Australia's tour of Sri Lanka is going ahead as scheduled, but the tourists are becoming acutely aware of the significance of their visit. Players and officials were equally moved by the footage shown in the Channel 4 documentary about the closing days of the Sri Lankan civil war and its aftermath, aired on
Four Corners in Australia this week,
but are resolved to carry on with their first Test series in the island nation since 2004.
The documentary showed graphic evidence of rape, torture and murder of civilians during the final months of the war. A United Nations investigation concluded last year that there was credible evidence for as many as 40,000 civilian deaths during the conflict.
The Australian department of Foreign Affairs and Trade raised no objection to Cricket Australia's plans during their most recent briefing. Central to CA's thinking are the ideas expressed by the former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara,
who spoke of cricket's capacity to unite communities and countries during his Cowdrey lecture to the MCC in London.
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