SOUTH AFRICA: ATHLETICS - South Africa politician reacts to Semenya reports

Record ID: 454896

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: ATHLETICS - South Africa politician reacts to Semenya reports
  • Date: 14th September 2009
  • Summary: PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA (SEPTEMBER 11, 2009) (REUTERS) (CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY) WIDE OF THE NEWS CONFERENCE MINISTER OF SPORTS AND RECREATION AND DIRECTOR GENERAL RENNIE PIETERSON ADDRESSING THE MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (English) MINISTER OF SPORTS AND RECREATION, MAKHENKESI STOFILE, SAYING "The ministry of sports and recreation has noted with shock and disgust media stories circulating around the world on the so-called results of the gender tests conducted by IAAF on Miss Mokgadi Caster Semenya, our 800 world athletics champion. What is disconcerting is that the pattern being followed in releasing these purported results is the same as the one being used when Miss Semenya's humiliation started on the 18th of August." MEDIA SEATED AND LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (English) MINISTER OF SPORTS AND RECREATION, MAKHENKESI STOFILE, SAYING "I would've expected at the minimum that he would have either given us a call or sent us an email to alert us, as they say, to this leak, the leak of the results. Mind you, we are not questioning the leak or how these things got to the media, that is not our focus, our focus is why was Semenya subjected to tests, who's permit the testers got to do that and why and what were they were looking when they subjected her to those tests and why. That is what we want to know from them. The leaks or how the leaks were made and who made them, that is neither here nor there, of course it is here now because it is a public discourse on intricate personal things, matters that affect a young South African citizen and we think her rights have been violated in that and indeed her privacy intruded into." DIRECTOR GENERAL LISTENING MINISTERIAL OFFICIAL TAKING DOWN NOTES (SOUNDBITE) (English) MINISTER OF SPORTS AND RECREATION, MAKHENKESI STOFILE, SAYING "Like I say, I received the latest report last night, today I must send a letter to IAAF and ask again whether it is true that there are some results that are available on these spoken about tests and why have we not been responded to on our previous letter, and we want if indeed there are results, we want copies of those results in their fullness." MINISTER ADDRESSING MEDIA
  • Embargoed: 29th September 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVAC3YPJ0UDWLLKGFTS9DZVLZR0D
  • Story Text: The South African government sees the release of Caster Semenya's gender test results as unethical and inviolation of the human rights.
    The South African government views the release of Caster Semenya's gender test results as unethical, the country's sports minister Makhenkesi Stofile said at a news briefing in Pretoria on Friday (September 11).
    Leaked results of the tests, carried out by international athletics body IAAF, were last night reported in an Australian newspaper, which alleged that Semenya has been found to be a hermaphrodite.
    "The ministry of sports and recreation has noted with shock and disgust media stories circulating around the world on the so-called results of the gender tests conducted by IAAF on Miss Mokgadi Caster Semenya, our 800 world athletics champion. What is disconcerting is that the pattern being followed in releasing these purported results is the same as the one being used when Miss Semenya's humiliation started on the 18th of August," Stofile said.
    Caster Semenya, who won gold at the world athletics championships in Berlin, became the subject of controversy when questions over her gender and whether or not she had competitive advantage over her competitors were first reported in the media.
    "I would've expected at the minimum that he would've either given us a call or sent us an email to alert us. as they say, to this leak, the leak of the results, mind you, we are not questioning the leak or how these things got to the media, that is not our focus, our focus is why was Semenya subjected to tests, who's permit the testers got to do that and why and what were they were looking when they subjected her to those tests and why," said Stofile.
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