oppression
and exploitation
of the black population.
If we allow these white players
to represent Rhodesia
in a national competition,
then I can’t see it as anything
other
than a recognition
of the Smith regime,
and I don’t want that.
Båstad, which is usually rather empty
and quiet around this time,
is currently in the midst
of intense preparations
that, according to
local residents,
far exceeds those leading up
to the big invasion every summer
and the tennis tournaments.
Close to a hundred journalists
and photographers
from local papers
and international
news agencies
have gathered here,
and the three permanently
stationed police officers
at the little stationhouse
have been reinforced
by several hundred colleagues
from the whole of southern Sweden.
But so far there has been no sign
of the reportedly thousands
of demonstrating youths
for whom everyone is waiting
for in anxious anticipation.
Kristianstad’s County Police
Commissioner, Hans Fjellner,
thinks that it’s going to be
a calm tennis tournament, after all.
(Vietnamese national anthem, in Swedish)
It’s the race problems
that are responsible for all of this.
The race policies in Rhodesia?
Yes, that's right.
Do you think that they’re right
to demonstrate
against it here in Sweden?
How do you feel about it?
Yes, I support that point of view…
that they should demonstrate.
That they should be allowed
to demonstrate?
So you hope that
they are met with restraint?
Of course I also hope
that the demonstrators show restraint.
That they conduct themselves
in a dignified manner?
Do you think
that the tennis association
should have handled
this differently
and moved the match,
or simply not played against Rhodesia?
I don’t think they should have played.
You don’t think so?
It’s the same as if you were to
be given an assignment
to carry out by your employer;
you’d have to do it.
We don’t want the match
hindered in any way;
we just want everything
to progress in good order.
So you think it’s in order
that they go ahead with the match?
This isn’t about what we think,
but the duty that our employer
has charged us with.
Would you be relieved if
the Swedish Tennis Association
cancelled the match?
My own personal take on this –
not as a police officer,
but completely my
own personal view –
is that riots must be avoided.
Then, those measures
ought to have been taken.
That is my own personal view.
As a police officer I am obliged
to follow the laws and regulations,
and the command
structure that we have.
But your personal point of view is -
Completely personal.
That...
That it ought to be cancelled.
They should cancel the match?
- Yes.
In order to avoid the risk of riots?
Yes.
Thank you.
I don’t like blood.
You cannot separate
economics from politics, period,
or view any sector of society as apolitical.
You can look at examples
from history,
such as the Nazi regime in Germany,
they had a very high-profile Olympics,
which of course became a great
propaganda coup for that regime.
In that case there were
no great protests,
but one can imagine that
if some effective action
had been taken against the Olympic bid,
that more people would
have been roused in time
and seen the danger of what
was going on in Germany,
and I think it’s just as
important that we now
focus public opinion on
what is going on in Africa,
how the same kind of
fascist regime
is being strengthened there.
1500 PREPARED FOR ROUGH
RECEPTION IN BÅSTAD
COUNTY POLICE COMMISSIONER:
POLICE DEPT EXPECTS DEMO TO
BE CONDUCTED IN A DIGNIFIED MANNER
THUS, WE DO NOT HAVE
PLANS FOR FORCEFUL ACTION
ANY TALK OF WATER CANNONS
IS COMPLETELY RIDICULOUS
MASS PROTEST
TO BÅSTAD PARTICIPANTS:
DO NOT ESCALATE
NERVES ON EDGE
AHEAD OF MATCH
You mentioned a pair of scissors.
Yes, that's what we need.
For what?
To give these long-haired individuals
a haircut.
You'd cut off their hair?
Yes, they need it!
What do you think about
what they’re doing?
Well, it's all very childish...
It's childish?
Yes, it is.
You think that they’re ruining Båstad?
I think they should stay at home.
What business to they
have coming down here?
They’re demonstrating
against this tennis match.
Well, it won’t get them anywhere.
It won't do any good?
No. Four unfortunate players come here
and they have to suffer for it.
How do we play against other nations?
Spain was here playing
football yesterday, right?
It’s the same situation there as in…
What do you think
would have been
the wisest thing to do right now?
