SuperSport analyst Ashwin Willemse says he is 'appreciative' of the efforts his employers have gone to in order to resolve the issues that cause him to storm off set during a live Super Rugby broadcast on the weekend.
The former South Africa winger made headlines when he walked off the set on Saturday night, accusing co-hosts Nick Mallett and Naas Botha of 'patronising' him. The three had a meeting with company executives on Monday.
The three presenters, including former Bok flyhalf Botha and former national team coach Mallett, released one-line statements, with Willemse saying: "We had robust discussions in which I aired my views.
"I'm very appreciative of the process undertaken by SuperSport. The complexity of the issues is very profound."
In his pre-walk speech, Willemse mentioned being labelled a 'quota' player, which has been used in South Africa by some as a way to insult players of colour on national sports teams, by implying they did not get their places on merit.
While it's not known if either Mallett or Botha said such a thing to Willemse off air to prompt the walk-off, the conversation in the country revolved around matters of race as a result.
MultiChoice, the parent company of SuperSport, released a statement to say that they did not find race to be a factor in the incident, and that the discussions were amicable and productive, while still taking the matter of even perceived racism seriously.
MultiChoice CEO Calvo Mawela said: "What is encouraging with the discussions we've had is that Nick (Mallett), Naas (Botha), and also Ashwin (Willemse), were part of the discussions.
"They were all in the same room; they were courteous to each other; they shook hands; they openly (chatted). There is no animosity that exists between the three of them from what we could see today.
"From the observations from today's discussions, there is no racism that we pick from any of the discussion that we've had."
He added, as a caveat: "We are still digging deeper into what really happened and transpired because nobody walks off stage just for the sake of walking off stage."
SuperSport CEO Gideon Khobane reiterated that the investigation would continue: "This has become a national issue. We at SuperSport and MultiChoice treat this issue with all the seriousness it deserves.
"We don't want to sweep things under the carpet and we don't think things should be rushed for the sake of convenience. We do recognise that we require to act with expediency."
In light of recent events, we've decided to lose our label* in solidarity with all those who are unfairly and callously labeled on a daily basis. This small act is a pledge that Castle Lager will work towards eradicating the labels that divide us. #SmashTheLabel #AshwinWillemse pic.twitter.com/k3y17cUxdQ
— Castle Lager SA (@CastleLagerSA) May 21, 2018
The national reaction to the incident has been substantial, with popular beer brand Castle announcing on Twitter that they would release bottles without labels, and used the hashtags #SmashTheLabel and #AshwinWillemse.
Castle said in a statement to Business Insider that they were not taking sides in the debate, but rather looking to "help South Africans see beyond labels and stereotypes."
The company added in the Twitter comments, in response to negative reactions: "We've noticed that labelling is a prevalent issue in South Africa and this is why we are standing against all forms of stereotypes and encouraging everyone to #SmashTheLabel."
"For us, this is an issue around the negative impact and stigma that labels can have on people. We believe that people are more than the labels that society put on them."