Temba Bavuma, the Test and ODI captain of the South Africa cricket team, came out a few weeks ago in support of players and categorically condemned gender discrimination, especially in Afghanistan, supported by SACA.
His voice contributes to an ongoing concern In Afghanistan since the Taliban regime by restraining women and girls from many features of public domains, including sports activities.
With South Africa now set to play the Afghans for the first time in a three-match ODI series in the UAE, those remarks from Bavuma bring out the ethical quandaries of having friendly relations with a country that continues to violate human rights.
A Personal Stand for Inclusivity
For Bavuma it is not only cricket that makes him demand rights for women in Afghanistan but a strong individual opinion and personal experience. South Africa, for instance, has had a taste of what it feels like to undergo a systematized form of persecution in the era of apartheid.
Notably, the denial of Afghan women in the practice of sports and other public activities can be compared to the apartheid-style segregation of South Africa. Bavuma does know this historical correlation and has taken his opportunity to point it out and state, “I support the idea of inclusivity and caring for women.
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We want everyone to have a fair chance within society.” This is why, when he was asked about race in cricket, he said, Given the South African’s country’s lengthy conflict with human rights, it can easily explain why Bavuma and many other South Africans feel obligated to use their voices to protect Afghan women.
Cricket as a Platform for Change
It is no new knowledge that athletes in South Africa, specifically in the football sports, have stood up to fight against apartheid, and today Bavuma wants the world to know that Afghani women have no rights through cricket. As a captain, he can send out the marginalized voices that need to be heard, especially at this time that Afghanistan is being criticized for how it treats women.
The South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA) has appealed to CSA to use its muscles to ensure the plight of Afghan women is featured when the two teams engage in the coming ODI series. On his part, Bavuma has been very vocal and clear on some of the issues but the ultimate decisions that govern mainly on whether or not South Africa should play Afghanistan are made by Cricket South Africa and the ICC.
This has not, however, prevented Bavuma and other athletes from airing their views on this subject. It is, however, important to realize that this is not the first time that athletes or sports personalities have been speaking out about human rights violations, and thus Bavuma is an athlete joining a long list of others.
The Afghanistan Dilemma
After the capture of power by the Taliban in Afghanistan in Augustadvocacy, 2021, women are in even a worse situation. Earlier, Afghanistan Cricket Board had signed 25 female players in 2020 but all the dreams to build Afghanistan women’s cricket team shattered after the establishment of Taliban rule.
Afghan women in the current iteration of their country’s government have been stripped of most rights involving health, education and even the ability to engage in any capacity in public space, including sports. The cricket fraternity across the globe has struggled to know how to make a reaction to the Taliban policies. Australia and England specifically have been very harsh.
Australia decided to abandon a series against Afghanistan, while the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) also decided not to include bilateral series with them. But still, both nations are participating in Afghanistan in the ICC tournaments. South Africa on the other hand, wants to be more wary considering the fact that they have never played the Afghans outside a World Cup tournament in the cricket arena.
This year’s scheduled series would be the first bi-lateral one and the moral aspect of playing Afghanistan has become an issue. Bavuma, however, keen on what is to come on the cricketing front, is not ignorant of the larger issues at play by having to compete for women’s rights.
A Call for Unity
It is significant to note that Bavuma voices his stand on rights of Afghan women when more South African athletes are taking their stand on gender issues. For example, the captain of the South Africa rugby team, Siya Kolisi, used his speech after a recent big win to urge freedom from gender-based violence and brought into perspective how women in South Africa are far from fully enjoying their freedoms even after 30 years of democracy.
Like Bavuma, his comments clarify the need for athletes to bring about change in society. In the cricketing fraternity, there have been efforts that have been undertaken by various stakeholders to try and combat GBV in South Africa.
The Path Forward
The series against Afghanistan acts as the silver lining for Cricket South Africa to help people know what Afghan women go through. It is still uncertain if CSA will issue any statement or perform certain actions in the course of the series but the problem has been introduced to the public by Bavuma and SACA.
While Afghanistan persists in playing international soccer without the women’s team, the issue of how to bring the nation to justice for such violations of rights remains topical.
Meanwhile, Bavuma and his team’s efforts will remain on the cricket pitch but his fight for women in Afghanistan will not be forgotten. That is what he did, willing to speak on this subject, despite the fact that it is dipped in politics, an example for athletes all over the world.
This is something that sport cross-muller Leaping Out of the box: The Anthropology Games bring to the forefront that sport is not an isolated phenomenon and that athletes, owing to their celebrity status, bear the responsibility to advocate for change beyond the field.
What’s Ahead
Temba Bavuma’s position regarding the rights of women in Afghanistan shows that athletes can become leaders of social change. Taking reference from the unequal treatment that was present in the social structure of South Africa, Bavuma has picked a side in the unfair treatment of women.
With South Africa gearing up for its series against Afghanistan, women’s rights have emerged as yet another focal area in the process. Bavuma’s advocacy, as well as that of SACA, highlights the ethics that accompany global sports and the obligation to fight for the voiceless.
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