From the Sunday Times 25 years ago

A TINY West Coast town has made its views on the new South Africa clear . . . it slapped a humiliating ban on coloured karate enthusiasts, one of them Springbok Cyril Beeke.

The row was sparked last week when Mr Peter Roos, founder of the Port Nolloth Karate Club, “imported” Beeke from Cape Town.

But when councillors discovered that Beeke — a third dan Gojukai karateka — was coloured, he got a chilly reception.

When Mr Roos asked the council if the club could use the hall for classes, he was told that coloureds were banned from the hall. One club member described the letter as “extremely rude and embarrassing”.

A club spokeswoman said: “Our club is racially mixed and our letter of request was signed by 95% of whites involved in karate.”— April 8 1990