Xolela Mangcu:CROSSFIRE The political transformation of the past 10 years will no doubt go down in history as one of the most important events of the millennium – on par with the French, American, Indian, Chinese, and Russian revolutions. Some of our leading scholars have taken to talking about the “maturing” and “consolidation” of our […]

Phillip van NiekerkL:FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK One of the great myths of our industry is that the press is “powerful”. This dates back, no doubt, to the days when The Times was “The Thunderer” – its correspondents, like Morrison of Peking, enjoying the status of ambassadors in foreign countries. Since then that power has been […]

Melvyn Bragg:A SECOND LOOK I owe Christianity a debt, and so, I believe, does the world we have lived in for the past 2 000 years. Much of what is best in that duo-millennial span has been due to the man who inspired the faith which took his name. But Christianity also owes me and […]

Suddenly debt relief is all the rage. Everybody is trying to get in on the act, saying that not enough is being done to provide financial help to the poorest nations. From United States President Bill Clinton to International Monetary Fund (IMF) director Michel Camdessus: you name them, they’ve got a plan. Make no mistake, […]

Shirley Kossick THE KILLING BOTTLE by Jane Fox (David Philip) This is one of the best novels I’ve read recently – pithy, taut, moving and unusual. The storyline concerns the strange and strained relationship of two elderly men – one white, one black – living on an isolated farm on the escarpment of what used […]

Howard Barrell Only interventions by senior African National Congress members persuaded Thabo Mbeki to appoint the ANC’s Western Cape leader, Ebrahim Rasool, as the party’s candidate for premier in the province. Mbeki, who is president of the ANC, and the party’s deployment committee had favoured parachuting in an alternative to Rasool, according to ANC sources. […]

Ann Eveleth Today’s farmworkers are a vocal bunch. Not only do they know that they are getting the short end of the stick, but also that the battery of new land and labour laws are supposed to protect them, and they have strong ideas on why these measures are falling short. Joining forces with about […]

Pagad and the gangsters may at last find common ground – in a Christian church. Marianne Merten reports Reborn Christian Rashied Staggie has joined the Rhema Church. He has become the latest self-confessed gangster to turn to the Bible. It remains to be seen whether his conversion will see him abandoning his multimillion-rand vice network […]

Andrew Worsdale Movie of the week Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is by no means a masterpiece, but it’s a well- crafted and ingeniously entertaining comedy-thriller. It is neat, to the point, with just the right doses of action and comedy. Simplistically, it’s a mixture of Danny Boyle’s Shallow Grave and Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp […]

BRITISH national Ian Karl Lowe was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a Moroccan court on Tuesday after nearly four tons of cannabis resin were found aboard a truck he was driving, judicial officials said. The 3910kg load of chira, worth an estimated $50-million, was found hidden under a cargo of clothes destined for […]