Well, nothing. Just let them play.
Is that what you think?
You don’t think it would have
been wise to cancel the match?
No, since the whole thing was
decided by lot,
it doesn’t matter who…
Then it has to run its course.
Absolutely! That’s only fair.
Sweden shouldn't have to suffer for it.
JOURNALIST, KVÄLLSPOSTEN
It’s interesting
that people are coming here,
and it’s sure
to be a very interesting day,
that afterwards there will be
every reason
to shed light on in peace and quiet,
in an objective debate.
Yes, that's quite right.
I have nothing against
the demonstrations as such.
I'm just afraid it doesn't
do much to help the black man.
But rather, when all this is over,
everyone will go home,
and the black man will be
just as badly off.
So, for my part, I’ve suggested
that each demonstrator
should carry a collection box
into which they put ten crowns
and see to it
that another forty crowns
make it in there.
then we could easily collect, together,
the sum of a hundred thousand crowns.
And that we could use
to bring over
colored children,
orphaned colored children.
That’s what demonstrators
are doing in the case of Vietnam.
It’s a good idea,
and it would have been great
if they had done that here, too.
But at the same time,
I’ve suggested
that the Tennis Association,
as an incentive
for the demonstrators
to take part in it,
make an initial contribution
of 20 to 30,000 crowns to such a fund.
But it was dismissed,
both by the representatives
of the Tennis Association
and from the other side.
But I have nothing
against their demonstrating,
so long as it takes place
in a dignified manner.
If they start fighting,
that I don’t like.
The right to demonstrate
is something we
should safeguard,
especially when it’s been so well
looked after over the years,
especially earlier on
by the Social Democrats.
If you consider
that the Tennis Assocation,
which followed the National
Sports Confederation’s directives
that we are allowed
to compete against any
internationally approved
sports association –
a directive that was reviewed
by the government
just six years ago.
If they had granted a walkover
and Rhodesia
had gone to Spain instead,
then we wouldn't have been given
the chance to speak our minds
to say we don't like apartheid.
By holding the match,
we have been given the opportunity
to say what we think about apartheid.
Just so long as we do it
in an objective manner.
Can you stop this
match with non-violence?
As far as possible..
Is that really realistic?
We’ll have to see.
It’s very important to the outward
objectives of this action,
that it be conducted
in a dignified manner.
We are very, very aware of that,
and have also worked according
to those principles.
But not to the extent
that we’ll compromise on our goal.
Of stopping the match.
Do you think the match will be stopped?
I have a hard time seeing how it
can be done, but it’s possible.
It all depends on what tactics they use.
I am absolutely convinced
that we will succeed.
Are you sure
that you can sort of control
any elements that might
get a bit violent?
As regards those people
we’ve been in touch with, we’re sure of it.
And we also have some tools to
help us in that respect,
Such as our slogan:
We remain calm when the police attack-
in order to strengthen our unity,
to ensure that any provocations fail.
Whether on the part of the police,
or those who identify themselves
with the Rhodesian regime
or the actions of the Tennis Association.
Of course, but then in this context
they ought to have blocked
Rhodesia's application
to the Davis Cup.
Isn't it a little crazy when Rhodesia's
application has been accepted...
Surely "the show must go on",
as they say.
No, I don’t think "the show must go on".
most definitely
"the show must be stopped."
We are not the ones
who accepted Rhodesia’s application.
No, it was the International
Tennis Association.
Yes, that's right.
And then we have to play by our rules.
What are your rules?
Well, we’re going to hold
a demonstration here
in calm and dignified order.
We're going to walk three
abreast down to the courts.
We’re going to stand
outside by the main entrance.
Then we’ll stand there until two o’clock
when the match begins.
If it does end up getting started.
Then there will be people who have
made it inside by buying tickets,
made it onto the court,
but they’ll have to…
what they get up to
is their own business, right?
The students from Lund and others
who are going to march with us,
they'll have to play by our rules.
Who’s "us" then?
The Youth League of
the People's Party
and the Swedish Social
Democratic Youth League..
