South
Africa head coach Mark Boucher has issued an apology for singing offensive songs
and calling coloured teammates inappropriate names. The former wicketkeeper-batsman
said the national team culture back in his playing days was exclusionary and blamed
it on a lack of “maturity and consciousness” in the post-Apartheid era.

According
to ESPNcricinfo, Boucher submitted a 14-page affidavit to Cricket South Africa’s
Social Justice and Nation-Building committee as a “general response” to
allegations of being involved in racial discrimination.

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The
44-year-old will also submit a second affidavit that deals with specific issues
at the conclusion of the hearing. Boucher has also made himself available for
one-on-one discussions with any former teammates that he might have offended.

Former Protea
spinner Paul Adams revealed during hearings last month that he was called “brown
s***” by teammates during fines meetings during their playing days in the 1990s.
However, Boucher “categorically” said that he did not give Adams that name,
adding he “does not know who game him that name”.

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But Boucher
admitted that he was part of the group that sang songs in which Adams was
called “brown s***”, something he said was “totally inappropriate, unacceptable
and in retrospect, understandably offensive”.

He said he “deeply
regrets and apologises for the part I played in joining in with my team-mates
in singing offensive songs or using offensive nicknames”.

“I
apologise unreservedly for any offensive conduct, real or perceived, that has
been attributed to me,” Boucher said. “We, the team, coaching staff, selectors
and CSA, during the period in question, should have been more sensitive and
created an environment where all members of the team could raise and talk about
these issues without allowing them to fester, as they clearly have”.

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Boucher
also said that the environment had changed a lot during the last few years,
particularly since the global Black Lives Matter movement started last year. He
said that as a coach, he had been involved in “intense and meaningful workshops”
on how to create an atmosphere of inclusiveness and a culture of respect
between all players.