Written ministerial statement by Andy Burnham on Zimbabwe and forthcoming cricket fixtures

25 June 2008

I want to update the House today on the action Her Majesty’s Government is taking in relation to proposed bilateral tour of the Zimbabwean cricket team to England in 2009.

The Government has been monitoring the situation in Zimbabwe closely. I hope you will appreciate that we have delayed intervening in this matter and allowed time for the situation to improve. However, the deteriorating situation around the failed and illegitimate elections in Zimbabwe, and the imminence of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC’s) Annual Conference in Dubai, means that the point of decision on this matter has now been reached. We have been in close discussions with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) throughout recent months.

The Zimbabwean Government has ceased to observe the principle of the rule of law: it has terrorised its own citizens, including the ruthless and violent suppression of legitimate political opposition.

The UK Government will always work with the international community to uphold fundamental freedoms and human rights. Accordingly, the UK Government has responded with a measured approach which seeks to isolate Zimbabwe internationally and bring pressure to bear on supranational institutions such as the United Nations and the European Union to take yet firmer action against the despotic regime, whilst ensuring that its humanitarian life-saving mission to Zimbabwean citizens continues.

The Government is clear that direct intervention on a sporting matter should not be taken lightly and our position has been to only intervene in this matter as a last resort. The Government has previously called on the ICC to reconsider its rules to allow teams to forfeit tours to countries, such as Zimbabwe, where serious human rights abuses are occurring. Unfortunately the ICC has declined to do so.

However, with the ICC Conference due to take place in Dubai next week, the Government now has to make its position clear.

The Government strongly defends the autonomy of sports’ governing bodies. We also support the autonomous management of international sporting competitions by international sports federations and independent representation of British sporting interests on such federations by our national governing bodies. The serious human rights abuses occurring in Zimbabwe and the close ties of the Zimbabwe Cricket team to the Mugabe regime present exceptional circumstances that justify exceptional measures. It would never be our wish to penalise domestic supporters, and nor would we wish to place players particularly in the uncomfortable position of having to take difficult individual judgements on these matters.

Therefore, it is with regret that Her Majesty’s Government has decided to make clear that it is prepared to prevent the bilateral tour in 2009 and will take all necessary steps to prevent players from Zimbabwe from participating in that tour.

I have today written to Giles Clarke, the Chairman of the ECB, instructing the ECB not to hold the bilateral tour with Zimbabwe. The Government welcomes reports that the issue of Zimbabwe’s involvement in world cricket is on the agenda at the ICC Annual conference which is taking place next week in Dubai. We hope that this letter will help ECB play a full part in these discussions, and lead to a positive outcome particularly in relation to the important event, ICC’s World Twenty20 Tournament, due to be staged in England in 2009. A copy of this letter is attached to this statement.

We hope that there will not be a need to repeat this exceptional measure and we will continue to work with the international community to allow full sporting relations to be restored. The Government will continue to monitor closely the situation in Zimbabwe and remains prepared to reconsider its position should circumstances in Zimbabwe materially improve.

[Ends]

Secretary of State letter to Giles Clarke, Chairman of the English and Wales Cricket Board

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