I’ll call up the leaders for Stockholm,
Gothenburg, Uppsala and so on.
Everyone except Lund – Malmö.
Lund - Malmö will go to one entrance,
Stockholm and the others
will go to the other entrance.
And it’s important that we
keep these groups together,
that we follow these leaders,
and don’t take any personal initiatives.
Just do whatever they initiate.
Is that understood?
Yes.
So are you going to join our procession?
Yes.
WHITES PLAY BALL
BLACKS DON'T MATTER
Three abreast.
You can’t be more than three abreast,
Those of you in charge,
make sure that there
are only three abreast.
You'll be marching three by three!
FREEDOM FOR ZIMBABWE
LET THE STANDS BE EMPTY
TENNIS STINKS
Our ability to express
ourselves has been sharply curtailed.
There are very few channels through
which we can express our views.
We rarely get to be heard in
the mass media, in TV and radio,
and on those few occasions
when we do,
the radio management makes
a conscious attempt
to neutralize what we say
by commenting on what we've said after
assuming the role of interpreter
for what we really mean,
as if we were incapable
of communicating that ourselves.
Then regarding newspapers:
Our time is marked by the
shutting down of newspapers,
which of course leads to a
monopolizing of the print industry.
We’re having a very hard time
getting articles onto the main pages
of the newspapers,
in the cultural pages.
Celebrity personalities like
Jan Myrdal and Sara Lidman
are really the only ones who
make it onto the cultural pages.
At best we might be able
to get is articles in the
letter-to-the-editors column.
And those articles that we
on occasion manage to get in there
are drastically edited,
certain sentences removed,
thus changing the entire meaning,
so that everything we say is skewed,
and thereby used against us.
There is no right to demonstrate
written into the Swedish constitution,
nor is there any right of assembly.
That right is written into the
constitutions of many other countries.
Instead, in Sweden we apply a praxis
where it is up to the police to decide
on demonstrations.
A police force is not
a democratically elected authority.
Its makeup does not in any way
reflect the political composition
of Swedish public opinion,
and therefore it is completely
wrong for the police to decide when,
where, and how we should be
allowed to demonstrate.
This forces us to use other channels,
and this forces us
out into the streets.
We print flyers that
we hand out,
we print our own newspapers
that we sell and try
to distribute in various ways,
and we demonstrate.
Sold out! Sold out! Sorry!
There is no match! It’s closed there now.
Next time. Salisbury, Rhodesia,
next year.
What business do
you have coming here?!
They’re boycotted by the UN...
it was a proper drawing!
But it wasn't...
You dirty bastards..
What do you mean by that?
Are we the ones you're calling intellectuals?
Well, isn’t that what you are?
We never said that.
Are you Swedish?
Yes.
Then why don’t you try to solve
the Swedish race problems first
and give the Gypsies a chance?
Try to solve that
before starting trying to solve..
We came to see a tennis match,
and you go and stop it.
Did you buy tickets, too?
That's exactly what I did.
I've been coming here to watch
the Davis Cup for years,
and that’s just what I want
to do now, too.
Then a bunch of bloody
shitheads come along
and stops the whole thing.
Do you think that the
death sentences in Rhodesia..
What’s right and wrong, huh?
What the hell do you think is
going to happen
if they get into power down there?
There won't be any more
death sentences.
Oh no? Kiss my ass.
Who do you mean by
"they", anyway?
We should just keep our traps shut
here in Sweden.
Let me try and explain Swedish
neutrality to you.
Like hell you're explaining anything!
Here I’ve been working
and paying taxes
since the age of twelve,
then you bastards run up in here -
the ones we've been paying for, huh?
Given half the chance
I'd love to punch you out, the lot of you...
The Tennis Association
has asked me to inform everyone
that there will be
no tennis match in Båstad…
Louder!
Shut up so we can hear!!
As we just announced,
or as County Police
Commissioner Fjellner announced…
Louder! Louder!
This is a genuine decision
on our part –
we are not going to play
the match here in Båstad.
I hope that you trust us on this.
So there is no reason
for you to stay.
We are not going to sneak off
and play here tomorrow morning
or anything like that.
