bc magazine

Hong Kong Rugby Union and Pieter Schats Plead Not Guilty

The trial of the Hong Kong Rugby Union (HKRU) and it’s Chairman Pieter Schats on Criminal Defamation reached the plea stage at Eastern Magistrates Court on 22 April, 2016 with the charges in the private prosecution read out to the defendants:

The charges read out were:

Information has been laid THAT YOU, Hong Kong Rugby Union a limited company registered in Hong Kong did on the 25 September, 2015 in Hong Kong deliberately and maliciously published, in the form of the article annexed here, defamatory libel knowing it to be false and factually inaccurate in breach of Section 5 of the Defamation Ordinance, Cap 21 of the Laws of Hong Kong.

The article in the form of a letter written by the Chairman of the Hong Kong Rugby Union on the letterhead of the HK Rugby Union (HKRU) was published to “All of our friends at World and Asia Rugby, Hong Kong Rugby Union Past Chairmen and Vice Presidents, Board of Directors, Hong Kong Rugby Club Chairmen and the Hong Kong Rugby and Sporting Community. It was also published on the HKRU’s website www.hkrugby.com under the title “Note from HKRU Chairman Pieter Schats.”

On or before the 23 September, 2015 the Hong Kong Rugby Union (HKRU) – the organisation responsible for the running and management of the sport of Rugby Union in Hong Kong – did approve and implement a new rule imposing ethnic Chinese player quotas on teams playing rugby in Hong Kong.

The HKRU on the 23 September, 2015 published on it’s website and caused to be published in the SCMP a news release entitled “Significant changes made to Hong Kong Rugby Union Domestic League structure”. Part of the text of that news release was: The modified Championship Club structure sees that league now highly focused on serving as an entry point and breeding ground for Chinese players, with all teams required to include a minimum of 14 ethnic Chinese players in each match day squad.”

Simon Durrant, the editor and publisher of bc magazine for 21 years wrote an article about the introduction of active racial discrimination, via ethnic quotas, into HK Rugby. According to Chapter 602 The Racial Discrimination Ordinance this is illegal in Hong Kong. The article entitled Active Racial Discrimination in HK Men’s Rugby was published on www.bcmagazine.net on the 24 September, 2015.

The HKRU letter dated 25 September, 2015 in full and specifically but not limited to paragraphs 3,4,5 is defamatory, disparaging and factually untrue. It besmirches and stains the integrity and reputation of Simon Durrant as a journalist and the factual accuracy of his article and in doing so the reputation and integrity of bc magazine – where Simon Durrant often recognised in public as ‘Mr bc’ has been the Owner, Publisher and Editor of bc magazine for over 21 years. Contrary to Section 5 of the Defamation Ordinance, Chapter 21

The HKRU representative Mr Schats pleaded not guilty

Information has been laid THAT YOU, Pieter Lodewijk Schats as Chairman of the Hong Kong Rugby Union on the 25 September, 2015 in Hong Kong deliberately and maliciously published, in the form of the article annexed here, defamatory libel knowing it to be false and factually inaccurate in breach of Section 5 of the Defamation Ordinance, Cap 21 of the Laws of Hong Kong.

The article is in the form of a letter written by Pieter Schats, Chairman of the Hong Kong Rugby Union on the letterhead of the HK Rugby Union was published to “All of our friends at World and Asia Rugby, Hong Kong Rugby Union Past Chairmen and Vice Presidents, Board of Directors, Hong Kong Rugby Club Chairmen and the Hong Kong Rugby and Sporting Community. It was also published on the HKRU’s website www.hkrugby.com under the title “Note from HKRU Chairman Pieter Schats.”

Pieter Schats letter dated 25 September, 2015 in full and specifically but not limited to paragraphs 3,4,5 is defamatory, disparaging and factually untrue. It besmirches and stains the integrity and reputation of Simon Durrant as a journalist and the factual accuracy of his article and in doing so the reputation and integrity of bc magazine – where Simon Durrant often recognised in public as ‘Mr bc’ has been the Owner, Publisher and Editor of bc magazine for over 21 years. Contrary to Section 5 of the Defamation Ordinance, Chapter 21

Mr Pieter Lodewijk Schats pleaded not guilty.

