THREE men set an old man alight in a veld on Sunday night and then raped his elderly wife next to the burning body. Northern Province police said James Chauke, 59, and his 56-year-old wife were confronted at about 9pm on a footpath in Tshamahanza village in Mokopane near Potgietersrus. The assailants beat Mr Chauke […]

THE United States government will ask Congress to approve an extra $100-million to the fight against Aids, bringing its total commitment to $325-million, Vice-President Al Gore said on Monday. He said the government will also commit $50-million dollars for the US contribution to the vaccine fund of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation.

EDUCATION Minister Kader Asmal has called for an urgent review of the controversial Curriculum 2005 outcomes based education system which is set to revolutionise teaching methods in the country. The Argus reports that sources close to Asmal say although he is stopping short of scrapping the controversial system, he has raised some serious concerns about […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, London | Monday 7.25pm SUB-SAHARAN Africa, with Mozambique in the lead, is set to be the fastest-growing region in the world this year, according to the latest annual analysis by the respected Economist Intelligence Unit. It forecasts that the world will be a richer place than it has ever been, even if 1,3-billion […]

ANGLO American Zimbabwe said on Wednesday it has reached a provisional agreement to purchase the Zimbabwe Mining and Smelting Company with partners of its choice. In a statement, the company said the finalisation of the purchase is subject to conclusion of a due diligence exercise undertaken with the government’s support as well as regulatory approvals […]

COMBINED gold and foreign exchange reserves rose R0,2-billion in December to R45,4-billion from November’s R45,2-billion according to the latest figures released by the Reserve Bank on Wednesday. The figures confirm that there was a steady flow of foreign cash into the country’s buoyant financial markets over that period. A Reuters poll of economists saw the […]

MEMBERS of the advertising industry said on Thursday that they expect clients to spend around R8,5-billion this year, up 10% from last year, in accordance with hopes for an upturn in the economy. Although the final numbers are not in, the industry estimates between R7,5-billion and R8-billion was spent on advertising in 1999 when the […]

SOUTH Africa’s largest life assurer Old Mutual Plc said on Tuesday it had agreed to sell its UK life business, Old Mutual Life Assurance Co Ltd, to two companies. Once the deals are completed, the combined impact is expected to release back to Old Mutual capital of around 75-million pounds during this year, a suplus […]

SOUTH Africa, Algeria and Morocco have named squads for the African Nations Cup finals in Ghana and Nigeria from January 22 to February 13: Squads: South Africa Goalkeepers: Andre Arendse, John Tlale, Hans Vonk Defenders: Mark Fish, Pierre Issa, Papi Khomane, Lucas Radebe, Frank Schoeman Midfielders: Alex Bapela, Quinton Fortune, Steve Lekoelea, Helman Mkhalele, Thabo […]

FORMER British prime minister Margaret Thatcher met briefly with President Thabo Mbeki at the presidential guest house in Pretoria on Sunday, during a private visit to South Africa, Mbeki’s office said. Thatcher, accompanied by her businessman son Mark, had tea with Mbeki in Pretoria, spokeswoman Tasneem Carrim at Mbeki’s office said. Carrim described the meeting […]