Don't extinguish the beacon of hope

To tour or not to tour? That is the question. And judging by the majority of opinions in the media, including those on Wisden Cricinfo, the general view seems to be that the ECB should renege on its commitment to the Zimbabwe Cricket Union and refuse to travel to Zimbabwe later this year.

This argument I believe is based to a large degree on faulty logic and a lack of understanding of the situation at ground level in Zimbabwe. There can be no doubt that Robert Mugabe is a tyrant whose every effort is aimed at maintaining his grip on power despite the will of the vast majority of his subjects. But the refusal of England, Australia or anybody else to tour will not affect his position one jot.

In fact, I believe an England tour would actually work against Mugabe, not for him. Such a high-profile visit would throw the spotlight on Zimbabwe, as it did during the World Cup, and thus intensify world opinion against his government and their evil deeds. A cancellation would generate a brief spark of indignation that would quickly fade; but a tour would draw new worldwide attention to the plight of our beloved country.

The ZCU has earned itself few friends, but their situation needs to be understood. Most of its officials are dedicated cricket-lovers who deplore the situation in the country, but the situation is such that a small number of politicallyor racially-minded individuals can hold the entire organisation to ransom. The ZCU treads a very thin line in the knowledge that, should they rock the government's boat, very little excuse would be needed for the government to disband the board and replace it with their own political stooges. That would signal the destruction of credible cricket in this country.

That, I believe, is the reason why they are so wary to intervene in incidents such as the one that was reported by Bryan Strang in the recent edition of The Wisden Cricketer. It is also why they dared not support Andy Flower and Henry Olonga in their protest, and why they reappointed Mugabe as the patron of the ZCU - with great, but hidden, reluctance.

Call them cowardly if you like, but the ZCU are responsible for the livelihood of hundreds of people, and many hundreds more in Zimbabwe find solace in cricket that hardly exists in any other aspect of life. It would be sheer irresponsible lunacy to shatter all these lives wantonly; they are doing the best they can to preserve the game we all love, and to do so they have to make compromises that stick in the craw of most of their dedicated officers. Survival depends on keeping their collective head firmly below the parapet.

There is nothing the ZCU can do about the far more serious happenings in Zimbabwe - and, like it or not, there is nothing that anybody else in the cricketing world can do either. They have dedicated themselves to the promotion and preservation of cricket in the country, and they need support and understanding from the other nine Test nations as never before. The last thing they need is a kick in the teeth.

No doubt expediency will win the day, and England will not tour. Zimbabwe cricket will be riddled by "friendly fire", unleashed with the best of intentions by those who are desperate to use against Mugabe a weapon that is about as lethal as a peashooter in an air raid.

We thank such people for their concern, but ask them to be realistic. A boycott aimed at Mugabe will instead hurt those who are already suffering at the hands of his government. Cricket boycotts may have played a small part in ending apartheid, but the situation in Zimbabwe is totally different, as cricket can have no influence on a tyrant hell-bent on self-preservation.

In the meantime, please help preserve that which is good in Zimbabwe, instead of using weapons that will help destroy it. Insignificant as cricket may be compared to other issues in this suffering country, it is still a beacon of hope to many. Please do not extinguish this light.