Meeting Henry

by frog

If you live in one of the main three centres, can I suggest you come and hear former Zimbabwean cricketer Henry Olonga talk about his homeland and why the Black Caps’ shouldn’t be touring there next month.

For those who don’t know Henry’s history, he was one of two Zimbabwe players to wear black armbands in a Cricket World Cup 2003 match to mourn the death of democracy under Mugabe. At the time, he and the other player, Andy Flower, released a statement saying, in part:

We cannot in good conscience take to the field and ignore the fact that millions of our compatriots are starving, unemployed and oppressed. We are aware that hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans may even die in the coming months through a combination of starvation, poverty and Aids. We are aware that many people have been unjustly imprisoned and tortured simply for expressing their opinions about what is happening in the country. We have heard a torrent of racist hate speech directed at minority groups. We are aware that thousands of Zimbabweans are routinely denied their right to freedom of expression. We are aware that people have been murdered, raped, beaten and had their homes destroyed because of their beliefs and that many of those responsible have not been prosecuted. We are also aware that many patriotic Zimbabweans oppose us even playing in the World Cup because of what is happening.

The details of the public meetings are as follows:

• Christchurch: Wednesday June 13, 7.30pm, Te Matauranga Maori, Christchurch Polytech, Coventry Street, off Barbados Street.
• Wellington: Thursday June 14, 7.30pm, St Andrew’s On The Terrace, 30 The Terrace.
• Auckland: Friday June 15, 8pm, Aotea Chapel, 370 Queen Street (opposite the Town Hall).

The meetings are free to all. If you want to bring along some money to contribute to the cost of Henry’s flight, however, that’d be most appreciated