Abstract
In August 2021, as foreign troops withdrew from Afghanistan, the Taliban regained control of the country and the government in Kabul. Since then, the international community has condemned the worsening human rights situation in Afghanistan. United Nations bodies have classified Taliban’s restrictions on women in Afghanistan as gender apartheid, and there are plans to initiate a discrimination case at the International Court of Justice. Women’s sport has also been banned, with most female athletes being forced to evacuate in order to survive and continue their sporting careers. Many of these athletes have sought recognition as representatives of Afghanistan to participate in mega-sporting events and international competitions in football, cricket, and volleyball. In cricket, there have been calls to boycott the Afghan men’s team to force the Taliban to lift the ban on women. Against this background, we argue that the boycott calls are misplaced: legally, a ‘levelling down’ might be a violation of international discrimination law; socially, it could lead to unintended adverse consequences for the women; and practically, there is little evidence to suggest that boycotts are successful. Instead, a multistakeholder approach involving the players, sport bodies, the International Olympic Committee, media, and civil society that shifts the focus and efforts to the immediate and multigenerational needs of the athletes should be considered as an alternative. This approach has already started to make an impact with ICC (cricket) recently announcing support for the development of the displaced players, and FIFA announcing the establishment of the Afghan women’s refugee team.
Presenters
Shubham JainStudent, PhD Candidate, University of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom Jörg Krieger
Associate Professor, Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Denmark
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Sporting Cultures and Identities
KEYWORDS
Afghanistan, FIFA, Cricket, IOC, Human Rights, Gender Apartheid, Inclusion, Discrimination
