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/ 10 December 2004
There is a fault line running through Ukraine that is a product of its history and people. To talk about the history of Ukraine as simply one of Russian occupation is to disenfranchise the voice and identity of a large chunk of its population. If you are not a Uniate Catholic from western Ukraine, you are likely to be Russian Orthodox from the east or south. Hence real democracy can only be achieved if it is accepted as a multi-ethnic state.
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/ 10 December 2004
Mozambique’s ruling party, Frelimo, surged ahead last week in unofficial results from the country’s recent election, puzzling analysts who had expected a neck-and-neck finish with the opposition Renamo. This drop in Renamo support was accompanied by an equally dramatic fall in voter turnout. ”People chose to stay in the fields — voting doesn’t fill the belly,” said independent journalist Marcelo Mosse.
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/ 10 December 2004
Even the urbane Arsène Wenger might get a little flustered. Whether he reads the newspapers or, more likely, his club’s statistics, the Arsenal manager must gape at the suddenness with which life has gone astray. The 3-0 win over Birmingham City at the weekend and the 5-1 thrashing of Rosenborg in the Champions League were a relief, but beating such quiescent visitors brings limited reassurance.
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/ 10 December 2004
Although Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will embrace Blair as a ”great friend” of Israel when Blair arrives for the two-day visit on December 21. Israel is increasingly wary that British Prime Minister Tony Blair will use his impending visit to force the pace of the peace process.
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/ 10 December 2004
To those who cheered the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) decision to ban the insufferably unsporting Sourav Ganguly for two Tests after his shenanigans with over rates in a one-day game against Pakistan, the inexplicable overturning of that decision before South Africa’s tour was simply more depressing confirmation of the extent to which Indian television money has a chokehold on the game.
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/ 10 December 2004
It has been nine months since Najim Abdullah Hamid was shot dead as he drove up to a United States military checkpoint on his way home. Despite repeated requests by his relatives, no one from the Iraqi or US military authorities has agreed to investigate or accept responsibility. His death, on March 7, has gone unnoticed save in the family’s small apartment in Saydiya in south Baghdad.
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/ 10 December 2004
Like that tatty old pair of socks in the back of your cupboard you keep meaning to throw out, Glenn Hoddle just keeps coming back when everything else is in the wash. I guess he’s not smelly and he still looks okay, but, like those socks, he’s darned full of holes as a manager.
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/ 10 December 2004
In their 67 years in football Pirates have produced some of the best players in South Africa (Jomo Sono and Kaizer Motaung, for example) and won the league title more than any other team. They’ve annexed the Premier Soccer League twice since its inception just over a decade ago and seem on course to equal Sundowns’ record of three PSL crowns.
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/ 10 December 2004
The British Grand Prix, threatened with cancellation in recent months, will stay on the formula-one calendar for the next five years at Silverstone. Jordan team owner Eddie Jordan confirmed the deal was reached on Thursday between the British Racing Drivers’ Club — owners of the Silverstone circuit — and formula-one chief Bernie Ecclestone.
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/ 10 December 2004
The South African Rugby Players’ Association on Thursday welcomed the arbitration award handed down by the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). This arbitration award originates from the fact that at the end of 2003, then Springbok coach Rudolf Straeuli made certain undertakings to a number of players.