An international squash tournament planned in the coming days for Malaysia has been canceled by the extremists in the national government there who barred the Israeli team.
It is Israel365news that documented the dispute involving a World Squash Federation event that had been planned Dec. 7-12.
The federation canceled the competition when U.K. Lawyers for Israel, an advocacy organization, wrote to the WSF explaining that Malaysia’s actions put the organization in breach of U.K. nondiscrimination requirements as well as the federation’s own Articles and Rules.
“The WSF had initially argued that the discrimination against Israel was unforeseeable, an assertion UKLFI rejected, noting in its statement that the ‘Malaysian government has a history of hostility to Israel and Malaysia does not allow Israelis to enter the country,'” the report explains.
Acknowledging the potential for problems, the Israel Squash Federation had requested as long ago as May that the WSF would confirm that visas would be granted for team members.
However, the confirmation never arrived, nor did the visas.
The failure by the world organization to meet minimal nondiscrimination standards in this case prompted the president, Zena Wooldridge, to admit, “The attribution of any future WSF championship will require the formal written approval of the host nation’s government that all participants who are eligible to compete will be allowed to do so.”
Malaysia’s constitution recognizes Islam as its official religion and both federal and state governments can mandate Islamic standards.
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