- Nasima Akter
Tanzim Sakib Apologizes for His Misogynist Remarks
Bangladesh fast bowler Tanzim Hasan issued an apology to the BCB (Bangladesh Cricket Board) for offensive Facebook posts from his past that recently came to light following his international debut at the Asia Cup last week. Some of these posts date as far back as 2014. Tanzim expressed remorse for his past remarks and took full responsibility for them, according to Jalal Yunus, the chair of BCB's cricket operations.
Shortly after his ODI debut against India on September 15, during which he took wickets in a Bangladesh victory, at least four of Tanzim Hasan's posts, which have since been removed, went viral.
In a September 2022 Facebook post written in Bangla, he stated: "A working woman will not allow her husband or children to have their way with her; she loses her charm, destroys her family, her purdah, and the society."
In April of this year, 20-year-old Tanzim shared a photo, claimed to be from 1954, depicting a woman in a burqa riding a rickshaw, potentially with her family, and referred to it as the "golden past." In another post (date unspecified), Tanzim wrote: "If you marry a girl who socializes freely in the university, you won't have a modest mother for your child."
Back in 2014, when he was around 11 years old, Tanzim had shared a post expressing his reluctance to celebrate Bangladesh's Victory Day, which falls on December 16th.
These posts resurfaced in the past four days and have sparked discussions on social media, as well as on television news and shows in Bangladesh. Women's rights activists, writers, and journalists have been critical of Tanzim for his posts.
The code of conduct outlines media interaction guidelines and restrictions on public expressions, as stated by the BCB official. Jalal Yunus, who is both a BCB director and the chair of cricket operations, mentioned that he had a conversation with Tanzim about this issue on Monday.
"The cricket operations committee spoke to Tanzim Sakib on behalf of the Bangladesh Cricket Board," Yunus said at a press conference at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Tuesday. "The media committee also got in touch with him. We informed Tanzim about the discussions surrounding his Facebook posts. He said that he didn't write those posts to hurt anyone. He wrote it for himself, not targeting anyone. If those posts have hurt anyone's feelings, he said he was sorry.”
"He said that the posts he has made about women, he takes full responsibility. He said that he is not a misogynist. We have warned him that if he posts something on Facebook in the future, the BCB will monitor him,” Yunus added.
"We are keeping an eye on this area [his mindset]. We will monitor him. His family is concerned too. They didn't expect such a situation. They are also sorry. We have given him a warning because he is a young player, and a World Cup is ahead. If he does something like this again, we will take action against him. If there's a [psychological] problem, we will provide support,” he continued.
