Form of words:
New Delhi: The allegations of “institutional racism” that first rocked Yorkshire County Cricket Club in September 2020 have since turned into a scandal, forcing the resignation of several senior positions at the club, and the potential for discrimination in English cricket. A debate has broken out over the spread.
Karachi-born English player Azim Rafiq, the first to make the allegations, has appeared before a parliamentary committee in the United Kingdom to elaborate on his claims.
Following Tuesday’s hearing, representatives of the ECB as well as other top-tier English cricket organisations, “apologized unreservedlyRafiq for discrimination, while he has also got the support of Lord Kamlesh Patel, the new head of Yorkshire CCC.
Writing on the scandal and allegations of Rafiq in an article for daily mail Earlier this week, former England captain Nasser Hussain, born in Madras (as it was then) wrote, “It’s prevalent throughout the game. And it hasn’t been picked up because it has become the norm. It’s been a ‘this is what we do’ attitude and it’s been allowed to spoil for too long.”
However, Rafiq himself has been accused of making anti-Semitic remarks in the past, for which he has now apologized. and according to a report good From yorkshire post On Saturday, Rafiq is also alleged to have sent sexually inappropriate messages to a teenage girl in 2015, when he was 24, three months after the pair met on a flight. Rafiq has yet to publicly address the allegation.
ThePrint explains how the scam started and redefines what happened over the past year.
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Who is Azim Rafiq and what did he claim?
Pakistan-born all-rounder Azim Rafiq played for the Yorkshire senior team between 2008 and 2014 and again between 2016 and 2018.
However, it was not until August 2020, that he spoke publicly about the alleged racism he faced and his struggles with mental health issues over the years.
in one Interview with WisdenOf Taha Hashim, Rafiq claimed, “I’ve been in the dressing room where things have been said, and, really, I should have stopped it. I had a captain who was openly racist. Why didn’t I stop it? ? It was the atmosphere… you look back and you think once I picked it up, it made me the person who was wrong. Over the years you think you have to do things to fit in Hogi and I did. The minute I didn’t, I felt isolated.”
Rafiq elaborated on his claims in later interviews. sky News And espn cricinfo,
Yorkshire CCC in September last year announced He is investigating the allegations. However, in October 2021 Yorkshire said Despite admitting that Rafiq was a “victim of inappropriate behavior” during his time at the club, it will not take any disciplinary action against players, staff or officials. Committee probing Rafiq’s allegations Allegedly Of the 43 claims made by the player, seven were upheld.
Rafiq appeared before a UK parliamentary committee last Tuesday to elaborate After Yorkshire on his allegations against the club missed several deadlines To publicly release its investigation report.
In an emotional hearing that lasted more than three hours, Rafiq exposed the racial slurs, personal abuse, dressing room bullying and discriminatory policies he felt to many senior staff, and the Yorkshire CCC as a whole, to their He was employed during two terms. as a player.
Rafiq also shared a 57 page witness statement They submitted to the Leeds Employment Tribunal Court in 2020.
The most prominent names on the list are Yorkshire head coach Andrew Gayle, director of cricket Martin Moxon, former chief executive Mark Arthur, as well as former England cricketers Gary Ballance, Tim Bresnan, Alex Hales, Matthew Hoggard and Michael Vaughan all suspended. Is.
In Vaughan’s case, Rafiq claimed that, after the team uproar at the start of T20 matching Between Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire in 2009, the former England captain told Rafiq and three other Asian players in the starting line-up that “there are too many of you. We need to have a word about it.”
While Vaughan repeatedly denied Ever making this remark, Rafiq’s account has been corroborated by two of the three Asian players – the ex-Pakistani fast bowler. Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and current England leg-spinner Adil Rashid,
Rafiq accused Hoggard of coining the nickname ‘Rafa the infidel’, a reference to a . Was stigma This apartheid was used against non-white people in South Africa, and is derived from an Arabic word meaning ‘non-believer’. Rafiq has also said that Hoggard called him personally in 2020 to apologize for his behavior, an apology that Rafiq accepted.
