Whananāki feels like paradise to the Afghan families who fled the Taliban atrocities. Video / Northern Advocate
Editorial
THREE KEY FACTS
The Black Caps will continue playing Afghanistan despite the Taliban government’s human rights abuses.
Former MP Graham Kelly urges a boycott, comparing Taliban rule to apartheid South Africa.
NZ Cricket says playing there is supported by Afghanistan’s women’s cricket team.
From the boycott of the Moscow Olympics in 1980 to the United States’ ping-pong diplomacy with China and the isolation of apartheid-era South Africa, sport can be a remarkably effective way to send a political message.
The Taliban’s regime in Afghanistan, treated as a terrorist country underNew Zealand laws, offers, then, an intriguing conundrum for this country’s cricket bosses.
The United Nations has labelled some of the Taliban’s recent moves – including banning women from using public transport or moving around without the presence of a male guardian, and arresting women who ignore the Taliban’s dress code – as “gender apartheid”.
Girls are banned from attending secondary school and university and are subject to a strict dress code. The Taliban’s stance was described as an “institutionalised system of discrimination, segregation, disrespect for human dignity and exclusion of women and girls” by UN special rapporteur Richard Bennett.
Why, then, does New Zealand still play Afghanistan?
New Zealand Cricket, whose chief executive Scott Weenink made clear his abhorrence of the Taliban rule in an interview with the Herald, says it believes more is achieved for women’s rights in Afghanistan by playing there. Its decision was made after a vast amount of consultation.
“It is discussed at every board meeting ... We think we can be more effective in helping bring to light the plight of Afghani [sic] women by continuing to play Afghanistan men.
“We know that that stance is actually supported by Afghani [sic] women cricketers.
“And we also know that the Taliban are actually [against] the men’s cricket team playing. They would like nothing more than to see teams boycotting matches against the Afghanistan men’s team.”
Afghanistan are set to play the Black Caps in a series next year, likely to be held in India or the UAE. Photo / Getty Images
NZC’s consultations included the Afghan women’s cricket team – which is based in Australia, featuring players who have fled Afghanistan – the ICC, the New Zealand Players’ Association and the New Zealand Government.
Cricket Australia’s stance – where it has refused to play Afghanistan men in bilateral series but continues to play the team in ICC tournaments like the Champions Trophy – appears a half-hearted attempt at a boycott. The administration should pick a side and stick to it.
For New Zealand, any boycott would only be symbolic. It’s unlikely to lead to any meaningful change and bring about the downfall of the Taliban.
It will also punish the men’s team at a time when they are enjoying remarkable success against the odds, coming from a country ravaged by decades of war.
Rather than a boycott, if New Zealand Cricket wants to send a stronger message to the Taliban, they should fund and host matches between the White Ferns and the Afghanistan women’s team.