I ask that you take me at my word.
We've won here today and
now we can leave.
We’ll proceed up to the church hall,
where we started this morning.
What do you think was the most
important thing about what
happened here?
Well, I think the most important thing
was that we succeeded
in stopping the match,
that the match was really stopped,
that we succeeded in doing that.
That it wasn't just a public protest,
I mean we actually achieved
concrete results, here.
I think that was most important.
What do you think
you've gained through your action?
We stopped the match here
and we got the word out,
it's going to be on TV, on the radio,
in newspapers...
We've managed to tell a lot of people
that the policies being pursued
in South Rhodesia are wrong.
It's a way of disseminating information.
Many feel that you
shouldn't mix sports and politics.
You obviously don't feel that way.
Would you care to
explain that a little bit?
There is no aspect of human intercourse
that is without political consequences,
political overtones.
Even in sports, politics is involved.
That’s how it is in South Africa,
in Rhodesia,
that even within sports,
this segregation exists,
so sports and politics
are in no way separate.
What was your experience?
Do you feel your action
was a success?
Yes, I think it was a success,
but it was rather disorganized.
The fact that it went as well as it did,
for our section, Stockholm-Gothenburg,
probably comes down to the fact
the police were even less prepared
and more disorganized than we were.
Do you have any comments
about the actions of the police?
Yeah, typical Swedish political police.
How so?
They always block things
almost always,
when it's leftist groups,
or when it's against racism,
they'll use the most brutal methods,
pulling people by the hair
and kicking them, hitting them.
I think they’re showing definite tendencies
towards what the Germans
did in Berlin last Easter.
Would you like to comment
on what took place here today?
No, I wouldn't.
You’ll have to ask our superiors,
they’re the ones who should comment.
We are not prepared to comment.
Not even a personal point of view
on how the demonstration
was conducted?
As a police officer I’m not
allowed to offer personal comments.
You weren't part of the group
that made it through the gates, then?
No, no...
That was only down at the lower gates.
But what the news wire service
is saying is that we were armed,
with cobblestones and iron bars..
The thing is,
if we had wanted to stop you,
we would have stationed four horses
and four dogs at each entrance.
Then nobody would have...
The police weren't much better
than dogs.
That's a pretty positive assessment, then.
When a police officer
punches a girl with his fist,
that means something is wrong.
That's enough exposition on this;
Let's just call it a day.
Yes, but there's likely to be repercussions.
Let's hope so.
I mean, it's illegal.
If we wanted four horses
and four dogs at each entrance,
No power on earth
could have gotten near us.
I mean, we have the means.
If we want to.
So you didn't want to?
That's enough,
let's not discuss it any further.
You can become a war criminal
by alway following the rules...
THE BATTLE FOR BÅSTAD
HYDROCHLORIC ACID IMAGES
EXPRESSEN HAS THE PHOTOS
THAT WEREN’T ON TV
RIOTS PUT A STOP TO BÅSTAD GAMES
THE MOB ”WON” IN BÅSTAD
EGGS, OIL ON THE COURT IN BÅSTAD
INFERNO
FORMALIN
'THE WORST SINCE 1909'
It was mob-like behavior,
something you would not expect
to see here in Sweden.
And the ones in the action groups
that howled and rampaged and
defied the police and others,
they least of all achieved the effect
they may think they did.
Of course they think they’ve
they’re smug and cocky and brave.
But the only thing the police were doing,
was protecting them.
The rest of us who were standing
not so far away from this mob,
were hardly free to walk around,
we didn’t know what would happen to us.
Well, I mean, it’s a shame isn’t it
Excuse me?
...It's a shame.
You think so?
I mean, all this violence and fighting –
it’s a shame, isn’t it.
Yes, of course it is,
but the background
in Rhodesia is also a shame.
Of course it is,
I mean no one likes
oppression and violence, but…
You think it’s a shame that the
demonstrators were so aggressive?
I think it’s a shame
that people are oppressed.
I think it's a shame
that there’s fighting and violence.
I think people should get along.
Yes, it’s a nice thought.
