Does Transformation have a place in esports?

There a a few gamers that have questioned whether transformation has a place in esports. The arguments largely revolve around esports being a 'new' sport that has only really developed in the post 1994 South Africa.

Such arguments do not take into account the legacy left by the Apartheid state which has an effect on current, and possibly even, future generations.

It is difficult for people who were born into advantaged and entitled families to truly understand the damage that Apartheid did.

Apartheid was in itself the ultimate expression of entitlement.

Transformation refers to each and every component element of South African society, including sport and all its sub structures.

According to the Province of KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation, "There are three categories of people in the South African society that have to be recognised, acknowledged and brought on board in the transformation process: 

• Those with both feet positioned in the past and who view current processes to change and adapt South African society as intrusive, unproductive and discriminatory in nature.
  
• Those who have one foot in the past and another hesitantly positioned in the future. They are generally uncertain, unsure, apprehensive and sometimes perplexed about the shape of the country’s longer term future.
  
• Those who have both feet firmly planted in the future some of whom who are actively engaged in dealing with the problems challenging South African society. A momentous task considering some of the structural deficiencies, relatively inexperienced and untested human resource base and sometimes deficient support structures in place."

It is true that transformation in every sporting code is a subject that has been debated at length ever since South Africa became a democracy in 1994. 

Change has to take place from the ground up for there to be any meaningful changes at the top, and that means that it has to start at school level. 

Since 1994 efforts to ‘transform’ in various sports has been largely unsuccessful. In its attempts to ‘transform’ and re-invent itself the concept of ‘transformation’ and the motivations for and against the need thereof have been oversimplified, often emotional, not clear and sometimes misunderstood.

What is clear though, is that transformation is needed in order to unlock the full potential in South African gaming. 

Federations like Mind Sports South Africa have taken a very different approach. The MSSA is active in enabling the formation of clubs (especially at school level) that will cater for the majority of South Africa's population, and have active policies to promote a more sustainable form of development. The MSSA too has come out strongly against the imposition of quotas in the belief that the attempt to force quotas is actually illegal.

After all, transformation in sport is dependent on transformation in the economy.

It is not possible to get volunteers where people do not have enough money to feed themselves. Nor is it possible to get people to play games when they lack the basic infrastructure, and also lack the equipment that they need to play.

Unfortunately, most South Africans are born into poverty. 

With high figures of unemployment, transformation requires an active mentor system by ALL.

Every clan and club should be concerned with transformation. Of course it can all be funded at club level by the National Lottery.

The biggest problem is, quite frankly, that if we do not see it as all of our duty, it may not be long before the rules change, and a form of transformation is thrust upon the gaming community.

More on transformation!

On Wednesday, 27 May 2015, the Minister of Sports and Recreation announced that a number of national
federations had further committed themselves to transformation.

My last article on transformation created so much ire among gamers that I received over 500 responses. Unfortunately few were able to be posted due to legal constraints.

However what is important is that transformation affects ALL sports and ALL of South Africa.

There were some rather weird reasons given by gamers why transformation should not apply to cyber-sports. One of the reasons was that since computer gaming is a post apartheid activity, transformation should not apply. Another gamer stated that it is not the responsibility of the clans to transform, but for organizations to create new clans among disadvantaged peoples.

On re-reading these comments, I am struck by the naievity of the gamers concerned.

Transformation exists in every aspect of South African life, and no matter if people oppose it, it will be enforced.

Just how it is to be enforced rests with the 'Powers that are'.

Many sporting bodies have gone for the easy route of applying draconian quota systems and by writing transformation into their rules and regulations. Such moves have created a great deal of unhappiness among the sportsmen/sportswomen concerned as some have felt that they have been denied the opportunity to compete at the very highest of levels and feel that they have been denied selection to national teams.

Some  national federations have just buried their heads in the sand and have hoped that the problem would go away. However, that is not going to happen.....

Federations like Mind Sports South Africa have taken a very different approach. The MSSA is active in creating clubs that will cater for the majority of South Africa's population, and have active policies to promote a more sustainable form of development. The MSSA too has come out strongly against the imposition of quotas in the belief that the attempt to force quotas is actually illegal.

After all, development in sport is dependent on transformation in the economy.

It is not possible to get volunteers where people do not have enough money to feed themselves. Nor is it possible to get people to play games when they lack the basic infrastructure, and also lack the equipment that they need to play.

Unfortunately, most South Africans are born into poverty. While the government likes to claim that there is unemployment of 23%, I think that the figure is closer to 80% based on simple maths, being that there are 4 million taxpayers and that there are 25 million South Africans over the age of 18. Thus 4/25*100 = 16% employment.

With such high figures of unemployment, transformation requires an active mentor system by ALL.

Every clan and club should be concerned with transformation. Of course it can all be funded at club level by the National Lottery.

The biggest problem is, quite frankly, that if we do not see it as all of our duties, it may not be long before the rules change, and a form of transformation is thrust upon the gaming community.

Transformation in South African gaming!

While watching SABC TV2 yesterday morning (16 October 2013(, the Minister of Sport and Recreation announced the finalists of the South African Sport Awards.

Mind Sports South Africa managed to get Simphiwe Maphumulo nominated for the Indigenous Sports Star of the Year Award. This means as a finalist, Simphiwe automatically picks up a check of R15,000.00 and if he wins the category at the Awards dinner, Simphiwe will get a check of R130,000.00.

This is why eSports is part of the sports structure – so that the gamer can benefit.

The Minister also made it clear that quota's will be enforced in sport.

It is known that the MSSA does as much as possible to ensure that there is representation of all South Africans in its teams.

However, what of privately owned events. The TELKOM DGL still seems to be 'milky white'. All you have to do is look at the photographs, and you will see very few people of colour.

According to the last census, whites only make up 8% of the population, but if you went to rAge, you would think that you were still living in a pre-1994 South Africa.

DSGL, and all other competitions, should get in line with the governments' priorities, otherwise it could be seen that gaming, and the gamers themselves, are reactionary and do not identify with the New South Africa at all.

My suggestion is that DGL should not accept a team in their league if at least 2 of the team members are not blacks.

Think about it!