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/ 17 January 2007

SA expect stronger Pakistan challenge

South Africa are expecting a stronger challenge from Pakistan in the second Test starting at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Friday. Star batsman Mohammad Yousuf will be back in the team after missing Pakistan’s seven-wicket defeat in the first Test at Centurion because his wife was having a baby.

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/ 17 January 2007

Probe shows no faking to get social grants

Teenagers do not deliberately fall pregnant, families do not ”farm” children and sick people do not refuse to take medicine just to get social grants, the Department of Social Development said on Wednesday. ”The provision of social assistance by the state does not promote teenage pregnancies and other alleged perverse incentives,” it said.

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/ 17 January 2007

Slight decrease in festive-season road deaths

Holiday season traffic deaths and accidents dropped by less than 5% compared with a year ago, Transport Minister Jeff Radebe said on Wednesday. Radebe issued his report on the December 1 to January 10 holiday season traffic at Atteridgeville in Gauteng. The number of fatal accidents dropped by 59 from 1 428 to 1 369 compared with the same time a year ago.

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/ 17 January 2007

Cachalia concerned over police-brutality reports

Gauteng provincial minister of community safety Firoz Cachalia said on Wednesday he is concerned about allegations that police abused their power by threatening and intimidating a prostitute and a photographer in Pretoria. ”In a democratic society everyone is entitled to humane and lawful treatment by the police,” Cachalia said.

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/ 17 January 2007

Ugandan rebels reject Machar as mediator

Uganda’s Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels have rejected south Sudanese Vice-President Riek Machar as chief mediator at talks to end one of Africa’s longest wars. LRA second-in-command Vincent Otti said the rebels would permanently abandon talks with Uganda’s government in Juba if an alternative venue cannot be found.

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/ 17 January 2007

SA defends vote against UN resolution on Burma

South Africa defended on Wednesday its decision to vote against a United States-led United Nations Security Council resolution urging democratic reform in Burma, saying the measure went beyond the council’s mandate. Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad said South Africa would continue to fight for democracy, human rights and freedom in Burma.

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/ 17 January 2007

Reuters chief executive criticises Telkom

Telkom came under fire this week after international news agency Reuters criticised the company for high telecommunications prices and low-quality bandwidth. Reuters chief executive Tom Glocer told <i>Business Day</i> newspaper that while his company had been expanding in countries such as India, he was reluctant to do the same thing in South Africa.