An unseemly ”fit of pique” was how Aids activists in South Africa were on Wednesday describing the decision by controversial Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang to boycott an Aids conference in Durban this week over a perceived snub.
Somalia’s transitional government on Wednesday ordered three local private radio stations to stop broadcasting from the country’s capital. Mogadishu-based stations Shabelle Radio, Radio HornAfrik and Voice of the Qur’an radio stopped broadcasting early on Wednesday afternoon, a media correspondent said.
About 81% of companies experience difficulty in recruiting staff due to a shortage of skills, a survey released on Wednesday has found. Known as the National Remuneration Guide, the survey, released by the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche, was conducted in February.
A 27-year-old German man described by the Vatican as ”clearly deranged” leaped over a barricade on Wednesday and tried to jump on to Pope Benedict’s open-topped jeep. The man took the pope’s bodyguards by surprise in St Peter’s Square, coming within a metre of the pontiff in an episode that brought back memories of the assassination attempt against his predecessor.
Stormers loose forward Luke Watson will make his Springbok debut on Saturday after being named on Wednesday in a new-look South African starting XV for a one-off Test against Samoa. Watson was not chosen by coach Jake White in his original 45-man training squad for the Tests against England and Samoa.
Two Merseyside detectives have lost their jobs for taking a prolific offender out of jail and buying him drinks in an attempt to clear up unsolved crimes, police said on Wednesday. The prisoner was also taken out to visit his girlfriend. The unnamed officers had 45 years’ service between them.
Political infighting should not be allowed to affect municipal service delivery, Provincial and Local Government Minister Sydney Mufamadi said on Wednesday. ”Political parties and other organisations who took part in the 2006 local government elections must also take stock of their contribution since the elections,” he told MPs in the National Assembly.
Anti-apartheid activist Winnie Madikizela-Mandela may have been denied entry into Canada this week because of a her previous criminal records, Canadian newspapers reported on Wednesday. The National Post reported that a spokesperson for Citizenship and Immigration Canada had suggesed that the visa application was rejected because of her criminal record.
South Africa’s business confidence eased slightly in May after a set of disappointing economic data that should influence sentiment in coming months, the South African Chamber of Business said on Wednesday. Sacob’s Business Confidence Index pulled back 1,7 index points to 100,2 in May from April’s 101,9.
Fidel Castro appeared alert and upbeat in his first television interview since falling ill last year, but he gave no hint of a possible return to power. The Cuban leader spoke with passion about various subjects for almost 50 minutes in an interview broadcast on state television on Tuesday.