KINGSTON, Jamaica – THE One Day International match and Test between West Indies and South Africa scheduled to take place in Jamaica beginning next week are likely to be moved to a new venue due to ongoing civil unrest in the nation’s capital.
The West Indies Cricket Board announced on Monday (May 24) that it is seriously considering shifting the upcoming Digicel Series matches to a different venue after a state of emergency was declared in Jamaica over the weekend.
Discussions are reportedly being held with the Government of Jamaica and Cricket South Africa to find a suitable replacement venue for the two matches, and some insiders have speculated that Trinidad is heavily favoured in the running.
The move would likely be welcomed by Trinidad, as the previously scheduled matches there had to be moved to Antigua due to Monday’s general elections.
Moving the matches could prove tricky, as the first game was scheduled to be held at Sabina Park on June 3. Other top regional venues such as Windsor Park in Dominica and Warner Park in St. Kitts are already scheduled to host matches during the tour.
While the WICB had been holding out to see if the situation in Jamaica, which began over the extradition of accused drug lord Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke, would improve, matters have gravely worsened in the past few days.
Following Jamaica Prime Minister Bruce Golding’s announcement that his government would fulfill a US request to extradite Coke, the fugitive’s supporters in West Kingston’s Trivoli Gardens area began barricading streets and engaging in armed clashes with security forces.
The latest official reports out of the capital indicate that no fewer than 44 Jamaicans have been killed in the three day street warfare, most of whom are civilians. Public Defender Earl Witter confirmed to the Jamaica Gleaner that a pregnant woman had died, though he claimed it was not as a result of the stand-off.
Security forces currently have control of a number of areas in Tivoli Gardens, but other still remain barricaded.
