“For security reasons,” sports governing bodies say they are not able to offer any details about their involvement in the rescue of athletes and others from Afghanistan, despite claiming they have, and remain, heavily involved.
This week, the voice of a para-athlete still inside Kabul has been pleading for help. In a wheelchair and unable to flee like others when the airport was open, Fatima (not her real name) emailed the International Paralympic Committee, seeking assistance.
The IPC has not replied. Queries from the ABC regarding her case have also gone unanswered.
Abdul, not his real name, is one of Afghanistan’s well-known journalists with strong connections to the sport of cricket. He has been threatened for his strong social media stance supporting the women’s team and now moves from house to house, fearing for the life of his wife and daughters.
He has reached out to numerous sports bodies for help, but, like Fatima, he has heard nothing.
Farwad is married to Asma (not their real names) who has been one of Afghanistan’s fledgling female cricketers.
According to Asma’s sister, the couple has approached numerous organisations asking for assistance without response.
Farwad is at risk on two fronts — because of the Taliban’s hard-line attitudes regarding women and how they should behave, and because his own family now supports the Taliban’s views leaving both him and his wife in danger.
When asked for an interview regarding the situation in Afghanistan, the ICC told the ABC the issue would be discussed at an upcoming board meeting.
When asked when that board meeting would be the response was “TBC”.
The ICC’s plan to discuss the future of women’s cricket at a time to be confirmed, without even referencing the players’ immediate danger, reflects an organisation that is either out of step with its own stated commitment to the women’s game, or one that is more afraid of political blowback than the safety of its own players.
It has already been backed into a corner, with the Afghanistan Cricket Board issuing a press release on Friday alluding to the ICC’s in-action as “a considered, balanced, cricket diplomacy approach”.
It described Cricket Australia’s decision to abandon the one-off Test match, should the Taliban abandon women’s cricket in the country, as a “knee-jerk” reaction and implored other nations not to follow suit.
Meanwhile, over at the International Olympic Committee, a press conference was held this week where the organisation was asked by The Ticket how many people it had rescued from what’s been described as a “major humanitarian operation”.
Before handing over to the IOC’s director of solidarity, James Macleod, who is running the IOC’s operation, president Thomas Bach gave some qualifying remarks.
“I want already to protect him a little bit … again, for reasons of security, we cannot give details which could lead to the identification of people because this would obviously expose them to even more risk.”
Nobody asked for them to be identified or expose them to risk, just the number of athletes and others who had benefitted directly from the IOC’s operation.
“We can’t give you an exact number today, it is a significant number, because there are athletes, there are officials, there are family members of each of those that have accompanied those people,” Mr Macleod said.
Agencies that work in the area have no problem with putting a number to humanitarian crises like the one now unfolding in Afghanistan.
The UN has warned 18 million people are facing disaster, with another 18 million possibly joining them soon.
Its humanitarian agency, OCHA, says critical food and livelihood assistance are needed for nearly 11 million people while essential health services are urgently required for around 3.5 million.
The numbers of at-risk athletes in Afghanistan are minuscule when compared to the overall need in the country, but minuscule is not insignificant, and the impact global sports bodies could make is something they could be proud of.
Here is another number: one.
Noor, not her real name, is a well-known television journalist with strong links to Afghanistan’s National Olympic Committee, who has been in hiding with her husband since Kabul fell.
She is just one who requested help from the International Olympic Committee but has received none. Queries from the ABC about her predicament have gone unanswered by the same IOC staff who are supposedly coordinating the rescue efforts.
However, in the past weeks when direct contact was made with those at the highest levels of governing bodies such as the Australian Olympic Committee, the Australian Paralympic Committee and Cricket Australia — each carrying significant influence in their respective international bodies — valuable, crucial support was quickly given.
It has been reported previously that around 100 mostly female athletes and close family members have already been evacuated from Afghanistan to Australia, there may yet be more.
It won’t be long, though, before the media caravan moves on.
When that time arrives, and the story of Afghanistan is no longer in the spotlight, those voices that are still able to call for help will no longer be heard by the wider public.
As their voices fade so too does their hope of finding refuge, voices like Abdul’s who told The Ticket this week:
“We are jobless now and we are running out of resources day by day.
“There is nothing for us to live and hope for in the future under the Taliban.”
Voices like Noor’s:
Voices like Farwad’s:
And voices like Fatima’s in this email to the International Paralympic Committee:
Dear Sir/Madam,
My name is [Blacked Out Name], I’m an Afghan para-athlete and I’m stuck in Kabul. Right now I’m fearing for my life.
I’m in a wheelchair and could not just walk to the airport. I didn’t have any lobby and my association has left the country already.
As a female and as an athlete in [blacked out name of sport] I am scared of the taliban. Do you know how I can get on the evacuation list? Or do you know somebody whom I can tell my story? I need a voice!
I engaged in previous annual [blacked out name of sport] Para-olympic Games in different sessions in diverse countries such as Korea, Indonesia and Dubai.
Please find my documents attached.
I am really looking forward to hearing from you soon I live with fear and I don’t have anyone else to help I expect you please save me from the Taliban cruel GOVERNMENT.
Kind regards,
[Blacked Out Athlete Name]
Afghan female Para-olympics athlete
Once Fatima’s voice and others fall silent, who will be helping then?