Then, I feel, that it’s difficult to
take a position, either for or against.
I see, but the fact that the tennis match
didn’t take place,
do you think that’s also a shame?
I don’t think I know enough
about it to say yes or no.
Fine; thank you.
I was actually involved,
on the tennis side of it.
Hired for the competition
as an umpire.
As far as I’m concerned it was terrible.
It was a shock to see that people
could behave the way they did.
You’re talking primarily about
the demonstrators?
Yes, that’s right,
the unofficial demonstrators,
or whatever you want to call them.
How about the other demonstrators?
Well, I think they behaved
absolutely properly, so there was nothing wrong there.
Do you also feel that you can’t
separate sports and politics?
Well, I’ve been involved
in sports my entire life.
So I’d certainly like
to keep them separate.
Do you feel that that’s the right thing to do
to do in the case of Rhodesia,
where black people
don’t have access to tennis?
I can’t personally know what it’s like.
There are bad things
going on in various countries,
that’s what we all feel,
Oppression on one side and the other.
We even do it here in Sweden.
We oppress the gypsies.
So I don’t want to pass
judgment in this case.
if you’re from a country where
they behave that way then…
Well, it's awful.
Have you read the paper today?
I certainly have.
I’m going to read a few more.
And do you think the description
of the whole thing
was correct and relevant?
I do. But of course
they do have differing views.
Political opinions and views.
Yes, they vary,
They vary considerably, I think, actually.
They're saying it's the worst
since 1909.
I didn’t read that newspaper,
but I saw the headline,
Do you also feel that way?
I've never experienced
anything this bad.
I met Sven Jerring yesterday.
He said he had experienced
the Russian Revolution.
and that was the worst thing
he’d ever experienced,
so far that is.
but it was pretty close.
This wasn't that bad, he said,
We were certainly shocked.
You think so?
Absolutely. Many of us.
What did you think of
the demonstration?
Didn't care for it.
Not the least bit.
Why do you think one
shouldn’t mix sports with politics?
I think they’re two
completely separate things.
Why’s that?
Well...
In what way?
I don't know how to put it,
Sports is one thing
and politics another.
That's what I think, anyway.
If the demonstrators felt
that stopping the match
would help the Rhodesian blacks,
do you think it was the right
thing to do in that case,
if they were firmly convinced of it?
Is it right then to fight for it?
Of course, if they hold
a proper demonstration.
But this was more like a riot,
you might say.
Were you down there
yourself to look at it?
No, I wasn’t.
No.
It's disgusting that they
should be allowed
to behave that way down in Båstad,
that they should be allowed to
come here and spoil things.
All the disturbance
they caused out there.
Well, that’s how we feel about it,
how most people around here feel,
I guess.
The local residents have been upset
by their presence down here,
their shameless behavior and all.
They say that a number of Båstad residents
went up to teach those
demonstrators a lesson? Is that true?
I don’t know anything about that.
There are a whole lot of cars here.
Do you know why that is?
Well, they're curious.
There was a bit of a brawl
happening here.
There still is.
What kind of a brawl?
The youths of Båstad
are trying to get hold
of the students,
to teach them a lesson.
Teach them a lesson?
In what way?
They don't like them..
And want to have it out with them.
Make life unpleasant for them.
Did anything happen yesterday?
Yeah, from what I heard
there was a bit of a brawl last night.
A brawl? What happened?
They used ladders to try and get up to
where they were staying
to get them out.
At the station, too.
They threw rocks at the Båstad kids,
tried to hit their cars and that.
There were a hundred and fifty men
who tried to head over to the building,
and then one of their leaders
showed up
and drove them down there by car
which got pelted by rocks.
A hundred and fifty, who were they?
They were from Båstad
and all around here.
What did they do?
They wanted to go up there
and get them all out
Who?
The students.
What were they going to do with them?
I don't know, but the parking lot here
was full of cars.
Did you hear anything about it?
I heard they were out here
trying to get them out of the building
so they could beat them up.
Beat them up?
How many were they?
I have no idea how many they were.
Like... twenty-five cars.
Police cars?
No. Ordinary, private cars.
