Officials to assess Zimbabwe World Cup security

Organisers of the 2003 World Cup will join a security delegation from the International Cricket Council (ICC) in Zimbabwe later this month to decide if the country can stage fixtures in next year's tournament.

Headed by ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed, the delegation will spend three days in Zimbabwe from November 26. The country is due to host six World Cup group games in Harare and Bulawayo.

Ali Bacher, executive director of Cricket World Cup 2003 (CWC), was confident Zimbabwe would get the go-ahead.

"At this stage all I can say is that we anticipate a positive decision on the matter," Bacher told a news conference.

"I'm as confident as I can be that World Cup cricket will take place in Zimbabwe."

ICC president Malcolm Gray said they would be concerned with safety and security for teams and officials only.

"The ICC and its members are only concerned with cricket-related issues," said Gray in a statement.

"The political issues surrounding Zimbabwe are matters for politicians."

He said that while some countries had imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe "no government in any part of the world has identified sporting sanctions as an appropriate tool to achieve a political outcome".

HIGHLY CRITICAL

Zimbabwe will play three of their six group matches in Harare and three in Bulawayo, which includes games against India, England, Australia and Pakistan.

The Australian team refused to tour Zimbabwe in March after their government advised its citizens not to travel, citing fears of possible election violence.

The British government, meanwhile, has been highly critical of Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's land redistribution policies.

The ICC delegation will prepare a report within 10 days. Should Zimbabwe get the all-clear, Australia or England would be in danger of forfeiting their matches if they refused to travel.

If, however, security concerns persisted, the matches could be moved to South Africa where the bulk of the tournament is due to be staged.

Australia, along with West Indies, forfeited a match against Sri Lanka in Colombo during the 1996 World Cup over security concerns.

Another issue to be dealt with is access for media covering the tournament.

Mugabe has clamped down on the media in Zimbabwe and there have been indications that visiting cricket journalists might have to gain separate accreditation from the Zimbabwean government.

"There are real difficulties with regard to the media, which we are aware of," Bacher said.

STREAK PLEA

"But the ICC and the Zimbabwe Cricket Union have been in discussions with the Zimbabwean authorities and hopefully the issue will be resolved," Bacher added.

The ICC delegation will include Australian Cricket Board chief executive James Sutherland and Tim Lamb, chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board.

Tim May, joint chief executive of the Federation of International Cricket Associations (FICA), will take part to represent the players.

Zimbabwe cricketer Heath Streak has argued in favour of the matches going ahead.

"Taking the games away would be financially devastating for our cricket," he said. "There's certainly no problem in Zimbabwe at the moment -- the security is absolutely fine. All our families are there."

Security for matches in South Africa has also been strengthened in light of recent terrorist activities across the world.

CWC 2003 has been working in close conjunction with the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the South African government.

In addition to security at stadiums, 92 private security personnel have been assigned to the participating teams to protect them, not only from security threats but from approaches by bookmakers attempting to gain inside information.

The tournament starts with the opening ceremony on February 8, 2003.

Mail Cricket Editor