Playing in Pakistan...
As if defeats after defeats are not enough, Bangladesh cricket bosses have announced their 'Pakistan's face saving' tour just after Australia decided to postpone their scheduled tour over a genuine security fear.
Who gave the security assurance of Bangladesh cricket team in Pakistan when there is no security guarantee of its president, prime minister, home minister, Generals and ambassadors ?
Decades long patronization of the extremists and then ruthless suppression of the tribal people of Frontier Province in the name of 'war against terror' are now producing the predicted results. A new phenomenon - wave of suicide bombings - swept all across Pakistan - from the pro-government tribal jirga meetings to highly secured capital Islamabad's cantonment (one kilometre from president Musharraf's house). Now anybody anywhere in Pakistan can become the victim of terrorism.
High profile incidents just in the last six weeks include: (1) Killing of the commander of an army division, a Major General, that is engaged in 'war against terror' in the tribal area; (2) Abduction of the Pakistani ambassador to Afghanistan from the tribal area on his way to Kabul (still 'missing'); (3) Suicidal killing of the head of the Pakistan army medical corps, a Lt. General, in Lahore; (4) Twin suicidal attack in Naval War College, Lahore (several Bangladeshi studied here); and (5) A well coordinated twin suicidal car attack (the largest ever) reduced the eight-story provincial headquarters of federal investigating agency building into rubbles, and literally shook the mega city Lahore, damaged all the buildings (including Asif Zardari's) in a 0.5 kilometre radius and broke window spans of houses and shops within two kilometre radius.
In this situation, it makes one wonder as to why Bangladesh cricket authorities took such a 'suicidal' decision for the cricket team. Instead, they can invite the Pakistan cricket team to Bangladesh.
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