South Africa’s last white president, FW de Klerk, threw a 70th birthday party on Friday attended by fellow Nobel laureate Nelson Mandela, the man he freed from prison as apartheid crumbled. ”Around the world people recognise you as a historic peacemaker and nation-builder,” Mandela said.
Every night in Buenos Aires is tango night. Throughout the city milongas — the word for any place that tango is danced — proliferate. There are tourist-trap milongas, traditional milongas, modern milongas. There is even a seniors’ milonga, where couples trickle round the room with a grace that is a million miles from Strictly Come Dancing pyrotechnics.
The stereotype of the overly litigious American, poised to call a lawyer at the first splash of hot coffee from a poorly sealed cup, can be overplayed. But the tale of the Californian who tried to sue himself is probably not going to help matters. Curtis Gokey was understandably furious when a lorry belonging to the city of Lodi, California, backed into his pickup truck last month, causing damage estimated at 600 — although he was the one driving the lorry.
Justice appeared to have caught up with Charles Taylor, the former warlord turned president of Liberia, on Friday when Nigeria confirmed it had received a request from the Liberian government to extradite him. Taylor (58) was forced into exile in Nigeria three years ago under a peace deal ending 14 years of civil war.
Australia’s superstar women swimmers pushed the hosts futher ahead in the Commonwealth Games gold chase on Saturday as a fascinating battle for individual glory unfolded. Libby Lenton won her second gold in the pool as she continued her pursuit of six titles while compatriot Leisel Jones captured her second victory in what could be a unique breaststroke treble.
Australia are keenly feeling the absence of superstars Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett and have yet to land a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games after winning 15 golds at the last Manchester Games. While Australia’s world champion women lord it over their rivals, winning seven of eight finals on the first three nights, the men are empty-handed.
Batsheva Frankel was tired of being told she should be happy simply to find a husband who was breathing, let alone someone with a good sense of humour or close to her age. But thanks to a website called Frumster.com, the Orthodox Jewish school teacher proved them wrong.
A baboon was still on the loose in Wadeville on the East Rand on Friday after evading attempts to capture it, police said. The fully grown male baboon, weighing about 60kg, has been roaming the East Rand for the past three weeks, spending each night on the roof of a different block of flats.
The Canterbury Crusaders are making a sterling early-season defence of their southern hemisphere rugby title. The Christchurch, New Zealand-based Crusaders, winners of the final Super 12 title last season, are perfect after six matches in the expanded Super 14, beating South Africa’s Cats 43-15 on Friday to open the sixth round.
The Pretoria High Court has reserved judgement in an application by a Gauteng chef to change intestate legislation that prevents him from inheriting his gay partner’s estate. Henley-on-Klip chef Mark Gory sought an order declaring unconstitutional a Section of the Intestate Succession Act of 1987.