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Biography: Muldoon, Robert David

The Gleneagles agreement

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The Gleneagles agreement

In 1977 Muldoon went along with the Gleneagles agreement, a pact between Commonwealth leaders to discourage sporting contact with South Africa, which then had a policy of apartheid – separate development for its black and white citizens. However, he subsequently refused to prevent a highly controversial tour of New Zealand by the South African Springbok rugby team in 1981. This Peter Bromhead cartoon deplores the resulting damage to New Zealand’s international reputation.

Cartoon courtesy of Peter Bromhead

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: A-322-068

Cartoon by Peter Bromhead

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

How to cite this page

Barry Gustafson. 'Muldoon, Robert David', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 2010. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/cartoon/28160/the-gleneagles-agreement (accessed 9 June 2026).