TAKING A STAND IS RIGHT CALL TO MAKE
A TASMANIAN cricket legend and a representative of the local Afghan community have hailed Cricket Australia and Premier Peter Gutwein’s call for the cancellation of Hobart’s Australia-Afghanistan Test. The match, the first scheduled between the two countries and to be Tasmania’s first in five years, was thrown into disarray when the Taliban regime said women would not be allowed to play sport under the hard line Islamist government. Kim Fazackerley, the first Tasmanian woman to represent Australia, recognised the almost certain cancellation of the historic Test.
“I think it is a great stance for CA to take because at the end of the day, we have come such a long way with women’s sport and to have an archaic and backward view would be disappointing, so I think it would be a brilliant stance,” said Ms Fazackerley, who played three Tests and nine one-day internationals for Australia in the 1990s.
She said if the match was to proceed, it would send a terrible message to female cricketers.
Secretary of the Southern Tasmania Hazara Community Haji Alizada, pictured, said members of his community were doing it tough with the Taliban’s return, and seeing the Taliban flag flying over Blundstone Arena would be devastating.
“If Australia was going to support the Test match, it would have basically shown we are supporting and legitimatising the Taliban regime,” Mr Alizada said.
“Not going ahead with this Test match shows we don’t want to have any relationship or do anything with a regime that’s depressing, opposing women and taking their rights.
“The Hazara community here in Tasmania, we appreciate the government decision and we think they have made the right decision not to go ahead with the Test.”