The submission,a copy of which has been obtained by this masthead,outlined Khawaja’s case. It did not mention Palestine or Gaza,with only a reference to “the Middle East” providing any specific context.
It was backed by CA after an unscheduled meeting of the governing body’s board,led by chairman and former New South Wales premier Mike Baird,after Khawaja had workshopped his submission with the CA chief executive Nick Hockley and his opposite number at the Australian Cricketers Association,Todd Greenberg.
However the request was subsequently rejected by the ICC and its cricket operations department. The senior manager of cricket operations is Clive Hitchcock and the general manager of cricket is Wasim Khan. The chief executive of the ICC is Geoff Allardice.
“I feel strongly about the right of every human being to enjoy peace,freedom and equality in dignity and rights regardless of their gender,age,colour,race,language,religion or national or social origin,” Khawaja wrote in the submission,which also featured an indicative diagram of the logo and its possible placement on the back of his bat.
“Some human rights are inalienable and transcend all our differences. These rights are enshrined in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) that has been ratified by all member states of the United Nations.
“At a time when there is such a loss of life and liberty in the world – most recently in the Middle East – I would like to promote a personal message of peace,freedom and equality by displaying an internationally recognised symbol of peace and freedom – a dove with a sprig – on the back of my bat together with the phrase “01:UDHR” (Logo).”