Afghan cyclist abuse allegedly continuing from UCI HQ in Switzerland & More News Here

Days after the UCI outlined its plans to host the Afghan Women’s Road Cycling Championships from its base in Aigle, Switzerland, troubling new allegations of ongoing abuse have come to gentle.

A grievance submitted to the UCI Ethics Commission – seen by CyclingIdeas – accommodates allegations that members of the Afghan Cycling Federation proceed to discriminate in opposition to feminine cyclists and members of the Hazara spiritual minority. The perpetrators embrace Fazli Ahmad Fazli, who’s hosted in Switzerland by the UCI.

The lengthy, troubling timeline detailed in the grievance stretches again to the UCI-led evacuation of a convoy of Afghan cyclists in the wake of the Taliban’s return to energy in Afghanistan.

That evacuation was seen as a brave humanitarian accomplishment, and – as will be seen in the UCI’s newest plans – is a constructive PR alternative the organisation continues to attract on.

The evacuation was additionally a centrepiece second of the 2021 UCI Congress, with Fazli Ahmad Fazli – the Afghan Cycling Federation’s president since 2019 – being awarded a UCI Merit for his “courageous commitment to the development of cycling, notably women’s cycling, in a country where fighting for this cause is a risk” and “dedicat[ing] his life” to the trigger. Fazli – together with a lot of these in the convoy – acquired Swiss visas and lodging.  

But, a number of sources allege, all was not because it appeared.

A brutal backstory

The glittering PR second was quickly undermined by revelations – first reported by CyclingIdeas – that lower than a dozen cyclists have been among the many 150-odd folks evacuated. According to a number of sources, Fazli manipulated the lists to incorporate members of the family, pals and enterprise associates – whereas concurrently excluding reputable cyclists and discriminating in opposition to the Hazara minority. [Fazli denies these allegations.]

Since CyclingIdeas broke that story in November 2021, unbiased studies from CyclingNews and a serious Swiss present affairs TV present, Rundschau, have come to related conclusions. The UCI responded with a declare that an unspecified “ill-intentioned person has been trying to denigrate all that has been achieved”.

CyclingIdeas contacted the UCI to make clear that six unbiased sources had confirmed particulars for the unique story. We additionally voiced considerations for the protection of sources, providing supporting proof of threats in opposition to cyclists. The UCI didn’t reply.

Soon after, one among CyclingIdeas’ sources, Amin – who was in hiding in Pakistan – says he was kidnapped and detained for 4 days, throughout which he was repeatedly doused in chilly water, denied meals and water, and overwhelmed. He believes that this was retribution, ordered by Fazli, for talking out. Further leaked WhatsApp voice messages revealed a person recognized as Fazli threatening or ridiculing members of the Afghan biking group, warning them to not communicate to reporters, and claiming that he was engaged on future evacuation convoys that by no means got here. 

CyclingIdeas revealed many of those particulars in a follow-up characteristic in February 2022, and a podcast later that month. Despite a number of requests for remark, the UCI has supplied no response since final November – no acknowledgement of the a number of critical abuse allegations, perpetrated by the UCI Merit-awarded president of the Afghan Cycling Federation, who continues to manipulate in absentia from the headquarters of the UCI itself.

Where are we now?

Seven months after the allegations have been first revealed, the UCI seems to be continuing to again Fazli. Indeed, CyclingIdeas understands that UCI President David Lappartient himself has actively sought to undermine and criticise any reporting into Fazli’s alleged misdeeds.

Meanwhile, the UCI has pushed ahead with a ‘Cycling Integrity’ initiative, “because every member of the cycling community, whether a rider or not, must benefit from a safe environment, free from harassment or other abuse, in which they feel respected.”

Against the backdrop of months of obvious inaction, and in the context of additional claims of abuse, a grievance incorporating testimony of greater than a dozen accusers has been lodged with the UCI Ethics Committee – an unbiased physique that officiates on violations of the UCI’s Code of Ethics. This doc – seen by CyclingIdeas – presents the abuse allegations already uncovered by our reporting, but additionally alleges continuing threats in opposition to Afghan cyclists. 

This consists of menacing messages purportedly despatched by Fazli to these talking out in opposition to him. “Be aware that I have a lot of friends in Afghanistan. If you want yourself and your family to not be harmed, stay calm and don’t raise your voice,” reads one. “I am going to find you soon, and know this … I won’t stay calm until I see your dead bodies,” reads one other.

According to the Ethics Committee grievance, quite a few cyclists allege that Fazli himself has Taliban connections which put the cyclists at actual threat of hurt. Since our final report, a number of Afghan cyclists have been captured and overwhelmed by the Taliban, who have been in one case in search of info on the whereabouts of a critic of Fazli. CyclingIdeas has additionally seen messages, allegedly from Fazli, claiming that “the people of the Emirate [ed. Taliban] are my own.”

Worse, ongoing alleged abuse isn’t simply taking place from Switzerland, however inside it – on the UCI’s World Cycling Centre, which homes the Afghan evacuees.

The Ethics Committee grievance states that three feminine members of the cohort in Switzerland have expressed considerations for his or her security. One cyclist alleges that Fazli has verbally abused her and two Hazara teammates, referring to them as ‘dog’, ‘infidel’ and ‘whore’, requiring them to put on hijabs, and imposing curfews. Fearful of continued deterioration, they declare to have sought assist from immigration charities in Switzerland. One of the feminine cyclists alleges that when she raised her considerations with representatives of the UCI, they responded that if she was sad, she ought to return to Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, as just lately as late April, Fazli was concerned in media occasions on the UCI, together with a perform highlighting the UCI’s efforts to accommodate and assist refugees from Afghanistan and Ukraine. In an April 22 press launch, Fazli is pictured standing between IOC president Thomas Bach and Swiss politician, Philippe Leuba. 

On that day, Lappartient underlined the UCI’s dedication to the “wellbeing of the entire cycling family” and the necessity to put the organisation’s services on the disposal of athletes “who were in danger in their own countries. It is important that these young cyclists feel supported, and I am sure that the discussions and activities that took place here in Aigle will reinforce their feeling of security.”

The timeline for the UCI Ethics Committee to ship a discovering will not be recognized. For the thirteenth consecutive time since final November, the UCI didn’t reply to a request for remark.

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