England should be allowed to play next month’s cricket match against Afghanistan, the culture and sport secretary has said, despite calls for a boycott over the Taliban government’s treatment of women.
Lisa Nandy on Friday backed the decision by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to allow the match to go ahead, saying canceling the match would “deprive sports fans of an opportunity they love”.
Pressure has mounted from parliamentarians to cancel the match after the Taliban disbanded the Afghan women’s cricket team and banned women from public places such as gyms, parks and hair salons.
Nandi told BBC Breakfast: I’m instinctively very wary of boycotting sports, partly because I think it’s counterproductive.
“I think they’re denying sports fans an opportunity that they love, and they’re also denying athletes and sports people who work extremely hard to reach the pinnacle of their sport and aren’t given the opportunity to compete. The penalties could be very significant. They are not the people we want to punish for the Taliban’s horrific acts against women and girls.”
He added that the UK would not be “rolling out the red carpet” at the event, adding: “When China hosted the Winter Olympics, I was very vocal and many of us urged them not to send senior officials. “I made a very vocal statement,” he said. It’s that we didn’t give them the PR coup they wanted when they interned Uyghurs in Xinjiang. ”
England are scheduled to play Afghanistan in Pakistan next month as part of the Champions Trophy. The ECB said it would not schedule a bilateral series with Afghanistan, but that participation in international competitions such as the Champions Trophy was a matter for the International Cricket Council (ICC).
ICC rules require member states to form women’s teams, but ICC members reportedly believe allowing men’s teams to compete will help give the Taliban a permanent influence. .
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Nevertheless, MPs are calling on the government to put pressure on the ECB to withdraw from next month’s matches. Labor MP Tonia Antoniazzi asked the Prime Minister in the House of Commons this week. “Would you please agree to meet with the Prime Ministers of South Africa and Australia and ask them to boycott the match as well?”
Keir Starmer refused to engage in such action, saying: “The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is liaising with international stakeholders on this issue. We welcome the England and Wales Cricket Board’s strong representation to the International Cricket Council regarding Afghanistan’s women’s cricket team. I will.”
