The South African Rugby Union is ”an absolute disgrace” and the Springboks should be kicked out of the Tri-Nations, says David Moffett, one of the chief architects of Sanzar. Moffett said that Australia and New Zealand had to cut South Africa from the next television deal, and instead play more trans-Tasman matches.
South Africa’s high murder rate rose further in the past year while rape figures dropped, according to police statistics on Tuesday. With around 50 murders, 148 rapes and nearly 700 serious assaults committed each day, violent crime is a particular concern.
It is a sport with a history stretching back more than two millennia; its most ardent fans have included emperors and feudal lords; and to be cradled in the arms of one of its practitioners as a child supposedly guarantees a life of robust health. Now Japan’s national sport is fearing for its future after if failed to attract a single new recruit for the first time in its history.
South African new vehicle sales declined by 12,1% year-on-year in June, data showed on Tuesday, as the effects of higher interest rates pinched household budgets. The National Association of Automobile Manufacturers said 50Â 056 new units were sold in June compared with 56Â 927 in the same month last year.
Kenya is trying to clamp down on a sect, the Mungiki, accused of occultist rituals and beheadings, but which is also seen as a threat to stability. Analysts say the Mungiki is more of an organised criminal gang with political ties than a sect and they warn that such groups could multiply in the crime-prone country.
A decline in the number of dairy farmers has added to unemployment, the Milk Producers’ Organisation (MPO) said on Tuesday. The MPO said the number of milk producers has fallen from 7 200 in 1998 to the current 3 800. The managing director of the MPO, Etienne Terre’blanche, said an estimated 66 000 people worked on dairy farms.
Somali gunmen shot dead a senior government official in a troubled Mogadishu district and a teenager died when munitions left behind by African Union peacekeepers exploded, officials said on Tuesday. The seaside capital has witnessed an upsurge in attacks by insurgents targeting interim government officials.
Mamelodi Sundowns officials gave the uncomfortable impression on Monday that they were skirting between the devil and the deep blue sea when the issue of Peter Ndlovu staying at the club was raised. And it’s not surprising either considering that the signing of Ndlovu also constituted one of the biggest transfer gaffes committed by a Premier Soccer League club.
Wallaby winger Lote Tuqiri was banned for two matches and fined Aus 000 (about US 000) on Tuesday after an alcohol breath test showed he had breached team discipline, the Australian Rugby Union said. The punishment rules Tuqiri out of Australia’s final Tri-Nations matches against South Africa and New Zealand.
Author JK Rowling was to lead the cast of <i>Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix</i> down the red carpet in London on Tuesday for the film’s much-anticipated official world premiere. Excitement was building ahead of the star-studded London event, with thrilled fans expected to pack into Leicester Square for a glimpse of their heroes.