Mail & Guardian
Mail & Guardian
David Smith

Creator

David Smith

The productions of playwright and director Athol Fugard have profoundly transformed South African theatre.

FROM THE ARCHIVES | Athol Fugard: All is not, and never will be, lost

As SA’s most decorated playwright, takes to the stage for the last time, he explains why he will never lose his optimism for the country’s future.

US President Donald Trump’s land-for-peace formula feeds into Russian President Vladimir Putin’s revanchism. Photo: File

Trump attacks Clinton as victories set stage for brutal election

Battle lines appear drawn for general election as Republican frontrunner says Democrat has nothing going for her except ‘the woman’s card’.

US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton arrives at her Super Tuesday primary night party in Miami

Trump marches toward nomination as Clinton sweeps south on Super Tuesday

Trump and Clinton win seven states and start to look toward general election even as Cruz and Sanders each claim victory in multiple states.

This Sound Africa podcast investigates the persistent rumour that a black man named Hamilton Naki played a much bigger role in the first heart transplant surgery than he is given credit for. (Image: Sound Africa)

Man held at Guantánamo for 13 years a case of mistaken identity

Mustafa al-Aziz al-Shamiri was low-level Islamist foot soldier, not an al-Qaeda courier and trainer as had been believed.

The African hands that reached out to help a British journalist

David Smith reflects on a Machiavellian Jacob Zuma, a warped Robert Mugabe, and the people of South Africa and the continent who won his admiration.

‘Silent killer’ ravages Madagascar’s children

Almost half of Madagascan children under five suffer from chronic malnutrition, yet less than 0.5% of the national budget is spent on the problem.

Towering dispute: Earlier this month Absa announced Daniel Mminele’s departure, citing differences over strategy between him and the board.

Cartoon of Zuma’s penis: Limp humour or hardline free speech?

R is for Respect refers to controversy over The Spear, another painting depicting the president’s genitalia, which led to 2012 protests.

ANC members at the Nkandla ad hoc parliamentary committee.

Never too old to learn the three Rs

Mohammud Modibbo, thought to be the oldest pupil in Nigeria, has died at the age of 94.

Spring Rose versus Despatch.

Can the Rainbow Nation ever shine through South Africa’s fog of racism?

Malwande Mhamhe, a promising black player, tells David Smith how prejudice forced him out of the game and lifts the lid on attitudes in SA rugby.

The Mapungubwe gold rhino is exhibited at the Javett-UP Art Centre’s  interactive Gold of Africa Gallery

‘The world must see our golden rhino’

Considered the equivalent of Tutankhamun’s mask, this symbol of precolonial civilisation could leave South Africa for the first time.

Oscar Pistorius release: ‘Reeva would have been 32 today’

Steenkamp’s parents are remembering their daughter on what would have been her 32nd birthday, two days before the planned release of Oscar Pistorius.

Russia is planning to roll out Covid-19 vaccines from September

Africa hits a high point in the fight against polio

The continent is two years away from being certified polio-free but violent insurgencies could hamper efforts to finally eradicate the virus.

Protesters staked out the clinic of Walter Palmer

Zim won’t take Zuma’s Cecil jibe lying down

President Jacob Zuma’s "undiplomatic" reaction to the death of Cecil the Lion at US hunter Walter Palmer’s hand fails to amuse in Zimbabwe.

Peacekeepers probed for rape, killing

Men sent to stabilise the Central African Republic are accused of sexual violation and civilian death.

Jeffreys Bay considers drones and spotters after shark attack

Officials are examining options such as hilltop lookouts to avoid a repeat of the scare involving Australian surfer Mick Fanning.

Steenkamp parents condemn decision to free Pistorius

The parents of Reeva Steenkamp have condemned a decision to free the Paralympian on parole in August, when he will have served just 10 months in jail.

Amnesty International calls for probe into Nigerian army war crimes

The organisation wants senior military officers investigated for war crimes including murder, starvation, suffocation and torture.

South Africans gathered at Clifton beach on Tuesday to remember the slaves that died at sea. A shipwreck was recently found.

South Africans honour slaves drowned in 1794 shipwreck

A small, solemn memorial service was held close to a recently discovered shipwreck where over 200 African slaves drowned at the bottom of the sea.

Documentary photographer Mary Ellen Mark shoots Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole as he talks with a Kansas resident.

Mary Ellen Mark, champion of ‘people on the edges’, dies

Mark, whose unflinching portraits of child prostitutes, mental patients and the homeless made her a leading documentary photographer, has died at 75.

Expectations of the stern and resolute general are sky high.

Buhari: From despot to ‘democrat’

Nigerians have placed their faith in a former dictator to crack down on graft and Boko Haram.