AfriForum on Wednesday laid a charge of hate speech with the South African Human Rights Commission against the Congress of South African Trade Unions’s Solly Phetoe in his personal capacity after his comments following a shooting in the North West.
A decision on the future of the Reitz men’s residence at the University of the Free State would be taken at a council meeting on June 6, acting rector Professor Teuns Verschoor said on Wednesday. Reitz was at the centre of a storm earlier this year when a racist video made by former students at the hostel sparked a national outcry.
Movements in the rand currency are more likely to be linked to volatility of the United States dollar than other factors, such as recent attacks on migrant workers, South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel said on Wednesday. ”I think that we’re living through a period now where there is a lot of volatility in exchange rate markets everywhere,” he said.
Scientists have warned that carbon nanotubes could pose a cancer risk similar to that of asbestos, saying the government should restrict the use of the materials to protect human health. Carbon nanotubes were developed in 1991 and have proved extremely useful, conferring great strength while being very light.
Murder accused Najwa Petersen, now on her fourth advocate, will have to conduct her own defence if she changes her lawyer again, a Cape High Court judge warned on Wednesday. Judge Siraj Desai delivered the warning as he postponed the trial to July 28 to enable her latest advocate, Johann Engelbrecht, to get up to speed.
President Robert Mugabe accused Zimbabwe’s opposition of embarking on ”an evil crusade” as he stepped up claims on Wednesday that the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is to blame for mounting violence. ”The MDC opposition, formed at the behest of Britain, is on an evil crusade of dividing our people,” Mugabe said.
A woman was rescued on Wednesday after spending nine days in the tunnel of a power plant after China’s devastating earthquake, the state-run Xinhua news agency said. Zeng Changhui had been stuck in the water tunnel of the Shifang area hydropower plant since the 7,9-magnitude earthquake struck on May 12, Xinhua said.
A judicial inquiry found on Wednesday that murdered senior Free State official Noby Ngombane’s wife, Nokwanda, and family were not involved in his murder in 2005. Regional magistrate Dawn Soomaroo made her findings public after a judicial investigation, which lasted about a month, in Bloemfontein.
South Africa’s manufacturing sector remains ”resilient” amid global pressures, but the price of carbon steel is holding back the country’s industrial drive, a senior government official said on Tuesday. The Cabinet approved a multi-pronged industrial action plan last year to help drive Africa’s strongest economy in its quest to achieve a 6% growth rate by 2010.
The xenophobic attacks in Gauteng appeared to have subsided, a provincial spokesperson said on Wednesday. However, KwaZulu-Natal police are monitoring a possible outbreak of attacks there. ”There are no new reports of attacks,” said Thabo Masebe, deputy director of communications for the provincial government.