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/ 29 October 2006

Saddam’s trial farce stumbles to climax

Saddam Hussein is in the dock, beard neatly trimmed, wearing a dark and well-cut suit with a burgundy handkerchief poking out of one pocket. It is his second trial, the ”Anfal trial”, for the murder of 180 000 Kurdish villagers. He and his fellow defendants are seated in a row inside the ”cage”, the special tribunal’s oversized dock.

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/ 29 October 2006

Confused in Johannesburg? Is this Africa?

Landing in Johannesburg from anywhere else in Africa can be a deeply disorienting experience, no matter how many times you do it. In fact the contrasts are so great, you can end up wondering if you are still in Africa at all. Confusion sets in as soon as you head into town along a network of fine roads that would put London to shame.

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/ 29 October 2006

DRC holds poll to end decade of war

The Democratic Republic of Congo began voting on Sunday in a presidential election run-off intended to end decades of war, pillage and kleptocracy that have left the huge country devastated and poor despite vast mineral riches. About 25-million people are registered to vote in the run-off between incumbent Joseph Kabila and former warlord Jean-Pierre Bemba, the top two candidates in the first round held on July 30.

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/ 29 October 2006

Carroll’s appointment to Anglo ‘encouraging’

The appointment of Cynthia Carroll as chief executive of Anglo American marks a step in the right direction for equality in Britain’s boardrooms as women struggle to break through the glass ceiling, analysts said. The global mining giant, which is registered in Britain but operates mainly in South Africa, announced last week that 49-year-old Carroll would replace Tony Trahar on March 1 2007.

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/ 28 October 2006

SABC condemns beating of reporter in DRC

The beating of a South African Broadcasting Corporation TV journalist by Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) police undermines the corporation’s ability to report on the election there, said the SABC on Saturday. SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago condemned the beating of Njanji Chauke on Friday ”in the strongest possible terms”.

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/ 28 October 2006

Eagles defeat the Lions by two wickets

The Eagles won a hanger against the Highveld Lions by two wickets on Friday night in Bloemfontein after the home team nearly lost the match in the second last over. The defending champions nearly lost their grip on the match when Jacques Rudolp (111), Roger Telemachus (0) and Cliff Deacon (0) all walked back to the pavilion within the space of three runs over the last two overs.

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/ 28 October 2006

Juventus penalty reduced by eight points

Juventus had its penalty in the Italian match-fixing scandal reduced by eight points on Friday. The Turin club jumped from 20th place in the second-division standings to 12th. Juventus was stripped of its 2005 and 2006 Serie A titles, demoted to Serie B, and docked 17 points by a sports tribunal in July.