New Zealand Cricket and Westpac Stadium have admitted they were wrong to remove a banner promoting sexual consent during a Twenty20 cricket international in Wellington.
The banner, which read: “no means no”, was being displayed by a member of the crowd at the double-header between the New Zealand men’s and women’s teams and India on Wednesday night when security staff asked for it to be handed over.
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The sign was directed at Black Cap Scott Kuggeleijn, who was found not guilty of rape following a jury trial in 2017 and was subsequently selected for the national side. He has faced two rape trials in 2016 and 2017, charged with raping a woman in a Hamilton East flat in 2015. The first trial resulted in a hung jury, and the second found him not guilty.
The woman who was holding up the sign was escorted from her seat by security who attempted to confiscate the sign. She later cleared that New Zealand Cricket and Westpac Stadium have apologized to her.
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NZ Cricket public affairs manager Richard Boock told NZME that the decision to remove the banner – made in conjunction with the staff at the stadium – was a mistake.
“We agree the course of action taken was an overreaction and unnecessary, and that the message certainly wasn’t offensive. NZC has a venue policy that does not allow the targeting of players – but policies are guidelines; they’re not written in stone, and we should have shown better judgment and exercised more discretion,” Boock said.
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“We apologize unreservedly and will be discussing this in our debrief with a view to avoiding similar mistakes in the future,” he further added.
Despite New Zealand won the first T20I by 80 runs, Kuggeleijn didn’t enjoy his outing in the middle. He only managed just 20 runs with the bat while he conceded 34 runs in just two overs that he bowled during India’s innings.