Where did those cars come from?
From around here, around Båstad.
So what else happened?
Well, they went up there,
but they were gone.
There had been a police car
up there earlier
to pick up a few of them, they thought,
but when they got up there,
the lights were switched off,
they couldn't see anybody.
Were you here yourself?
And saw everything?
Would you like to tell us
what you're doing here, today?
Now?
Well, we came to see what…
…if there are any students.
If there are any students?
They say that there were
students demonstrating here in Båstad
against the match.
Do you have any comments on that?
I don’t think they should
drag politics into sports.
Why not, do you think?
Well, they don't belong together.
I feel the same way.
They say that the demonstrators’ bus
was destroyed yesterday.
How do you feel about that?
I think it's good.
Why?
Well, they deserve to get a taste
of their own medicine,
for destroying the tennis courts.
They say that the demonstrators’ bus
was destroyed;
is that true?
Yes.
How do you feel about that?
That's good.
Why do you think that's good?
When they come down here
to demonstrate against a match,
then they should get
some payback, I think.
Come down here
all the way from Stockholm
just to demonstrate
against something like that,
it's idiotic. Ridiculous.
Why do you think
they were demonstrating?
For the rights of the blacks.
Excuse me?
For the rights of the blacks.
No, look,
I have nothing against blacks.
I think that in the US, for example,
there the blacks should have their rights,
as they should everywhere.
But I mean, they can't do anything.
If the UN can't, they can't.
They managed to stop the match anyway.
Sure, but it doesn't make
any difference.
I mean, they're going to play anyway.
It's a tradition.
It's ruined in that sense.
You saw the demonstration yesterday.
What did you think was wrong about it?
I did not see it.
I was only there for a short while,
then I drove home again.
If they had to demonstrate,
then they could have done it
peacefully.
And not gotten so violent.
What do you think about
the demonstration
yesterday, here in Båstad?
It was awful.
It sure was; bloody awful.
It was ridiculous.
It was so childish,
like nothing I've ever seen before.
Why’s that, do you think?
Well, I’ll tell you; because it’s
absolutely unnecessary
to demonstrate like that.
I don't understand why.
You think it was unneccesary?
Of course it was unnecessary.
What do you think
of the demonstration yesterday?
I didn't like it.
You shouldn’t mix politics with sports.
Those kids should have stayed home.
Should politics and
sports be kept separate?
Yes, definitely.
Why?
Well, because if you
can't keep it out of sports,
you can't keep it out
of anything.
I feel the same.
Politics, sports, separate.
Why have so many people
gathered here today?
Well, I'll tell you
we followed you here.
We thought you belonged to
that group, see.
We spotted you along the way,
And saw that you were headed
up to Ekmans,
so we drove into town
and gathered some people together.
You were going to beat us up?
No, not beat you up,
but if that gang had been up at Ekmans,
then we would have stood there
and stopped them from leaving.
But unfortunately they ran off
last night or this afternoon.
I agree with the lady here,
that’s absolutely true.
We think they should
have been forced to stay on,
for at least one more night.
What for?
They ought to suffer
some kind of punishment.
I think they must have
been very scared up there.
Why else would they have run
outside and hidden in the bushes?
As soon as the people came up there,
they ran off, out into the bushes,
and they were huddled out there
until we left again.
And that's how they've
been carrying on all night.
We were up there with flashlights.
They were afraid.
Just terribly afraid.
Did something happen yesterday?
I wasn’t here in the evening,
so I don’t know.
But there were a lot of cars
driving around here
People were aggressive.
Very aggressive.
Why do you think
they demonstrated?
They don’t know what they’re doing.
Just a bunch of idiots.
Brats. Cowards.
Why do you say that?
Why they're cowards?
If they weren't cowards
they would have stayed.
They’re all well-off,
too, most of them.
They live here in the summer.
They ought to behave themselves.
Why shouldn't one mix
sports with politics?
They’re two different things,
completely different.
In what way?
Well, you shouldn’t…
I can’t explain it,
but they shouldn't mix
sports and politics.
Do you know why
they were demonstrating?
