The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Howard exploring ways to cancel Zimbabwe tour

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Saturday, May 12, 2007
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Howard exploring ways to cancel Zimbabwe tour

Melbourne: A staunch critic of the Robert Mugabe regime in Zimbabwe, Australian Prime Minister John Howard said his government would take whatever legitimate action it takes to scrap the national cricket team's tour of the trouble-torn African nation.

Howard said the government was exploring legal ways to cancel the tour without incurring the $2 million fine, which, Howard feared, would end up with the Mugabe regime.

The Prime Minister admitted there was no clear legal provision on whether the government could instruct the team to abandon the tour, an idea he was not very fond of.

``I am jammed between my distaste for the government getting involved in something like this and my even greater distaste for giving a propaganda victory to Robert Mugabe,'' he told a local radio channel here.

``Obviously if there is a way legitimately that the tour can be cancelled and there not be an exposure by Cricket Australia to any fine, then we'll go down that path,'' he said.

He also urged the cricket community to stop touring Zimbabwe. ``I think the International Cricket Council (ICC) has responsibilities, yes. But they're like any other body — they're answerable to their constituent members.

``Now, I think there is some evidence emerging that even in those countries that would be very reluctant to see the ICC do anything, that something ought to happen,'' he said.

``How long can the international cricket community — not just Australia — go on doing things that give aid and comfort to somebody who has thus far been totally impervious to any entreaties?'' Howard added.

Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, has already met Cricket Australia here on Thursday night to find ways to cancel the tour.

Howard had also raised the issue with Australia skipper Ricky Ponting in Sydney last week.

. — PTI

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