Desmond Tutu calls for Zimbabwe boycott

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the veteran anti-apartheid campaigner, has given his backing to England's cricketers as they ponder whether or not to tour Zimbabwe. In an interview on BBC television, Tutu said that the world had to send a clear signal to Robert Mugabe's regime.

"If not going [to Zimbabwe] was to exert some pressure," said Tutu, "I would -- as someone who used to support the sports boycott against apartheid -- say yes. We need to help the world show clearly that we disapprove of what is happening in Zimbabwe -- and, not merely wanting to be punitive, we want to help them become a more just society.

"It isn't that we want to clobber them," added Tutu. "Let's do what most of the people, especially the ones who are suffering, are saying we should do." The England & Wales Cricket Board is eager to cancel the tour, but it faces a stiff fine and the threat of suspension from the ICC if it takes a unilateral stand.