British Prime Minister Tony Blair, ending weeks of speculation, announced on Tuesday a general election for May 5 that he hopes will give his Labour Party a third straight term in power. ”I’ve just been to Buckingham Palace to ask the queen to dissolve Parliament,” Blair told reporters and TV crews outside his Downing Street residence.
South Africa is one of three countries lagging behind as the World Health Organisation tries to get anti-retroviral drugs to three million people with HIV/Aids by the end of 2005. Of the 20 countries that have the highest ARV need, only Botswana and Brazil have met the interim goals of ”3 by 5”, with South Africa faring the worst.
In the latest corruption scandal to rock Nigeria, President Olusegun Obasanjo has cancelled the sale of 207 government houses at knockdown prices after discovering that close relatives of his wife and several cabinet ministers were to have been among the beneficiaries of this controversial deal.
Daniela saw him as a statue, Giulia like her dead grandfather, and Chiara could not believe how such a great man could look so small. At least 100Â 000 mourners continued on Tuesday to queue for hours on end in and around St Peter’s Square, waiting for a fleeting moment to say goodbye to Pope John Paul II.
An animal rights group on Tuesday called for an investigation into the deaths of four sea lions, 10 dogs and seven cats belonging to Russia’s state circus that burned to death in a fire in India. ”We are going to court to ensure that there is an inquiry,” said Anuradha Sawhney of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Schoolchildren may soon be allowed to wear beards if the proposed national guidelines on school uniforms are introduced later this year, Parliament was told on Tuesday. ”A uniform may not impede or infringe upon any constitutional right,” said the deputy director for education and training in the Department of Education.
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A forensic auditor has told the Schabir Shaik fraud and corruption trial that money paid on behalf of Deputy President Jacob Zuma did not affect the financial state of Shaik’s Nkobi group of companies. Gregory Johnson, who runs a private auditing and accounting firm, was giving evidence for the defence.
Yet another retrenchment shock is due to hit South Africa, this time at dairy giant Clover South Africa, according to trade union Solidarity. The union claimed that Clover plans to save approximately R100-million in personnel expenses this year.
Minister of Finance Trevor Manuel’s mother worked at Cape Town garment maker Rex Trueform for 18 years; trade unionist turned MP Connie September clocked in at the factory; and before 65-year-old community radio veteran Zane Ibrahim was born, his mother also worked there. Today 1 000 jobs are threatened by the looming closure of Cape Town’s — and South Africa’s — oldest clothing manufacturer.
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United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan is pleased weekend elections in Zimbabwe were relatively peaceful, but is concerned over the fairness of the vote, his spokesperson said on Monday. Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai has slammed the elections as a ”massive fraud”.