The thing is,
they should go down there
instead of demonstrating here.
They’ve only got two players
down here, after all.
They shouldn’t demonstrate against them;
in that case they should take up politics,
not against the players down here.
They can take it up to the government
in Stockholm and talk about it
up there instead.
And then we’re going to vote
for the right party down here,
so we don’t have
any of those demonstrations.
Which party is the right one?
Well, the Conservatives are,
for me anyway.
I'm not afraid to admit it.
You’re trying to get ahold
of the demonstrators?
Sure, why not shut them up
in there for a while?
What do the police have to
say about that?
I don't care.
We're not going to do anything to them.
Absolutely nothing.
We can show them how to
demonstrate properly;
calmly and peacefully, not like they did -
coming at the police with iron bars
and rocks and what have you.
They got off scot-free.
We had every opportunity last night
to destroy that building up there,
but we didn’t do anything.
We didn’t even touch a single
blade of grass up there,
Have the police been here?
Yes, there’s been plenty of police.
What did they want?
They just looked around.
Was that wrong?
No, it wasn't wrong...
Everyone has a right to protection.
How far do you think
the police should go?
Should they shoot?
No,
but there are excellent water cannons,
stuff like that they can use.
Did you see the demonstration?
No, I didn’t unfortunately.
…they were going to ruin
the whole damn tennis court down there.
And they were going to ruin things for
the white devil.
There was a black guy here
declaring that.
So there's proof of that.
Why do you think he thought that?
Well, I don't know.
But that guy was going to university
in Stockholm or in Uppsala,
he had money from the Swedish state
to go to school here,
and have his living costs paid for.
And he comes down here
and ruins things for us,
comparing us to Ian Smith and all them.
I don’t think that’s fair to us…
And for people like that
to act like hooligans…
why, that just ruins things
for all young people.
The clique that gets seen,
they’re the ones that ruin things.
Then it’s the decent kids
that get blamed for it.
We’ve been over to see Henry Swaving
and signed a list that he's going
to send the government,
that the police should be given
greater authority
when it comes to these
kinds of demonstrations.
"Greater authority" -
what does that mean?
Well, to be able to respond
with a firmer hand,
when it's really necessary.
And it is necessary sometimes,
as we just saw.
Do the rest of you feel that way, too?
Y E S!
You’ve drawn up a petition
to the government.
What does it say?
HENRY SWAVING,
GOLD MERCHANT
Here's what it says.
Due to the chaos that took place,
and I am in no way a leader
of the Båstad residents.
I am just a citizen
who wants to help other citizens.
This petition consists of the following:
We, the undersigned
residents of Båstad,
have looked on in dismay at the events
that took place in our town
in conjunction with the demonstrations
that were held here on 2 May 1968,
when Sweden was supposed
to meet Rhodesia in a tennis match.
The police made worthy
attempts to keep order.
Unfortunately,
they lacked the authority
to use the necessary means
that could have
effectively put a stop to the hooliganism.
Therefore,
we petition the government forthwith
to provide the police command
with such authority.
If this does not happen,
we fear for what we might experience
in our town in the future.
How far do you feel the police should go?
How much authority should they have,
do you think?
I can't comment on what authority
the police should be given
if hooligans attack a community;
That's for the government to comment on.
Even if it means being armed?
Then the government should
make absolutely sure
no such elements
are allowed into the country,
so it doesn't lead to armed conflict.
Because Sweden hasn't gone
completely communist yet,
I hope.
There’s quite a brisk flow of traffic
out to an area over by Hovs Hallar,
where some demonstrators are
supposed to be holed up.
Do you know anything about that?
Yes, some of them were still there.
These black groups,
that belong to the FNL,
who were very aggressive at the gates.
Båstad residents got wind of this
and really wanted to get ahold
of those... types.
Yesterday there were at least
a hundred youths there.
Then I went over there myself
with the editor of the Kvällsposten,
Buhre, his name is.
Birger Buhr. Then, after a
five or six minute discussion
between Birger Buhr
and this demonstrator,
it looked like it was
really going to turn into a lynching.
