All Johannesburg municipal workers who participated in a strike earlier this week are to return to work by Friday, city officials said. The Johannesburg Labour Court on Thursday ruled in favour of the city and prevented a secondary strike by the South African Municipal Workers’ Union.
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Time has done little to erode the shock and nothing to erase the pain felt in New Zealand after France came back from the brink to win the 1999 World Cup semifinal. A match New Zealand had seemingly won was lost in the most astonishing reverse in the 20-year history of the World Cup.
The South African Human Rights Commission has spoken out against children’s rights violations at Chris Hani-Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto, where newborn babies were put in a cardboard box. ”The commission reiterates that section 10 of the Bill of Rights provides that everyone has inherent dignity,” spokesperson Vincent Moaga said in a statement on Thursday.
Even with a new man at the helm in acclaimed former Platinum Stars coach Owen de Gama, the Orlando Pirates ship continued to flounder at Ellis Park on Wednesday night as the Buccaneers slumped to a 5-4 penalty shoot-out defeat against Benoni Premier United after a dramatic Telkom Knockout game finished 1-1 after extra-time.
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South Africa coach Jake White said that hatching a victory over Fiji in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal in Marseilles on Sunday was not ”rocket science”. Possession of the ball in contact against Fiji, an area where South Africa suffered in their narrow 30-25 pool victory over Tonga, was essential, said White.
International elder statesmen, including two Nobel Peace Prize winners, said on Thursday that Darfur was rife with violence and deeply divided after returning from the Sudanese region. They warned rape was widespread and being ignored by the Sudanese authorities and also urged Khartoum to hand over war-crimes suspects for trial at the International Criminal Court.
Fresh from summit diplomacy with North Korea, South Korea’s government now faces an entirely new challenge — trying to set international quality and size standards for condoms. The five-day meeting, organised by the International Organisation for Standardisation and the Seoul government, will begin next Monday on the southern resort island of Jeju.
Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Riaz Muhammad Khan on Wednesday urged the United States to be more patient as his country fights extremists in tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. Khan acknowledged his country suffered an ”image problem” but said there needed to be a greater understanding of the enormous challenges.
AC Milan and Liverpool were upset in the Champions League on Wednesday, and Chelsea won 2-1 at Valencia with a late goal from Didier Drogba. Defending champion Milan lost at Celtic 2-1 after a 90th-minute goal from Scott McDonald. After the goal, a fan ran onto the field and made contact with Milan goalkeeper Dida.
Zimbabwean unions have called off a teachers’ strike after agreeing to a wage deal with President Robert Mugabe’s government, which faces growing pressure from labour amid a deepening economic crisis. Thousands of primary and high school teachers went on strike on Monday to press demands for pay increases.