Netherlands' World Cup team gets Dutch Treat from South Africa's Afrikaners

The success of the Netherlands' World Cup soccer team is cause for celebration for the many South Africans with Dutch ancestry, but that dynamic leaves a bad taste in the mouths of some blacks.

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Terry du Plessis of Auckland Park, Johannesburg, predicted a tough match between Holland and Uruguay in the semifinal, but was quick to say the Dutch would emerge victorious. "Apart from playing flawless football, the Dutch team has strong ties with the majority of whites in this country,” says Mr. Du Plessis, who initially supported South Africa, until they were knocked out in the first round. “I would wish Holland good luck on their way to the final."

'Can't blame Holland for apartheid'

“They are part of our history, but you can’t blame Holland for apartheid,” says Pedro Julisen, who lives in the mainly coloured Retreat neighborhood in the Cape Flats. “[The Dutch] were very good to us during those years helping us with education facilities, health, and other things. Apartheid and Holland are two different things. They always supported the black and coloured people here in those times.”

Friend Garon Jacons agreed. “I’ve never had a problem supporting Holland. I supported them when they had Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, and Marco Van Basten in the team – why shouldn’t I? That was a great side. What happened in apartheid wasn’t Holland’s fault or the football players’ so it would be silly not to support them. Besides, I think Germany will win.”

But among some black South Africans, Holland’s ties to the founders of apartheid make it difficult to support, even if only for one game.

"Holland are playing good football, but naturally, I don't like them for their kith and kin who enslaved our forefathers during the Apartheid era,” says Hasani Chauke, who once worked at an Afrikaner’s farm in Limpopo province, and now lives in Soweto. “Worse still, we have gained our independence in 1994, but they (Afrikaners) still do not want to share the land with us. This is the reason why I don't support Netherlands."

Thokozani Khumalo, who lives in the Tembisa township near Pretoria, said the four remaining teams were the best but did not hide her feelings that she would rally behind anyone but Holland.

"If I had juju [black magic] I would make sure that their strikers would not score even a single goal in tomorrow's encounter,” says Ms. Khumalo. “I appreciate that FIFA are preaching good message against racism in all their 2010 FIFA World Cup matches of this beautiful game of soccer, but at the same time, I hate the idea that we black South Africans are the ones being made scapegoats by Dutch people [Afrikaners].”

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