Then one of the police officers
asked if I wouldn’t get involved,
to try and calm the whole thing down.
So I showed a bit of aggressiveness,
and told off a few of
those stupid demonstrators
and finally I said:
Come on, people of Båstad,
let's not be as disorderly
as these rowdy people.
Let’s go home and I’ll treat
everyone to some refreshment.
And with that,
everyone came along quietly.
KLING: NOW WE REALLY
HAVE TO STOP AND THINK
Has the police commissioner
been informed about what happened?
It was through him
that I got the information I have,
beyond what I learned through the
southern Swedish press.
And may I ask you then whether
he has changed your view
of how similar incidents should be handled?
The police commissioner
has clearly stated that from his point of view,
a greater commitment of personnel
could have prevented any violence
from breaking out altogether.
In the press the following day
it was intimated
that the police are going
to be given greater authority.
Would you care to comment on that?
It was Kling who said it,
that the National Police Board
would be given greater authority.
I find it pretty shameful
that that's the first thing
Kling has to say
about this whole business
with Rhodesia.
One would expect that he,
as the government's expert
on legal issues,
ought to be able
to comment on the fact
that we have signed up to a boycott
against Rhodesia in the UN,
about the breaking of the pledge we made
to Rhodesia's colored population,
not to support the Smith regime,
and about the crime that allowing
a tennis match against Rhodesia
within Sweden entails.
Everything else,
the confrontations that broke out here
before the match,
are seocndary in comparison
to the moral treachery that it involves
to formally allow the Smith regime
to gain recognition by playing
a national match against Rhodesia.
And that’s where I think
Kling should have been upset,
instead of coming along
afterwards and being upset
about secondary consequences.
If the police were to use
harsher methods in the future,
what do you think that would mean?
It's a very alarming development.
But it seems as if things
are headed in that direction.
You can see it in a lot
of different areas,
if you look at the subway
in Stockholm now,
and the new city centre
that's been built for banks and cars,
not for people.
That causes anxiety,
because people want to
have somewhere to go.
But then instead of grappling
with the root causes,
they just try to crush
any expressions of discontent
through TV coverage
and tougher police action.
I think we face a period of difficult
re-evaluation in this country,
and throughout the West,
and that it could be the beginning
of a very unpleasant development,
instead of facing up
to the new situation,
they try to crush
expressions of dissatisfaction.
KLING ON THE RIOTS:
STOP THE HOOLIGANS
I heard now
that justice minister Kling
made a statement
in Svenska Dagladet,
where he called us
a bunch of hooligans.
I find this to be a very
worrying situation and tendency,
because it reveals the enormous lack
of information that the public and press,
and everyone else has
about who the demonstrators are.
I think it’s really awful
to see the role of the press
in this respect,
how they continue
to fan these prejudices,
how they’re engaging
in a persecution propaganda
against the demonstrators.
The combination of increased police authority,
increased police violence,
and increased politicization
of the police
is what I find to be
the most frightening.
When you can see
Sven Davidson,
who is just beneath Wallenberg,
giving orders to the police,
who they should attack,
where they should be put in,
and at the same time the police
just say
they have no opinion on this,
but are controlled
by a political force,
then I think it's dangerous
to give them more authority.
Instead they ought to examine
what exactly the police
are supposed to defend,
what role they should have,
and not just let them
be politicized freely.
That’s what Kling should be doing.
The Swedish Tennis Association
issued a communiqué
that read more or less as follows:
We will not reveal where
the Rhodesia match
is going to be played
until after it has been played.
Do you feel that to be an
especially appropriate formulation?
No, it certainly isn’t.
Because ... ?
Well, if you really feel compelled to play,
what I would consider
a rather superfluous tournament,
then surely you ought to at least
do it in such a way that people can
see it, if they want to.
No, I don’t want to speak
at length on this,
other than to describe
the formal situation,
and where we stand on principle.
But like I said,
they can enter the country
and organizations are allowed
to organize events.
Without the Swedish government
being able to stop it?
Yes.
Okay. Thank you.
The match was ultimately played
in Bandole, France.
Final result:
Sweden-Rhodesia, 3-2.