SCMP article Hong Kong rugby to revamp domestic leagues in effort to strengthen national team - with ethnic quota rule intordution highlighted — SCMP article “Hong Kong rugby to revamp domestic leagues in effort to strengthen national team” with ethnic quota rule introduction highlighted.

The cases centre around the Hong Kong Rugby Union’s introduction of Ethnic Quotas to local rugby in September 2015 – as announced by the HKRU in a 23 September news release on their website and also published in the SCMP (linked here) on the 22 and 23 September.

The HKRU website version (linked here) was quickly amended after Simon Durrant’s article (linked here) that ethnic quotas and racial discrimination are illegal in Hong Kong was published on the 24 September.

A day later on the 25 September Mr Schats published a note to the global rugby community (linked here) which according to Mr Durrant is defamatory and factually inaccurate.

Both cases were adjourned for three weeks.

Defamation and Lies from HK Rugby about Ethnic Quotas Rule

On the 25 September the Chairman of the Hong Kong Rugby Union (HKRU), Pieter Schats sent a letter to the world rugby community – you can read the letter here. Rather than admit they screwed up by imposing ethnic quotas in local rugby (read the unedited announcement here) the HKRU and Mr Schats decided to lie, and also to libel bc magazine. Here is the text of bc’s reply breaking down Mr Schat’s letter.

With regards to the letter sent by the Chairman of the HKRU Pieter Schats on the 25 September, 2015 to World Rugby, Asia Rugby, Hong Kong Rugby Union Past Chairmen and Vice Presidents, Board of Directors, Hong Kong Rugby Club Chairmen and the Hong Kong Rugby and Sporting Community and published on the HKRU’s website www.hkrugby.com

bc magazine finds the letter defamatory, libelous and factually inaccurate.

There is nothing ‘alleged’ about the HKRU’s desire to introduce racial quotas into rugby in Hong Kong – it was clearly stated in the HKRU’s news release that was published on the HKRU’s website that “The modified Championship Club structure sees that league now highly focused on serving as an entry point and breeding ground for Chinese players, with all teams required to include a minimum of 14 ethnic Chinese players in each match day squad.”

Mr Schats also confirms that the rule existed by admitting later in his letter that the rule has been amended to read “a minimum of 14 players in a match day squad of 22 who are Hong Kong permanent residents”.

The existence of a rule regarding ethnic quotas for match day squads is also confirmed in an email (see below) received by bc magazine from Aaron Bleasdale, Chairman, University Rugby Football Club.

Mr Schats then goes on to further disparage bc magazine’s reputation by saying “The article turns a positive development idea considered by HKRU”
The idea was not considered – ethnic quotas were implemented and published as a rule.

And he continues to further besmirch bc magazine by claiming that “a story that fails to capture the spirit and intent of our proposal”
bc’s article fully and accurately reflects the intention of the HKRU to implement quotas in match day squads soley based on skin colour (ethnicity).

bc magazine’s article also stated that ‘ethnic quotas’ were illegal in Hong Kong – something that Mr Schats confirmed later in his letter.

Mr Schats further uses his letter to disparage bc magazine in an attempt to deflect attention away from HKRU’s active implementation of racial discrimination – which would have taken place, without bc magazine’s article – by starting his letter “my apologies for having to send this note”.

The only reason the article exists is because of the intentions of the HKRU to implement ‘ethnic quotas’, and the only reason he (Mr Schats) has to write and apologise is because the HKRU chose to implement racial segregation.

Mr Schats then further tries to ‘blame’ bc magazine for his letter by claiming to be “deeply saddened by this and would like to clarify this issue” – but he isn’t seeking to clarify the issue, having already lied in the previous sentence by using the word “alleged” for something that he knows is true. He is looking to blame and defame bc magazine to save the HKRU’s reputation amongst the global rugby community and the big money sponsors that support the HKRU and the HK7s.

