Date: 12/09/2024
South Africa’s decision to continue playing against the Afghanistan national cricket team is not just a sporting choice—it is a tacit endorsement of the Taliban’s repressive regime. Since the Taliban’s takeover in 2021, they have systematically stripped away the rights of Afghans, particularly women and girls, restricting access to education, employment, justice, freedom of speech, and movement. These actions constitute a blatant assault on human dignity, criminalizing women’s existence outside their homes. Just this August, while South Africa was celebrating Women’s Month, the Taliban imposed even harsher restrictions, mandating women to cover their faces and forbidding them from speaking publicly.
These oppressive measures directly contradict South Africa’s commitments to gender equality, anti-discrimination, and the eradication of gender-based violence, both domestically and under international law. By playing against Afghanistan’s national cricket team, South Africa sends a message that undermines its own values and human rights obligations, effectively turning a blind eye to the gender apartheid enforced by the Taliban.
We have seen the power of sports uniting nations, but conversely, by choosing to play ongoing matches with the Afghanistan cricket team, South Africa sends mixed messages to the public that we condone the systemic human rights abuses and violations that are currently unfolding. It cannot be argued that sports is a private affair and that politics has no role or influence in it – the personal is political. Sports both influence and are influenced by society.
Sports cannot be separated from politics. History has shown us the power of sports to both unite and divide, to challenge injustice and to inadvertently endorse it. The personal is political. We have seen the potent impact of sports activism in moments like Colin Kaepernick’s stand against racial injustice in the NFL, and in our own history, when South Africans, through organizations like the South African Non-racial Olympic Committee (SANROC), fought against apartheid with the rallying cry: “no normal sports in an abnormal society.”
This legacy is alive today. In 2020, the United Nations recognized South African Rugby Captain Siya Kolisi as a Global Advocate for the Spotlight Initiative honouring his advocacy against gender-based violence. Kolisi represents the values enshrined in our Constitution—dignity, equality, and respect for human rights. Cricket and its players have a responsibility to uphold these same values, especially when the stakes are as high as they are now.
South Africa’s continued sporting ties with Afghanistan contradict our broader foreign policy commitments, such as our stance on human rights in Palestine and our participation in international justice forums. This inconsistency undermines our credibility and weakens our position as a nation that stands against oppression and injustice.
Lawyers for Human Rights urges the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation to align their actions with South Africa’s values and commitments. We call on the South African Government to lead by example, as it has done in the past, by engaging with other Southern African states to support negotiations for a binding treaty on Crimes against Humanity, including the recognition of gender apartheid.
Sports have always been more than just a game—they are a platform for advocacy, a tool for change, and a reflection of our values. It’s time for South Africa to take a stand and ensure that our actions on the international stage align with the principles we hold dear at home
For queries:
Kayan Leung, Head of LHR’s Strategic Litigation and Gender Equality Programmes
Tel: 011 339 1960