A 31-year-old woman was hit by a rubber bullet fired by police outside the Robin Crest residence in Saratonga Avenue, Johannesburg, during a student protest on Tuesday. Margaret Titsi and her sister were crossing the street at traffic lights when police demanded that they clear the road.
Police used water spray on University of Johannesburg (UJ) students who were shaking the entrance gate to the Kingsway Campus on Monday afternoon. Students earlier said they were going to break the gate down if they were not allowed access to the campus. They said they would resort to anarchy.
Harmony Gold’s Elandsrand mine near Carletonville has been shut down for up to six weeks after the mine’s main exit was blocked, trapping 3 200 miners underground, the Minerals and Energy Department said on Thursday. About 800 miners remained trapped more than 2,2km underground by 4pm on Thursday.
Protesting students stormed into lecture theatres at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg on Wednesday, disrupting classes and chasing away lecturers. ”We have called police back to campus in a bid to have order restored,” management spokesperson Shirona Patel said.
So-called surprise visits by businessman Tokyo Sexwale to branches of the South African Students’ Congress (Sasco) have raised the ire of the student body. ”We demand a public apology from Mr Sexwale for bringing the name of our organisation into disrepute,” said Sasco president David Maimela on Wednesday.
Whether suspended National Director of Public Prosecutions Vusi Pikoli had taken "national security interests" into consideration in decisions he made will be one of the main issues in a hearing to determine his fitness to hold office. President Thabo Mbeki on Wednesday approved the terms of reference for the inquiry.
President Thabo Mbeki must not be re-elected for a third term as party leader, the African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) in Gauteng said on Wednesday. "We reject the notion of two centres of power … whoever is elected as the ANC president must be the president of the country," said secretary general Lebogang Maile.
Police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi has been investigated but no decision has been made on prosecuting him, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Tuesday. Meanwhile, President Thabo Mbeki was caught off guard on Tuesday when asked questions by the media about the possible arrest of Selebi.
The Democratic Alliance is to ask President Thabo Mbeki questions in Parliament relating to National Prosecuting Authority head Vusi Pikoli’s suspension and the reported warrant of arrest issued for police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi. The party’s parliamentary leader Sandra Botha said it was "imperative that the president informs the nation".
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/ 29 September 2007
President Thabo Mbeki has appointed former National Assembly speaker Frene Ginwala to conduct the enquiry into whether National Director of Public Prosecutions Vusi Pikoli is fit to hold office, the Government Communication and Information System said on Saturday.