Cricket Scotland has announced that it will neither participate in bilateral or tri-nation cricket series involving Afghanistan’s men’s national team nor host such tournaments.
The Scottish cricket governing body said the decision is conditional on improvements in the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan and the overall situation of women’s cricket in the country.
According to the statement, Cricket Scotland has approved a new policy governing future cooperation with the Afghanistan Cricket Board. Under the policy, Scotland will no longer organise or participate in training camps or friendly matches for Afghanistan’s men’s national team outside official International Cricket Council (ICC) competitions.
However, Scotland emphasised that playing against Afghanistan in official ICC competitions does not constitute support for the Taliban government or its policies.
Regarding the Afghanistan Premier League, Cricket Scotland said it would honour its contractual obligations to its players. It added that, should a No Objection Certificate (NOC) be issued, the participation of Scottish players in the Afghanistan Premier League would not be considered an endorsement of Taliban policies.
According to the statement, the decision follows requests made by the Afghanistan Cricket Board in July for Scotland to provide training facilities to help prepare the Afghan national team for its matches against Ireland. The Afghan board also sought cooperation in relation to the Afghanistan Premier League in September.
In reaching its decision, Scottish officials took into account the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, the Taliban’s policies towards women and girls, their commitments to promoting women’s cricket and equality, as well as consultations with relevant organisations.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board has not yet commented on Scotland’s decision.
Since the Taliban returned to power, Afghan women and girls have been deprived not only of access to education and employment but also of the opportunity to participate in sporting competitions and join sports teams.
Writer:Saeed Sameer
