Staff Reporter
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/ 31 January 2008

Decision to prosecute Sasol employees welcomed

The labour minister has welcomed the decision by the National Prosecuting Authority to prosecute two Sasol employees in connection with an explosion in 2004 in which ten people were killed. ”We are happy that our recommendations for prosecution have resulted in someone having to account for the flouting of … laws,” said Membathisi Mdladlana on Thursday.

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/ 31 January 2008

Report highlights safety threat to Durban rivers

Several Durban rivers are polluted with health-threatening levels of E. coli bacteria, sometimes at levels hundreds of times over the recommended safety limits for drinking, washing, swimming or canoeing, the Mercury reported on Thursday. The eThekwini municipality has been singled out as one of the ”most significant” polluters.

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/ 31 January 2008

Polish man struggles to return from the dead

Piotr Kucy (38) from the city of Polkowice in south-west Poland was wrongly identified by authorities last August as a drowned man, only to show up a few days after his own funeral. Despite pointing out the fact that he was alive to government officials, Kucy still remains dead in official records, stopping him from working and paying social insurance.

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/ 31 January 2008

Suicide bomber strikes in Kabul

A suicide bomber targeted an Afghan army bus in the centre of Kabul on Thursday, causing numerous casualties, officials said. One civilian was killed and four people were wounded, including an army officer, they said. A purported Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, said one of the militant group’s suicide bombers was responsible for the blast.

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/ 31 January 2008

Margaret Truman, daughter of US president, dies

Margaret Truman Daniel, the only child of former United States president Harry S Truman who was known for her mystery novels and singing career, died on January 29 after a brief illness. Truman was in college when her father, who was serving as vice-president, became the president following the death of Franklin D Roosevelt in 1945.

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/ 31 January 2008

Tough task awaits Sevens Boks

An opening game against Australia clearly illustrates the massive task awaiting the Springbok Sevens team on Friday, when the third International Rugby Board Sevens tournament of the 2007/08 season kicks off in the Kiwi capital, Wellington. The South Africans are grouped together with the Aussies, France and Kenya in Pool C, by far the toughest of the four pools.

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/ 31 January 2008

ICC admits blunder in Harbhajan case

International Cricket Council chief Malcolm Speed said on Thursday the organisation accepted the blame for the administrative blunder that enabled Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh to escape a stiffer penalty in his racial-abuse case. Harbhajan’s three-Test suspension for allegedly racially abusing Australian Andrew Symonds was overturned on Tuesday.

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/ 31 January 2008

Cops raid Zimbabwean refugee sanctuary

South African police have raided a church that was a sanctuary for Zimbabwean refugees, arresting scores of suspected illegal immigrants, the South African Broadcasting Corporation said on Thursday. The raid occurred at about midnight on Wednesday at the Central Methodist Church in Johannesburg, which has become a virtual refugee camp for those fleeing Zimbabwe.