I as writer of the article and publisher of bc magazine will not have the HKRU and Mr Schats libel, defame and smear bc magazine and myself by factually misrepresenting and outright lying in his letter to World Rugby and Asia Rugby about HKRU’s incorporation of ethnic quotas for match day squads into the rules of HK Rugby for 2015/16.

The ‘ethnic quota’ rule would still there if bc hadn’t exposed the rule as being illegal and racial discrimination.

There is no place in sport for RACISM

Racist Rule Removed by HK Rugby

A smidgen of common sense – amidst pressure from World Ruby, Asia Rugby and the fact that racial discrimination is illegal in HK – has begrudgingly seen the HK Rugby Union remove the ‘ethnic quota’ rule from it’s 2015/16 rule book.

Let’s hope that ‘we know best’ attitude of the Union doesn’t see it become an ‘unwritten rule.

A letter from HKRU Chairman Pieter Schats announced the change while claiming the ‘ethnic quota’ rule was introduced for the ‘good’ of the game. Two other club chairman David Knights of SCAA Causeway Bay Rugby Football club and Aaron Bleasdale of University Rugby Football Club – read their opinions below – have emailed bc claiming the same, that racial profiling is good for the local game. If that’s the case then there’s something seriously wrong with men’s rugby in HK!

There is and never will be any time when a person’s skin colour should limit their participation in sport or any other aspect of life. Kick racism out of sport!

Emails received by bc magazine in response to the article Active Racial Discrimination in HK Men’s Rugby dated 24 September, 2015

Email from SCAA Causeway Bay Rugby Football Club
Dear BC magazine,
I just read your article on the above subject and am appalled by the misguided, misinformed and inaccurate nature of the report which amounts to nothing more than a pathetic piece of sensationalism.

If your reporter had bothered to check the facts with anyone involved in the sport in Hong Kong they would have quickly realised that far from this being any form of racial discrimination it was in fact an attempt to foster the widest possible participation in the sport by players of all races,ages and abilities which is central to the strategic aims of the Hong Kong Rugby Union.

There is no barrier to participation in rugby in Hong Kong, players of any race can aspire to play at the elite level of the sport or simply enjoy a game with their (multinational) mates on a Saturday afternoon.

As Chairman of one of the largest rugby clubs in Hong Kong and also quite possibly the one with the most racially diverse playing membership of any club I think I know what I am talking about.

Rugby is making a huge effort to get Hong Kong kids of all races and backgrounds away from their X-boxes and into something more healthy. Why don’t you write about that, particularly during the Rugby World Cup rather than the ill conceived garbage contained in your article.

Yours sincerely
David Knights
Chairman, SCAA Causeway Bay Rugby Football Club

Email from University Rugby Football Club
Dear bc
Your accusation of “racism” by the HKRFU against non-Chinese players is based on a misunderstanding of the structure of Hong Kong’s domestic rugby leagues.

The men’s “Championship” division for which this ethnicity requirement would be implemented is a solitary division of play operating alongside the five graded “National” league divisions (NL1 – NL5). Players from both the Championship and National divisions are free to progress up to the Premiership, which is the primary feeder league for the Hong Kong National Team. An ethnicity requirement in the Championship division alone would not create a so-called “selection discrimination” against non-Chinese players because they would still be free to progress up through the National and Premiership leagues.

You should also consider the very good reason for which the Championship division’s ethnicity requirement has been implemented – to create a division that best fosters the development of local Chinese rugby talent. The HKRFU is extraordinarily committed to this goal, and should be applauded for their attempts to achieve it.

Further, to refer to the people driving the HKRFU as “white leaders” is, in addition to being insulting to the many non-caucasians that run the HKRFU, totally nonsensical in the context of an article complaining about racism against non-Chinese players, many of whom themselves are caucasian. A curious form of racism indeed!

Next time, check your facts before throwing around accusations and polarizing language.

Kind regards,
Aaron Bleasdale, Chairman, University Rugby Football Club

Image – please note the letter from Pieter Schats was two pages long – bc magazine combined the pages to create a single image for ease of reading the original is here.