Staff Reporter
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/ 6 July 2004

Quake rocks flood-stricken Taiwan

An earthquake measuring 5,8 on the Richter scale rocked Taiwan on Tuesday as the island struggled with the aftermath of massive floods that have claimed at least 23 lives. The tremor shook high-rise buildings as authorities were still coping with the aftermath of weekend floods and mudslides left in the wake of Typhoon Mindulle.

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/ 6 July 2004

Diepsloot still on edge after violence

The situation in Diepsloot remained tense after violence in the area on Monday, the police and members of the South African Civic Association (Sanco) said on Tuesday. "The situation is very bad for now. What I see is people running through the streets," said Nkosana Dube, the spokesperson for Sanco in Diepsloot.
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?ao=118259">Rubber bullets fly in Diepsloot</a>

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/ 6 July 2004

Botswana slams Bushmen land claims ‘gimmick’

Botswana launched a stinging attack on Tuesday on the human rights group supporting San Bushmen in a land claim in the desert Southern African country, calling it a "fund-raising gimmick". Judges continued inspections in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve,where the Bushmen lived before they were evicted in 1997.
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?ao=118200">Bushmen land claim ‘nonsense'</a>

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/ 6 July 2004

Milosevic’s poor health hits trial

Judges at Slobodan Milosevic’s war crimes trial on Monday ordered a ”radical review” of the hearing after the defendant’s poor health forced a fresh postponement of a case that has already dragged on for more than two years. So far he has defended himself against charges of genocide.

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/ 6 July 2004

Mbeki, Obasanjo arrive in Addis for AU meeting

South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki and his Nigerian counterpart Olusegun Obasanjo were among the first leaders to arrive at the conference centre where the third ordinary session of the assembly of the African Union is taking place. A brass band from the Ethiopian police force and a traditional Ethiopian band welcomed delegates on a wet and rainy Tuesday morning.

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/ 6 July 2004

‘Smuggling of diamonds happening every day’

While the number of legally exported diamonds from Sierra Leone had increased, reports indicate 40% of diamonds leaving the country were smuggled out. Blood diamonds funded fighting in Sierra Leone in the aftermath of the civil war which ended two years ago. The government eventually clamped down on the illegal trade through the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme.

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/ 6 July 2004

Kung fu monks look for legal protection

Shaolin temple, the home of kung fu, has extended its self-defence strategy from martial arts to trademark protection. Monks at the 1 500-year-old Buddhist temple in Henan province plan to register the Shaolin name in more than 80 countries to prevent what they claim is its improper use to promote cigarettes, beer, lingerie and bogus schools.