No image available
/ 19 November 2007
South Africa is a leader in how human rights issues are dealt with at the United Nations, the Department of Foreign Affairs said on Sunday. The department was responding to a Sunday Times report that the country’s human rights reputation was ”in tatters” after a series of ”sell-out” votes.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
Ukraine was on Sunday night mourning one of the deadliest mining disasters in its 16-year history as an independent country, after at least 56 people were killed in an underground explosion — with 44 still missing. Rescue teams said there was almost no hope of finding more survivors at the Donbass colliery in eastern Ukraine.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Monday rubber-stamped President Pervez Musharraf’s contested re-election victory in October, after he purged the court of hostile judges. ”Five petitions have been dismissed. One is pending and it will be heard on Thursday,” said the Attorney General Malik Qayyum.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
Government is paying parents to save for their children’s higher education. The Association of Collective Investments — in partnership with the education department — has launched a savings plan for tertiary education where government pays an additional 25% of whatever parents have saved for the year as a bonus to beef up the savings plan, writes Maya Fisher-French.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
South Africans venturing online to buy music downloads need to shop around, because some retailers can be almost 12 times more expensive than others. The cheapest download option available to South Africans appears to be eMusic, the R130 a month subscription that allows consumers 75 songs at R1,70 each. The most expensive option appears to be Exactmobile, which charges a whopping R20 a song.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
Like General George Custer, General Pervez Musharraf has got himself surrounded — and is looking for a way out. Pakistan’s famous Indian-fighter, who gained prominence in the 1999 Kargil conflict with Delhi, is under hostile fire from the opposition, the professional classes, the judiciary, the mullahs and the media.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
Ongoing road works on South Africa’s busy routes has resulted in a surge in reports of windscreen chips and cracks. "But, the good news for consumers is that having windscreens repaired or replaced would seldom effect their premiums and result in them losing their no-claims bonus," says Santam’s Caroline da Silva.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
‘Tis the season to be jolly — but consumers need to be more vigilant than ever when banking and shopping online over the festive season, warns Standard Bank, as criminals are at their most active at this time. Consumers often get so wrapped up in the joys of the festive season that they make themselves vulnerable to con artists.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
In September 2006 I sought to prevent the <i>Mail & Guardian</i> from publishing a story detailing allegations of possible fraud, violations of tender rules and contraventions of the Public Finance Management Act that took place while I was head of the South African Post Office, writes Maanda Manyatshe.
No image available
/ 19 November 2007
Not every former coal miner and farmer dreams of taking on Citibank, but maybe they will after hearing the story of Jiang Jianqing. Jiang’s name first appeared in the local press as a result of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China’s (ICBC) purchase of a 20% stake in Standard Bank for R36,7-billion. This is not incidental; Jiang is ICBC’s president and chairman. But despite his power relatively little is known about him locally.