Health care in the Eastern Cape faces a collapse in surgical services if a shortage of general surgeons continues, Dispatch Online reported on Tuesday. It quoted Association of Surgeons in South Africa chairperson Dr Sats Pillay as saying: ”I have nobody to train as surgeons.”
Veteran anti-apartheid activist Helen Suzman is still recovering in hospital after a fall 10 days ago, said an official at Johannesburg’s Milpark Hospital on Tuesday. ”She is still in the general ward and making slow progress, as one does at her age,” said Milpark spokesperson Amelda Swartz. ”Yesterday [Monday] she was up and moving with her walker.”
The government will look at buying up commercially available agricultural land in an attempt to speed up land reform, Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs Lulu Xingwana said on Tuesday. She was speaking after a presidential working group meeting on agriculture in Pretoria.
South African mining company JCI has agreed to sell its majority stake in Lesotho’s only diamond mine in a multimillion-dollar deal, the buyer announced on Monday. Gem Diamonds said in a statement that JCI and its black empowerment partner, Matodzi, agreed to sell its 76% share in Letseng diamond mine in a deal worth R879-million.
Martina Hingis breezed to victory on Tuesday in her first match back at Wimbledon, five years after her last appearance here and nine years on since the Swiss star won the title as a 16-year-old. Despite the 6-2, 6-2 margin, the 12th seed was made to work hard by Ukrainian Olga Savchuk in the rain-disrupted match, which was carried over from Monday.
The South African mediator in the Burundi peace talks on Tuesday shot down claims of a walkout by the country’s last remaining rebel group. South African Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula said the perceived walkout was ”participants breaking into small groups to continue talks”.
The sharing of information between businesses about cash-in-transit heists and robberies will play an important role in the reduction of the crime rate in South Africa, Business Against Crime South Africa said on Tuesday. Chief executive Kenny Fihla said 18 businesses signed an agreement in Johannesburg on Tuesday to exchange ideas and information on robberies.
The chairperson of the Boland rugby team being investigated after the death of a rugby opponent says racism sparked the incident, Independent Online reported on Tuesday. Delicious Rugby Club chairperson Bennie Leendertz claimed racial taunts caused the outbreak of on-field violence that eventually led to the death of 24-year-old flyhalf Riaan Loots.
The last male child in a family of many boys is likely to be gay, Canadian researchers have found. The study found that ”the most consistent bio-demographic correlate of sexual orientation in men is the number of older brothers [one has]” and not social influences.
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World Cup organiser Franz Beckenbauer on Tuesday added his voice to the criticism of refereeing at the tournament, saying match officials were failing to keep a grip on matches. ”They haven’t got the situation 100% under control,” said Beckenbauer, who won the World Cup as a player and a coach.