According to Rafiq, Balance, Bresnan and Gayle abused him the most. He claimed that he had complained to the Yorkshire authorities about his mistreatment, although he was yet to speak publicly about it, but Moxon and Arthur’s inaction against the complaints caused him maximum trauma. Rafiq has alleged that apart from the death of his newborn son in 2018, it pushed him to the brink of suicide.
Balance and Bresnan have been named more than 40 times in witness statements, while Moxon has been named more than 80 times and Gail more than 100 times.
Rafiq has described several instances of bullying and personal abuse which, in his view, were not inflicted on Yorkshire’s white players. A common theme that ran through his statement was the frequent use of the racial slur “Paki” by the people mentioned above, and the club’s senior most members brushing it off as a “joke”.
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Rafiq’s support
It probably belonged to former ESPN Cricinfo reporter George Dobell comprehensive coverage The case of Rafiq that caught the attention of UK Health Secretary and Conservative Party leader Sajid Javid, who is also of Pakistani origin.
“‘Paki’ is not a joke. Chiefs should roll in Yorkshire CCC. If @ECB_cricket doesn’t act it’s not fit for purpose,” Javid said in response to a tweet by Dobell on the issue earlier this month I tweeted.
“Paki” is not a joke.
The chiefs must roll in Yorkshire CCC.
if @ecb_cricket Doesn’t take action It’s not fit for purpose. https://t.co/guiMHVuGEe
— Sajid Javid (@sajidjavid) November 2, 2021
Javid’s tweet gave urgency to Rafiq’s long wait for justice, turning the scandal from a cricketing issue to a national and international issue.
Like, Dobel labeled Rafiq was described as “the most stubborn man in Yorkshire”.
Asked by an MP during the hearing how he “called upon the strength” to fight his case for over a year and recalled his experiences, Rafiq simply said, “I have a little Karachi and I have a little Barnsley”, a reference to his birth in Pakistan and upbringing in the UK.
Called out for anti-Semitic remarks
However, Rafiq has also not come out of this scam. His credentials as a crusader for racism in UK society have also been questioned after anti-Semitic comments posted on Facebook in 2011. woke up again recently.
Rafiq has since apologized for the remarks and reiterated his desire to take responsibility for other past crimes.
— azeem rafiq (@azeem rafiq30) November 18, 2021
at no point will I ever try and defend the indefinite
I am deeply sorry for the people I have hurt
I will continue to move forward and own up to any mistakes I make
— azeem rafiq (@azeem rafiq30) November 18, 2021
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Impact on Yorkshire and England cricket
Most of Rafiq’s accusers have not only issued public statements on the issue, but chief executive Arthur has also resigned from his position, and senior player Balance and head coach Gayle have been suspended by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Has been done. club respectively.
Chairman Roger Hutton, who joined Yorkshire in April 2020 and had reportedly attempted to implement the reforms, also resigned and in a parliamentary committee hearing the club was labeled “institutionally racist”, calling for the change. Blamed the ECB for failing to support its efforts.
Hutton’s replacement as chairman of Nairobi-born Lord Kamlesh Patel, currently faces the task of steering Yorkshire away from a future of financial ruin and ensuring a more inclusive environment at the club. So far Lord Patel has openly Express His support for Rafiq, and under his leadership, Yorkshire has established a hotline For anyone wishing to formally complain about the racism they faced in relation to the club.
“Giving zealous evidence is a pivotal moment and as a whistleblower, he should be commended for speaking out. I have said from the outset that we need to listen and learn to bring about immediate change at Yorkshire County Cricket Club,” said Lord Patel. said cricketer,
Ever since the scandal started following Rafiq’s allegations, the club has Lost Almost all of its sponsors and its home venue Headingley in Leeds have been barred by the ECB from hosting international cricket matches.
Summary of the developments of the past year and their potential impact on the future, Nasser Hussain wrote In daily mailBhagwan Patel has talked about seismic change and as long as sport has meaning and doesn’t just go for those box-ticking exercises, like wearing T-shirts and all that stuff, then maybe we can be optimistic. a brighter, more inclusive future.”
(Edited by Polomi Banerjee)
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