25 July 1981 Hamilton

Today anti-tour protesters won over the Rugby Union and they were forced to cancel the test match in Hamilton. Of course, a lot of rugby fans were bitterly upset and extremely angry at we, the protesters. This unfortunately led to acts of aggressive behaviour and violence... Even worse, I got in the middle of it all. It all started from 350 protesters tearing down the fence of the rugby stadium in Hamilton with their own sheer force. This is when bottles and other objects were thrown at us by rugby spectators as it had disturbed the game... The outbreak of violence meant that police saw no other option but to cancel the match for the safety of not only the protesters and fans but the sports players. However, this decision did not cease the attacking from the rugby supporters. Each side was lashing out at each other and I can still say that I was proud to have stood at the front of the attacking line, showing my commitment to standing up for what I believe in... even though it came with consequences. I got assaulted and attacked by rugby supporters and came out of it sore and injured... My body still aches.. :( I also witnessed 50 protesters being arrested by police for disruptive and aggressive behaviour. They were sent to the police station where they waited to be released. Little did they know that when they were eventually released and had started their way back onto Victoria Street, they would once again be ambushed by rugby fans who were still furious after the cancellation of the match. Even though today was dangerous, in my eyes it was definitely worth it and I think it got our message out to the nation and made them question whether supporting this tour is actually worth it. Well I hope so anyway.

John Minto 

Protests at the 3rd test match...