Suomen Backgammon ry.

Chairman Simo Huovinen sent this letter to the Russian backgammon federation:

I’m sorry to inform you that Finnish Backgammon Association (FBA) has decided to ban Russian (and Belarussian) backgammon players from participation in all events and tournaments of FBA for the foreseeable future in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The decision was by no means ethically simple, and I myself used to think that the ban shouldn’t be extended to individuals, who are not directly representing their nation, like backgammon players. However my view has gradually changed as Russian war crimes in Ukraine are unfolding. The war is a national thing. It is a difficult question whether the citizens are responsible for the atrocities of their state, but in my opinion they are not entirely free of responsibility.

The aim of the ban is to make a statement to Russians that things are not as they are told by their government. Life can’t go on as it used to do. Ukrainian civilians are being forcefully transported, jailed, tortured, raped and murdered by Russian soldiers.

The wide array of international sanctions towards Russia will affect the innocent too, but the sanctions are still necessary for stopping the war. I view the ban in the same way. Furthermore the ban is mainly a symbolic one, as all public transports between Russia and Finland are halted due to sanctions anyway.

I apologize to everyone who is opposing the war and Putin and are suffering from the oppression in Russia…

I sincerely hope that good relations between Russia and Finland and its citizens will be restored in the future and we can enjoy the game together again.”