Visa ban on Zimbabwe cricketers confirmed

Martin Snedden

The Government will not rush into law a ban on sports teams touring Zimbabwe, meaning there is little chance next month's tour by the Black Caps will be cancelled.

NZ Cricket chief executive Martin Snedden emerged yesterday from a "robust" meeting with Cabinet ministers having secured a pledge they would not support any last-minute legal ploy to block the tour.

Only escalating security concerns in troubled Zimbabwe are likely to stop the tour, and player safety issues are being monitored daily.

The Government has confirmed it will not issue visas to Zimbabwe's cricketers for their December tour here, costing NZ Cricket $3 million. A compensation claim for the lost revenue may be considered by the Government.

The visa ban will rob New Zealand Cricket of any chance to co-host the 2011 World Cup, costing tens of millions of dollars.

Foreign Affairs Minister Phil Goff has the Australian Government's backing to lobby the International Cricket Council to cut Zimbabwe from its touring programme in protest at human rights abuses by President Robert Mugabe's regime.

But he does not have the hoped-for formal support from Britain amid speculation its Government did not want to jeopardise African votes for London's bid to host the 2012 Olympics. A decision is due overnight.

Mr Goff said yesterday that he understood the dilemma facing NZ Cricket, which would be fined and possibly suspended from international cricket if it cancelled the tour for other than security reasons.

"The intention of New Zealand Cricket is to proceed with the tour," he said. "It will not be with the blessing of the New Zealand Government and Parliament."

Mr Goff said the Government had "exhausted" every option to stop the tour.

Green Party co-leader Rod Donald disagreed and said it had not given up its campaign to stop the tour.

He said that urgent legislation should not be considered lightly but that the situation in Zimbabwe was desperate.

Mr Snedden said after meeting Mr Goff and Jim Anderton, Progressive Party leader and cricket fan, that NZ Cricket would not be involved in manufacturing some "cute" way to avoid its ICC contractual playing obligations.

He said the average annual revenue for NZ Cricket was about $20 million a year, so a loss of $3 million was significant.

"We're not a profit-making organisation," Mr Snedden said. "We don't have any significant cash reserves."

It would be difficult to find a touring team to replace Zimbabwe at such short notice, but Mr Snedden said it was too soon to say if he would present a formal request for compensation.

The Black Caps are due to assemble in South Africa later this month, playing first in Namibia before travelling to Zimbabwe for tests and a one-day series next month.