Andrew Worsdale The Siege was the number-one box office hit in South Africa this week and has grossed R1 979 136. But many Muslim organisations would like the movie banned. Director Edward Zwick’s thriller has been causing controversy around the world. The film revolves around an FBI agent attempting to root out an Arab-American “terrorist” […]
Stephen Gray THE JOURNAL OF GUSTAF DE VYLDER (Van Riebeeck Society) The latest (1998) volume in the Second Series of the Van Riebeeck Society’s noble list of publications has, in fact, been available to specialists from the National Archives of Namibia since 1992. But now, for a wider general readership, here is The Journal of […]
THE ALL-TRUE TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES OF LIDIE NEWTON by Jane Smiley (Flamingo) Jane Smiley is best known for her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, A Thousand Acres, and in her new book she returns to rural life in the United States’s Midwest. This time, though, she goes back in time to the years leading up to the […]
Angella Johnson: VIEW FROM A BROAD There are many clubs for travellers. There’s the mile-high club, that exclusive group of people who have copulated 10 000m above ground. Then there are numerous frequent-flyer clubs. Well, I’ve just joined what should be called the deportation club. It was not by choice and certainly does not have […]
FORMER Lesotho prime minister Ntsu Mokhehle died on Wednesday night at a hospital in Bloemfontein, Lesotho government officials confirmed on Thursday. The 80-year-old former head of state fell ill during celebrations to mark his birthday on December 26 and was rushed to hospital in Bloemfontein, where he remained until he died. Mokhehle was treated for […]
LACK of funds, textbooks and teachers has prevented Tanzania from effectively carrying out Aids education among students, an official with the Ministry of Education and Culture has said on Friday. The Daily Mail newspaper reported that that a curriculum for Aids was introduced in 1990 but did not reach class rooms until last year due […]
Mail & Guardian reporter The Mail & Guardian and the Freedom of Expression Institute have won a landmark legal battle in the Cape High Court which could see changes made to the Defence Act, particularly the way the army conducts its courts martial. “The present case is a perfect example of why the provisions [of […]
Evidence wa ka Ngobeni Most state schools will not have textbooks when they open their gates next week, despite promises from the Department of Education and President Nelson Mandela that delivery would be on track this year. Five provinces approached by the Mail & Guardian said grades one, two and 12 will receive their books […]
The David Gleason Column First you saw it, now you don’t. Shareholders, investors and analysts alike will be forgiven for being truly nonplussed by the turns of events surrounding Driefontein, one of South Africa’s richest gold mines, and Gold Fields and Anglogold. One minute Driefontein was the subject of a takeover which would have left […]
Cameron Duodu: LETTER FROM THE NORTH In its January 6 issue, The Washington Post reported: “United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has obtained what he regards as convincing evidence that UN arms inspectors helped collect eavesdropping intelligence used in United States efforts to undermine the Iraqi regime, according to confidants who said he is deeply […]