THE Côte d’Ivoire’s military-led government, in power since ousting Henri Konan Bedie on December 24, announced Friday that a constitutional referendum will be held in April and that presidential elections will be held later. The statement did not indicate an exact date in April for the referendum, nor did it announce when presidential elections will […]

SARAH BULLEN, Cape Town | Sunday 5.00pm THE Department of Foreign Affairs on Sunday rejected recent reports that South Africa is arming certain rebel groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The department in a statement denied it is providing assistance to any faction in the conflict and said its intevention is on a diplomatic […]

ELEVEN Mozambicans died in the south of the country this week while trying to escape floods which have left some 1000 people in the area homeless, state radio reported on Saturday. Radio Mozambique said the 11 died while trying to cross in two separate dug-out canoes the Incomati and Maputo rivers which burst their banks […]

JEREMY LOVELL, Cape Town | Saturday 5.45pm OPPOSITION parties have welcomed the removal from a draft law on equality a controversial clause that would have banned discrimination against people with HIV/Aids.br> The bill now includes a clause instructing the minister of justice to set up a committee to study and make recommendations on the matter […]

PAGAD leader Abdus-Salaam Ebrahim, who has been charged with the 1996 murder of gang boss Rashaad Staggie and several other crimes, is to remain behind bars for now. Ebrahim’s bail application which began on Thursday in the Cape Town Regional Court was on Friday postponed until February 8. Ebrahim has denied any wrongdoing, saying that […]

A HOTEL manager in Democratic Republic of Congo has filed a lawsuit against a rebel group based there over unpaid bills totalling some $31750 dollars, the plaintiff’s lawyers announced on Friday. A Ugandan-backed wing of the Congolese Rally for Democracy allegedly ran up the bills between June and July at the Palm Beach Hotel in […]

RED-HOT oil prices sizzled near nine-year highs on Thursday as the West’s energy watchdog warned that Opec supply curbs will leave the world perilously short of oil in coming months. World benchmark Brent crude for March delivery was up 16 cents at $26,00 a barrel, near the $26.30 nine-year high struck briefly on Wednesday. Forecasts […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Lagos | Saturday 6.30pm. THE opening game in the African Nations Cup ‘Group of Death’ on Sunday pits Nigeria against Tunisia — teams considered strong enough to go all the way and win the biennial tournament. It will be a Group D match of contrasts with poorly-prepared, Europe-based Nigerians opposing perfectly-conditioned, home-based Tunisians […]

THE Financial Services Board has taken the unusual step of inviting investors who may have been prejudiced by insider trading to claim compensation from its arsenal of funds from fines imposed. The Insider Trading Directorate of the FSB, which was set up a year ago to stamp out the crime of profiting from privileged information, […]

THE average room and bed occupancy rates of South African hotels for November 1999 decreased by 12% and 6,7% respectively, compared with November 1998, according to figures released Thursday by Statistics South Africa. Stats SA said decreases in room and bed occupancy rates were reported in 4 of the 9 provinces. North West province recorded […]