Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama may be allowed to visit China if he ”completely abandons” independence ambitions, the nation’s religious affairs chief said in comments published on Monday. ”As long as the Dalai Lama makes clear that he has completely abandoned Tibetan ‘independence’, it is not impossible for us to consider his visit.”
The South African Revenue Service (Sars) has collected R1-billion more than the revised budget of R417-billion for the past financial year, Minister of Finance Trevor Manuel said on Monday. Sars collected R418,116-billion, which is R45,3-billion more than the original estimate of R372,8-billion.
Some cases in Port Elizabeth’s Magistrate’s Court have been delayed by up to 10 years and others are being withdrawn because of absent magistrates, media reports said on Monday. In the latest blow, 10 cases in which children were either raped or indecently assaulted were struck off the roll this week.
Playboy, the United States-based adult publisher and broadcaster, is considering using Britain as a testing ground for moving into the gay market for the first time, The Times newspaper said on Monday. Playboy wants to launch a new gay brand to boost revenues, the daily said.
Sudanese authorities have refused to extend the mandate of the Norwegian non-governmental organisation Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), which heads the main refugee camp in Darfur, sheltering some 100 000 people, the organisation announced on Monday.
The South African Transport and Allied Workers’ Union (Satawu) on Monday called for a pay agreement that ended a security-guard strike by 14 other unions to be undone. Satawu distanced itself from the settlement reached on Sunday, saying it would continue its strike from Monday morning.
Pace bowler Mohammad Asif took his maiden five-wicket haul in Test cricket for Pakistan on Monday to restrict Sri Lanka to 267-8 wickets in their first innings at stumps on the first day of the second Test. After skipper Inzamam ul-Haq elected to bowl first after winning the toss, Asif bowled with accuracy, moving the ball both ways on a seaming pitch.
Ever wondered what other people look up on the internet? Search engine Google keeps track of the top queries entered around the world with Google Zeitgeist. According to the California-based company, Zeitgeist is supposed to reveal a little about the general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of the era we find ourselves in today. The word "zeitgeist" comes from the German language, "zeit" meaning time and "geist" meaning spirit.
Yuvraj Singh’s smashing century led India to a 49-run victory on Monday in the third limited-overs international against England, giving the home team a 3-0 lead in the seven-match series. Singh’s blazing 103, his seventh one-day century, helped India post 294-6 in 50 overs. In reply, England were bowled out for 245 in 48.5 overs, despite a defiant 93 by Paul Collingwood.
Faded pop superstar Michael Jackson was on Friday crowned as the United States’s most foolish person in 2006, narrowly beating out trigger-happy US Vice-President Dick Cheney for the title. The 47-year-old "King of Pop" snatched the dishonour for the fourth year running.